Re: Restraint and Mass Refusal

[Monty Neill <monty@FAIRTEST.ORG>]

CARE groups across Mass have accumulated nearly 10,000 signatures on
petitions against the high stakes test <and> calling for an alternative
thus far. Half or more are useful for a database (address and or email),
and have been entered. They have been returned to the local CARE groups
so the local groups can use them. We will be doing a statewide mailing.

So, yes it is doable, yes it is useful, and yes in Mass it is already
being done, by CARE. More would of course be great.

One problem: we have spent a lot of money to pay someone to enter the
names. It can be done on volunteer basis, but thousands eats up huge
amounts of time. Of course, money too is limited.

Monty Neill

"George N. Schmidt" wrote:
>
> In a message dated 1/31/01 9:31:00 AM, SOhan70241@AOL.COM writes:
>
> << I think New Democracy's tactic of working with union locals, one by one, is
> the tactic to take. The nationals may be pro-testing but there is plenty of
> evidence that plenty of locals are anti-testing. And local resistance is
> pushing national, at least in the NEA. >>
>
> This point cannot be stated too forcefully.
>
> There is an election in the Chicago Teachers Union on May 18, 2001. I won't
> be running for anything because my recent termination has also placed my
> union membership in question (after nearly 40 continuous years of membership
> in various unions, going back to the old United Meatcutters and Butcher
> Workmen in New Jersey and then the Teamsters in Newark in the early 1960s.
> The leaders of the Chicago Teachers Union and their bosses in City Hall don't
> want our voices in "their" unions.
>
> Anyway, it looks like Chicago Teachers Union president Tom Reece will have
> opposition from Debbie Walsh (who once worked for Al Shanker in the AFT nation
> al office and who at one time was a prominent "reform" person). We will be
> covering the election stuff in a big way in Substance, and if people from
> everywhere remind the candidates that a lot rides on Chicago, it may in fact
> help.
>
> 1. Petitions. My one suggestion for the NewDem CARE thing is to give teachers
> something modest to do -- like sign a petition.
>
> A petition against high-stakes testing might be as much as some hearts can
> flutter towards at this point in history. But if the petition gets all
> necessary information (including home address and ZIP Code), it's also a
> mailing list. It's also a major fact that these bean counters we oppose count
> every darned bean. Last summer, they went nuts at the school board when
> dozens of people wrote letters in support of me. Their $127,000-per-year
> chief attorney was assigned to go through all the letters and tally up the
> exact precise number.
>
> A petition with hundreds of signatures is good.
>
> A petition with thousands is very interesting.
>
> A petition with hundreds of thousands will scare the noses off of the most
> Testocratic politician. The only thing they can do is count beans. Let's
> suffocate them in beans.
>
> 2. Curricular crimes tribunals. Although Teach Ins will be on the agenda for
> awhile, we might also think about having teachers, students and parents
> testify about the crimes committed against curriculum, kids and learning in
> each of the Testocracies. Filmed, these would turn out to be very powerful
> statements. How much drama, music, and art have you sacrificed to "raise"
> "reading scores" two points? How many books weren't read while kids drilled
> expensive test prep bubble sheets? Etc.
>
> 3. Outrage in their faces. One of the best actions we've ever witnessed was
> the June 2000 protest at the Detroit Board of Education meeting, which shut
> down the Board after the singing of "Lift Every Voice and Sing." We covered
> that story in Substance. It was exciting to be there, but nobody outside a
> handful of people even knew it happened because of the national media
> blackout on protests that was going on before the Gore and Bush people turned
> half of Florida into a circus for a month.
>
> Now that loudness is in, people might keep the Detroit example in mind. We'll
> provide details if necessary. It was great taking pictures of that one.
>
> Each of these things can be done patiently, in each state and city.
>
> We will try to cover as much as possible if people get us copy and graphics.
> At some point, a monthly won't be good enough to do the job, and our Web
> sites (where people have them) will also begin falling behind. But every
> cookie baked and every button worn will (hopefully) give rise to more teacher
> protest, so that this ignoble chapter in American teacher history gets turned
> around before too long.
>
> George N. Schmidt
> Editor, Substance
> 5132 W Berteau
> Chicago, IL 60641
> 773-725-7502
>
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------
> To unsubscribe from the ARN-L list, send command SIGNOFF ARN-L
> to LISTSERV@LISTS.CUA.EDU.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
To unsubscribe from the ARN-L list, send command SIGNOFF ARN-L
to LISTSERV@LISTS.CUA.EDU.