The McGraw-Hill connection and reading/testing

[Stephen Krashen <krashen@USC.EDU>]

Now available on the web: Gerald Coles discusses McGraw Hill,
"scientific" studies of reading, and the new Bush Education Act. Bill
Wetzel discusses the testing movement.

http://www.webactive.com/webactive/pacifica/demnow.html



Here is the "lead in."




           Story: READING BETWEEN THE LINES: THE
           NEW EDUCATION LAW IS A VICTORY FOR
           BUSH - AND FOR HIS CORPORATE ALLIES

           Vice President Dick Cheney announced yesterday that
           the Whitehouse was prepared to go to court to fight the
           release of documents demanded by Congress as part of
           the investigation into the Enron scandal. But the head of
           the General Accounting Office disagrees and has vowed
           to file suit if the Whitehouse does not hand over the
           documents by the end of the week.

           Meanwhile, with eyes fixed on Enron, the nation has
           ignored what is perhaps the latest victory for crony
           politics. On January 8, the President signed into the law
           the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. It is the
           most ambitious federal overhaul of the public school
           system since the 1960s.

           The education act, commonly known as the "Leave No
           Child Behind Act," has been hailed by the mainstream
           media as a bipartisan triumph. The bill received the full
           support of Senators Edward Kennedy and Paul
           Wellstone; and when it came up for a vote in
           mid-December, both the House and the Senate voted
           overwhelmingly in its favor. But, for all the bi-partisan
           photo-ops and the cross-aisle handshakes, make no
           mistake: the education act of 2002 is a huge victory for
           Bush.

           Much like the Enron scandal, the Elementary and
           Secondary Education Act has its roots in old-boy
           connections and big business influence. In particular,
           the textbook and testing industries played a role in the
           legislation, crafting the policies from which they now
           stand to benefit. A fascinating article recently published
           in the Nation magazine lays out the connections
           clearly, beginning with the long and cozy relationship
           between Bush and the famous McGraw publishing
           family. "The amount of cross-pollination and mutual
           admiration between the Administration and [the
           McGraw Hill] empire is striking," writes Stephen
           Metcalf in "Reading Between the Lines. "Harold
           McGraw Jr. sits on the national grant advisory and
           founding board of the Barbara Bush Foundation for
           Family Literacy. McGraw in turn received the highest
           literacy award from President Bush in the early 1990s,
           for his contributions to the cause of literacy. The
           McGraw Foundation awarded current Bush Education
           Secretary Rod Paige its highest educator' s award while
           Paige was Houston's school chief . . . and Harold
           McGraw III was selected as a member of President
           George W. Bush's transition advisory team." But that's
           just the beginning.

           Today, we'll learn more about these connections as we
           speak with an educational psychologist and student
           activist about the big business behind the Bush
           education act.

           Guests:

             Gerald Coles, an educational psychologist who
             has written extensively on literacy and learning
             disabilities. He is the author of Reading Lessons:
             The Debate Over Literacy and Misreading
             Reading: the Bad Science that Hurts Children as
             well as numerous articles in educational and
             psychology journals. He is formerly a professor at
             Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and the
             University of Rochester. He now writes full-time
             and lives in Ithaca, New York.
             Bill Wetzel, founder, Students Against Testing.

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