Public is for All

I went to see Diane Ravitch speak on Friday evening, which added sparks to my ever burning flame in my rally against Oprah, and was also very moved by much of what she had to say.

I think one of the most telling things she said was what is great about American public schools: we serve as the world’s model for free education. We accept all students. We do not discriminate based on ability level, handicap, gender, race, or socioeconomic status. We accept all students, and we always will. Students will never have to enter a lottery and hope that, by chance, they will receive an education. Students will never have to compete with other students to receive an education. They are always welcome at their local public schools. And when other schools have given up on them, schools that they either need to pay for or apply to or gamble their way into, our doors will be open to them. We will stand ready to educate them no matter what the challenge.

And we will stand ready to educate them no matter what the directive is from the bureaucratic machines in Washington DC or our state capitals. I know that my colleagues and I around the country will do our best no matter how much money is taken from our budgets, how many students are crammed into our classrooms (ahem, 41!), no matter how many high stakes standardized tests we must administer and cater to. We will always accept the nation’s children, and no matter how steep the uphill battle, we will always do the best we can to provide the best education for their future success.