07 July 2012

The Curious Case of the T-P's reporting of LA School Test Results

The T-P ran a story Friday morning with the headline "Test scores rise for New Orleans, Louisiana high school students" by Andrew Vanacore. The first 2 paragraphs sound like good news, but continue on to page A7 to read a qualification: "But that improvement has not been reflected in the state's average score on the ACT, an exam that colleges and universities use to gauge whether students are ready for college-level work -- and one that Louisiana plans to emphasize in its new grading system for schools. Statewide, the average ACT score has risen less than 1 percent since 2007 and still lags behind the rest of the U.S., although this year's results haven't been released yet." 
If that sounds like the T-P editor is shilling for Jindal and for Charter schools, cast a gander at the chart in the article that shows the test results. It clearly shows that charter schools rank far behind the Orleans Parish School Board schools.
This crap makes me want to cancel my subscription--but wait, the T-P is doing that for me. 
The much vaunted nola.com buries the story--it can only be read after persistent digging. This does not bode well for our fair city.

05 July 2012

United Labor, Unions: such a bad name now. Yet more than a century ago Labor Unions were the progressive trend in American politics. They fought for things that are taken for granted now: an 8 hour shift, a 40 hour work week, paid vacation, sick pay. Now Bobby J and his nasty Neo-Con cohorts work tirelessly to reverse what our brothers and sisters have achieved.
I remember this song from when I was in high school (a public school, which Jindal is working hard to destroy):

The Strawbs:


Now I'm a union man
Amazed at what I am
I say what I think, that the company stinks
Yes I'm a union man

When we meet in the local hall
I'll be voting with them all
With a hell of a shout, it's "Out brothers, out!"
And the rise of the factory's fall

Oh, you don't get me, I'm part of the union
You don't get me, I'm part of the union
You don't get me, I'm part of the union
Until the day I die
Until the day I die

The union has made me wise
To the lies of the company spies
And I don't get fooled by the factory rules
'cause I always read between the lines

And I always get my way
If I strike for higher pay
When I show my card to the Scotland Yard
And this is what I say:

Oh, oh, you don't get me, I'm part of the union
You don't get me, I'm part of the union
You don't get me, I'm part of the union
Until the day I die
Until the day I die

Before the union did appear
My life was half as clear
Now I've got the power to the working hour
And every other day of the year

So though I'm a working man
I can ruin the government's plan
And though I'm not hard, the sight of my card
Makes me some kind of superman

Oh, oh, oh, you don't get me, I'm part of the union
You don't get me, I'm part of the union
You don't get me, I'm part of the union
Until the day I die
Until the day I die

You don't get me, I'm part of the union
You don't get me, I'm part of the union
You don't get me, I'm part of the union
Until the day I die
Until the day I die