What Mitt Romney didn't say

He didn't say:

“We simply can't have a setting where the financial executives are able to contribute tens of millions of dollars to the campaigns of politicians and then those politicians, when elected, stand across from them at the regulatory table, supposedly to represent the interest of investors. I think it's a mistake,”

or

“We simply can't have a setting where the oil executives are able to contribute tens of millions of dollars to the campaigns of politicians and then those politicians, when elected, stand across from them at the legislative hearings, supposedly to represent the people’s interest in their natural resources. I think it's a mistake,”

or

“We simply can't have a setting where business owners are able to contribute tens of millions of dollars to the campaigns of State Supreme Court Justices and then those Justices, when elected, sit across from them at the bench, supposedly to represent the interest of all citizens. I think it's a mistake,”

But he DID say:

“We simply can't have a setting where the teachers unions are able to contribute tens of millions of dollars to the campaigns of politicians and then those politicians, when elected, stand across from them at the bargaining table, supposedly to represent the interest of the kids. I think it's a mistake,”

Ahead of the curve...

 (I’m not ahead of the curve, I’m months behind, but) Last week State Superintendent of Schools Tony Evers proposed replacing the WKCE in middle and high schools with a suite of three tests: Explore, Plan and ACT, from the ACT organization.  At MG we have been administering these tests for several years because they are better aligned with our college readiness goals and are much more useful to students and staff than the WKCE.  All MG 11^th grade students take the ACT after having taken the Explore and Plan tests in lower grades.  Unfortunately MG students also have to take the WKCE to meet state requirements.  Under the new proposal we can drop the WKCE and keep the rest or our testing regimen.

I think this is a great move by the state.  Over the past few years the state Department of Education has acknowledged the deficiencies of Wisconsin’s WKCE and has been working to replace it.  But there is no reason to reinvent the wheel or invest in duplicate infrastructure when there is a high quality off-the-shelf test available.

It is important to note that MG has been leading the efforts in WI to find a more useful test than the WKCE.  This proposal from Evers is a validation of the approach advanced in the district by our staff and administrative team.

Color me not surpised.

Act 10, the Governor's controversial law that stripped most public employees of collective bargaining rights, was struck down by a Wisconsin Circuit Court today on equal protection grounds. I'm not surprised.  Regardless of the merits of the legislation, it was obvious that it was hurriedly pushed through the legislature without the substantive deliberation such a major piece of legislation requires.  And that is a recipe for legal limbo.

Of course the final disposition (vs. State Law at least)  is up to the Wisconsin Supreme Court, so this ruling is likely  not the final word.  But what additional wrenches are going to be thrown into the gears of Wisconsin Schools before the dust finally settles on this?  We have already had to deal with quite a number due to this poorly designed law.

My biggest complaint with Act 10 has always been in implementation:  Any changes should have been phased in,  both to allow districts and teachers time to adapt and react deliberately, without creating large measures of uncertainty and stress, and to allow time for the law to be tested in the courts so we don't end up being jerked back and forth as we have.  But it wasn't.  IMHO the rush was to achieve a political end: reducing the lobbying power of the teacher's unions.  Regardless of what you think of the goals of Act 10, its sloppy content and roughshod implementation clearly reflect poor governance.