Herein is additional evidence that Mayor Mike Bloomberg is morally, spiritually and intellectually unfit to be any where near children, never mind have de facto dictatorial powers over the largest school system in the United States. The act of spending $900 million on technology when you are simultaneously attempting to throw 6000 teachers out of their classrooms and into the streets (and the throes of the most brutal economy since the Great Depression ) is a barbaric act, a crime against our children and our parents and a grave insult and threat to all working people of New York City.
The idea that an education department has money to spend for computers in classrooms but not for teachers in classrooms reveals a view of both education and humanity that is, in the words of Thomas Merton, unspeakable. It is an act of class war so insidious that it should chill the blood of all who read of it.
It is also a profound and horrifying indication of how thoroughly “corporate values” — ceaseless competition, mindless efficiency, relentless attempts to gain power over others –
are simultaneously mocking and destroying our very lives in the name of a psychotic a-human notion of progress and corporate order that demands the absolute eradication of all human values, especially human dignity, cannot possibly sustain for any length of time itself and cannot possibly maintain itself without slipping into outright naked fascism.
That hour draws near. The deeply cynical maneuver described below is one more step in that direction.
Like it or not, we are in an undeclared civil war. In this struggle silence equals complicity.
06/17/2011 07:41 PM
Despite Cuts, Education Budget Calls For $900M On Tech
By: Lindsey Christ
“The importance of technology is something that we believe in,” said Schools Chancellor Dennis Walcott.
However, to find extra funds for that belief this year required some creative budgeting.
For example, principals were notified this week that textbook funding can now be used to purchase computer hardware and software. That was $264 million last year.
The Department of Education also redefined classroom computers as part of school buildings. That allows them to use $350 million of capital funds over the next three years to purchase and install computers, smart boards and printers.
Plus, in the operating budget, the DOE wants $52 million for technology contractors, up 86 percent from last year.
“My son came home and said, ‘hey mom, we’re all getting laptops at school next year,’ and I said great, but what about your teachers?” said Leonie Haimson of Class Size Matters.
City officials say their hands are tied. They need to get the school system prepared by 2014 for a national shift toward taking standardized tests online.
However, the reality is more complicated. The mayor wants the city on the forefront of developing the 21st century classroom.
The way technology is used in classrooms is constantly evolving. Two years after the city pronounced all schools wired and wireless, it now says every building needs an upgrade, which will cost the city another half a billion dollars next year alone.
“We have a responsibility on making sure that our students can compete in today’s society around technology,” said Walcott.
The mayor also plans to cut 6,000 teaching positions. Although most of the money directed toward technology can’t be spent on teacher salaries, many question whether this is the year to increase any spending.
“You don’t go out and buy a brand new car when you can’t pay for your mortgage,” said Michael Mulgrew, president of the teachers union.
The DOE budget proposals still need City Council approval, and councilmembers are already questioning the amount of money earmarked for tech.
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