Bilingual Education at a Crossroads? A Divided NABE meets in San Jose; Board Further Discredits Itself by Inviting Anti-Bilingual Ed Keynote Speaker

With fresh wounds from its ouster of Executive Director Jim Crawford last year, the National Association for Bilingual Education [NABE] Board further discredited itself with the mind-boggling decision to honor an anti-bilingual education columnist as their 'keynote' speaker for NABE's 36th Annual Conference in San Jose, CA beginning today.

Because of this I had mixed feelings when I was asked to speak on a panel for the conference on Friday with longtime UC Berkeley Ethnic Studies and educational justice scholar Ling-Chi Wang on multilingualism in San Francisco schools for the conference. I decided to attend but to do what I can to be supportive of those at the gathering who will hold the NABE leadership accountable and continue our work, whether in NABE, or our statewide or regional groups to support English Learners and educational justice for all students and communities. I first met Crawford some 10 years ago when he came to visit my organization, the Northern California Coalition for Immigrant Rights, and other grassroots immigrants rights groups in the San Francisco Bay Area in 1998 to learn about our advocacy and organizing approaches in the heat of our battle against millionaire Ron Unz's Prop 227 attacks on bilingual education in CA.

The farce of NABE's Board's choice of San Diego Union columnist Ruben Navarette, an outspoken critic of bilingual education and former media consultant to Ron Unz, as one of their keynote speakers was made worse by NABE board members' apparent attempted coverup of their action of inviting him. See Stephen Krashen and Jim Crawford's summary of the NABE mess and the backtracking and denials by NABE officials on the matter. From Krashen and Crawford:

Navarrette, a syndicated columnist, has built his career by attacking bilingual education. He started out in the 1990s as a media consultant for Ron Unz, the sponsor of anti-bilingual initiatives adopted in California, Arizona, and Massachusetts. Navarrette went on to work for various newspapers but never forgot his English-only roots. Writing in support of Unz's ballot measures, he denounced bilingual classrooms as "linguistic prisons" where children don't learn English but are trapped, against their parents' wishes, by a school bureaucracy that's "addicted to the additional funding provided for bilingual students." (Several of his major works, including "Bilingual Programs Failing" and "It's Time To Dismantle Bilingual Education," can be accessed at Unz's English for the Children web site.) He has also specialized in journalistic assaults on Hispanic leaders, civil-rights advocates, "racist" liberals, and supporters of public education. Not surprisingly, Navarrette has been a big booster of the No Child Left Behind Act. But above all, he has distinguished himself as an enemy of everything NABE stands for -- or, at least, used to stand for -- and as a hero to anti-bilingual crusaders everywhere.

Very embarrassing for the existing NABE leadership.

For more on the future of bilingual education see Crawford's excellent analysis from last Fall -The Decline of Bilingual Education: How To Reverse a Troubling Trend?

He argues for the need to unite advocates for English learners, Bilingual Education and 2-way Immersion programs with teachers, parents and students fighting for authentic assessments and against high stakes testing.

[We must] rally parents against the excesses of high-stakes testing and punitive
accountability schemes – excesses that affect large numbers of students, not just ELLs. ...Yet advocates for bilingual education must avoid the trap of concentrating their efforts on perfecting a misguided accountability system. No Child Left Behind espouses the cruel fiction that ELLs can meet the same levels of proficiency as their English-speaking peers before acquiring English, a standard of progress that dooms all ELL programs, bilingual and otherwise, to failure. The law stresses outputs (i.e., standardized test scores) alone while ignoring inputs such as effective program designs, qualified teachers, professional development, appropriate materials, and other resources. ...

There’s no escaping the reality that, as long as high-stakes testing continues to drive American education policy, the trend toward all-English programs will continue to accelerate.

See also info on Crawfords current efforts with the newly formed advocacy organization - The Institute for Language and Education Policy.

San Francisco Asian Americans Respond Proactively to Rosie O'Donnell's 'ChingChong' Insensitivity; Reject Right Wing Attempts to Divide Us From Others

- LA Koreatown Mural - Know Your Roots- Darryl Mar/Tony Osumi 1993
Rosie O'Donnell needs to meet with Asian American and immigrant community groups right away to learn about our history of struggle for language rights and equality in the US. O'Donnell's insensitive 'chingchong' comments on national TV have touched off a firestorm of anger and frustration from many Asian American organizations and Chinese groups globally as well.
But is Rosie really the problem?
Or are her recent comments merely the tip of a bigger iceberg of historical language discrimination and English-Only-ism that spread in the 1980's with the passage of California's Proposition 63 [a conservative 'wedge-initiative' which declared English as the Official Language of California] and has intensified since September 11th, 2001 in border areas like Arizona and many parts of the US Southwest. But the anti-immigrant and language intolerance has also become national as well, like it was in the 80's when our Prop 63 passed. This past May 18th the US Senate as a part of the draconian anti-immigrant legislation added an English-Only ammendment sponsored by Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK) which passed by a 63-34 vote, largely along party lines. See Jim Crawford's excellent analysis of English Only and language policies.
Proactive Responses
Reporter Vanessa Hua covers the issue in this morning's SF Chronicle from a community perspective: Asian American advocates decry parody by TV's O'Donnell . And, beyond the demands for an apology by some, San Francisco Schools are proactively promoting bilingualism and multiculturalism as one of the means to combating ignorance of discrimination and language rights struggles in the US:

On Tuesday, the San Francisco school board passed a resolution stating that the district valued multilingualism, and it established a task force to develop a long-term plan to encourage opportunities for all students to learn more than one language. Such policies challenge the ignorance of comedians like O'Donnell, school board member Eric Mar said Wednesday.
Her remarks are a "put-down of Chinese and various immigrants," Mar said. "There's a whole history of subordinating people who are immigrants."

Asian Americans Must Resist Wedge Initiatives and Divide and Conquer Tactics to Harm Alliances we have built with other communities - But despite our proactive efforts to deal with the larger issues, racist and right-wing organizations and talk show hosts like neocon Michelle Malkin seem to be taking advantage of O'Donnell's ignorance too in trying to drive further wedges between the gay community and Asian Americans. It seems to me that we must continute to challenge O'Donnell's insensitivity and urge her to meet with our organizations while also resisting calculated political efforts to divide us from other communities.

San Francisco School Board passes historic policy on Bilingualism/Multilingualism for All

SF SCHOOLS PREPARE FOR A MULTILINGUAL AND MULTICULTURAL WORLD

SFUSD forms new task force to plan pre-K-12^th grade language programs

SFUSD Press Release - December 13, 2006 – The San Francisco Unified School District hopes to offer every student the opportunity to graduate from SFUSD fluent in English and at least one other language. On December 12, 2006, San Francisco Unified School District Board members voted unanimously for a resolution that will set up a task force to guide SFUSD in preparing students for success in a multilingual and multicultural world.

"This resolution states that our district values multilingualism – and the benefits of having bilingual people in our diverse communities and our City," said Commissioner Eric Mar.

The resolution presented by Commissioners Eric Mar, Dan Kelly and Norman Yee states "Preparing students for our world of multilingualism and multiculturalism has become an integral and indispensable part of any educational process in most developed countries and in more and more developing countries."

Many studies have proven that young children acquire second and third language skills with ease. Second language acquisition does not interfere with their ability to master their native language. Currently SFUSD graduating seniors are required to take only one year of a second language and kindergarten through eighth grade offerings are available in only some District schools.

"It's an exciting time to be a public school parent in San Francisco . This new resolution outlines the district's commitment to multilingualism where all students K-12 will enjoy some language enrichment whether it's immersion or another program," said SFUSD parent Maria Aldaz.

"Speaking as a parent of a 5th grader at Buena Vista , the city's oldest Spanish immersion program, I've experienced first hand the great education public schools offer in multiculturalism and multilingualism."

The 21 member Blue-ribbon Task Force will include parents, language experts, teachers, school planners, employee groups, business and civic leaders.

More info - http://www.sfusd.edu/

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San Francisco School Board Notes also published a summary of the Board's historic policy -

Board OKs Sweeping Language Initiative

In an ambitious plan backed by the school board Tuesday night, SFUSD will aim to give very student in the district the opportunity to be a bilingual or multilingual graduate.

The board passed a unanimous resolution calling for the superintendent to draft a 21-member Blue Ribbon Task Force comprising parents, teachers, school planners, language experts, employee groups, business organizations and civic leaders to develop models for achieving this goal. The resolution also calls for the superintendent to use these findings to develop a plan for multilingual education, which will be presented to the board by Oct 1 of next year.

"This would not necessary be an all-immersion model," said Commissioner Dan Kelly, who authored the resolution along with Commissioners Norman Yee and Eric Mar. Immersion programs are expected to play a big part, however. The resolution builds on one passed earlier this year that called for expanding the district's popular two-way immersion programs and creating programs that could serve upper as well as lower grades.

The initiative approved Tuesday seeks not only to serve native English speakers, but also to help non-native speakers become English proficient while receiving a level of instruction equal to that of their English-speaking peers. The task force will work in concert with the district's Bilingual Community Council, which recently issued a report saying that English language learners are not being adequately served by the district's programs.

The move, board members said, could be an opportunity for the district to create a model for multilingual instruction with wide-ranging influence. "This is really cutting against the grain of an English-only wave that is going on in this country," Mar observed.

An obvious obstacle is funding such a large-scale effort at a time when the district faces dire budgetary constraints. "We're going to aggressively seek out external funding sources," Mar said. "We'll use every means at our disposal to find funds to pay for this program."

More from SF School board notes

Click here to access SF Board of Education Resolutions/Policies

SF Today - Senator Jackie Speier exits public office, CA School Board Members shmooze in a Chilly San Francisco

The blogging life of a school board member in San Francisco is never dull. 5000 or so school board members from all over the state [there are some 1000 school districts represented] are meeting here for the 75th Annual California School Boards Association conference.
After patting my sleeping daughter on the head at 7am and kissing my elementary school teacher wife goodbye I headed out for the CSBA delegate assembly meeting. We are the 200 or so person policy setting body for CSBA. One of our veteran board members Jill Wynns is our region's representative to the CSBA Board of Directors and I serve on the CSBA delegate assembly.

FAREWELL TO SENATOR JACKIE SPEIER
We voted on our new CSBA officers and heard from Senator Jackie Speier on her last day of her 25-year service in public office. Speier had just lost a close race on Nov 7th for Lt. Governor and is now termed out of office.

"Leadership is tough," she said.
"You are not there to rubber stamp. Work to craft new opportunities for the children. If you are not standing on the edge, then you're taking up too much room," she said to a standing ovation of school board delegates.

WORKSHOPS; CHALLENGING ENGLISH ONLY TESTING
Afterwards I went to uesful workshops on parcel tax campaigns [Larry Tramutola and Associates], reflections on governance team: the superintendent's perspective, superintendent searches, and an informal 'table talk' on the do's and don'ts of blogging.
During lunch I had the pleasure of chatting with Pajaro Valley Unified school board members who are part of a 10-district Californians Together lawsuit filed last year against the state of California challenging the state's English-Only testing system and NCLB.
Coachella Valley Unified School District, et al v. State Of California, et al,
I will be having dinner with one of the lawyers in the case this evening to hear an update as well. The conference continues through Saturday afternoon.

Shameful Days of Anti-immigrant policies - Arizona groups struggle for human rights at the Border

The Arizona sun here in the Phoenix/Tuscon area is blistering. I can't imagine how horrible it must have been for the 171 migrants who died trying to cross the US/Mexico border this year. The Coalicion de Derechos Humanos estimates that some 3000 migrants have died since the 1990's militarization of the Border. From May 29 - June 4 this year the Coalicion organized a 75 mile walk from Sonora to Tuscon to highlight border human rights issues. More on the Migrant Trail We Walk for Life. The Tuscon-based group is an affiliate of the National Network for Immigrant and Refugee Rights.

In response to the Senate's passage of the "Border Fence Bill" on Friday, the Immigrant Solidarity Network called it "one of the darkest and most shameful days for immigrant and human rights in U.S. history".

Despite repeat appeals from activists, the U.S. Senate, approved the outrageous and racist detainee bill (S. 3930) and another multi-billion dollars for the immoral war in Iraq and Afghanistan (H.R.5631). At the House, they passed the wire tap bill (H.R.
5825) and several other anti-immigrant bills (H.R. 4844, H.R. 6089, H.R. 6090 and H.R. 6091).
But the most shameful one, on Friday September 29, the Senate rushed to passed the shameful Border Fence Bill (H.R. 6061), calling for construction a multi-billion dollar 700 miles of fence along the 2,000-mile border with Mexico.

Just 2 years ago Arizona voters passed the anti-immigrant Prop 200 [also known as PAN - Protect Arizona Now!] which was a more legally defensible clone of our California Prop 187 which passed in 1994 but most of which was legally struck down in court. [Click here for a good analysis of the struggle against 187 in CA by the amazing Jan Adams ] The fledgling civil rights and human rights groups here are clearly struggling with an apparent juggernaut of rising racism and intolerance. Yet many of the local anti-PAN groups here continue to fight for human rights for immigrants and educational opportunies and social services for everyone, regardless of their immigration status.
Just a few miles south - local groups like Derechos Humanos this weekend are organizing with other immigrant rights groups and indigenous peoples organizations to strategize about the border and global human rights issues.

The call for the Border Summit of the Americas was issued by the Arizona Border Rights Foundation - Fundación de Derechos Fronterizos de Arizona Tohono O’odham communities, along with Derechos Humanos Coalition, American Indian Movement, International Indian Treaty Council.
The three day Border Summit was facilitated with assistance from M.C., Dennis Banks, and Bill Means. Participants also viewed the film “Crossing Arizona” yesterday. Directed by Joseph Mathew and Dan De Vivo, the film is an up-to-the-moment look at the hotly debated issues of 'illegal immigration' and border security on the US/Mexico border. The legendary Floyd Red Crow Westerman—artist, actor, and songwriter—also performed an evening concert in solidarity with Nations along la Frontera!

"Make your voices be heard!! Immigration policy proposals and homeland security have combined to create a volatile situation along U.S. international borders.
Increased law enforcement and vigilantism along the U.S.-Mexico border, in particular, has sparked a wave of reactions across the United States, from massive demonstrations to calls for voter registration campaigns and targeted actions."

The convenors of the Border Summit will be developing recommendations for border tribal governments and other affected parties to communicate with local, state and national as well as international bodies. This effort lays the groundwork for non-violence on Indian land and a more secure border.
More info: Contact Derechos Humanos
Also see Delete the Border.org or nomoredeaths.org

Arizona schools - Goldwater Country - RIP bilingual education?

Barry Goldwater - "In your heart.. you know he's right"

In 102 degree weather...deep in the heart of Goldwater country - Phoenix, Arizona - I am visiting schools, dialoguing with hundreds of other school board members, Superintendents and policy wonks at the Council of Urban Boards of Education's 38th Annual Conference.

Despite the passage of Arizona's anti-bilingual education Proposition 203 in 2000 and the rigidity of NCLB some schools keep trying to strengthen bilingual education and arts and music programs here in the greater Phoenix metropolitan area. Only 7 dual language immersion programs remain according to local advocates.

For more history on what school desegregation activist/scholar Angelo Ancheta calls the "intersection of nativism and racism" in education policy - see former Education Week reporter and NABE director James Crawford's language policy website.

To beat the blistering heat early this morning about 20 of us visited the 50 year old Valley View Elementary School [K-8] in Phoenix's Southern Mountain area. This heroic school has managed to continue its dual language immersion programs despite Prop 203 by offering Spanish as a foreign language to all its K-3 students and then offering to its 4th to 8th graders an excellent "delayed entry" dual language immersion program. The school is 85% Latino, 13% African American, and 50% English learners.
I was also impressed with the principal and teachers' focus on using achievement data as a diagnostic tool to support student learning with a tool called Data in a Day and a child-centered approach to school reform. The school's integration of music and arts into the curriculum and various partnerships with businesses and community partners were outstanding as well.

Lastly, I snapped the self-portait photo above in a bar near my hotel - the GOP and Goldwater icons at first made my skin crawl - but it made me realize how deep I am in the birthplace of one of our country's historical bastions of conservatism, but also the base of our current day gun-toting vigilante 'minutemen' and Sen. John Kyl who are carrying on the bigotted Goldwater tradition. "In my heart"... I know they are wrong - and from my discussions with the students, parents and teachers at Valley View, I know we have to keep up the fight for human rights for immigrants, for adequate funding for our schools, and for educational justice for everyone.

Comparing Schools in China and the US; Filmmaker Hao Wu is free after 5 months

In my Jooksing in the Motherland blog I just wrote a little more about the Chinese educational system and my thoughts on rewatching Carma Hinton's documentaries Morning Sun and the Gate of Heavenly Peace.
The photo below shows Jinan students engaged and active in learning the English language. The Chinese government has made English language classes mandatory in their curriculum.

BREAKING NEWS - filmmaker Hao Wu was released yesterday and is finally free after 5 months in prison. His Beijing or Bust documentary highlights a number of Chinese Americans, including business people, artists and musicians, who are living in China.

Fighting the English-Only Steamroller in the US Senate and in our local communities

Just as we were distracted by the US Senate's approval of the 700 mile border wall, the assault on the Constitutional right to birthright citizenship, and other wacky efforts to demonize immigrants and undocumented folks, the Senate passed this other ZINGER. Daily KOS reported on the Senate's Vote To Make English The Official Language of America while also comparing the idiotic vote to the real need for educational justice and adequate funding for our schools :-(

The vote was 63-34:

After an emotional debate fraught with symbolism, the Senate yesterday voted to make English the "national language" of the United States, declaring that no one has a right to federal communications or services in a language other than English except for those already guaranteed by law. The measure, approved 63 to 34, directs the government to "preserve and enhance" the role of English, without altering current laws that require some government documents and services be provided in other languages. Opponents, however, said it could negate executive orders, regulations, civil service guidances and other multilingual ordinances not officially sanctioned by acts of Congress.

Here's a bright idea. Instead of wasting time on "symbolic" measures, why doesn't Congress do something about the millions of illiterate Americans who can't read or speak English (and no, Rep. Tancredo, I'm not talking about Mexican immigrants).
Last year, the National Assessment of Adult Literacy found that 11 million adults were nonliterate in English. Another thirty million adults were literate only at the most basic level, meaning they had only the most simple and concrete literacy skills. What's the point of a law mandating all government papers be in English when millions of Americans still can't read or comprehend the document anyway? Oh yeah, I know the point. It's call midterm elections.
If Congress cares so damn much about the English language and having Americans learn English, maybe they should drop "symbolic" measures and start giving our educational system the attention it deserves so that we may finally rid ourselves of this scourge of illiteracy that is plaguing our nation.
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As one of the many immigrant rights activists that fought CA's Proposition 63 way back in 1986 with Californians United Against English Only [Prop 63] [which passed with 73% vote in CA], I worry that the backlash against immigrant communities which in the 80's had started as a fringe racist and xenophobic cult around self-hating US Senators like S.I. Hayakawa [the former president of my university SF State] and population control eugenicists like John Tanton has now grown some pretty hairy legs that stretch now to the highest levels of power in Washington.
For more on the rise of US English, FAIR and other groups in the English Only movement see Jim Crawford's amazing website and Chapter 6 from his Hold Your Tongue book on the English Only Movement. The Southern Poverty Law Center and Political Research Associates also have great background on the radical right wing and reactionary forces behind English Only and anti-immigrant forces in the US. See my Boston colleague Doug Brugge's excellent piece - The Anti-Immigrant Right - from 1995 for the PRA's newsletter The Public Eye.
Despite the backlash, language rights and immigrant rights activists must continue to fight the attacks and push for a proactive agenda in Washington, Sacramento and at the local level as well.
Over 10 years ago, my organization the Northern California Coalition for Immigrant Rights organized a proactive day of celebration, resistance and building power in Sacramento. Next week we continue in that tradition with the 10th Annual Immigrant Day on May 22nd 2006 in honor of California’s immigrants, whose presence and work continue to strengthen our communities and our state. Mobilization at the State Capitol in Sacramento.

Join hundreds of immigrants and advocates in raising our voices on behalf of immigrant families throughout the state. This year the Governor’s budget proposal once again targets immigrant seniors and disabled on CAPI and SSI, families who participate in CalWORKs, child-care workers, and critical health care and human services for low-income families. Immigrant Day 2006 will bring a unified voice to Sacramento in support of immigrant communities and working families. Join us May 22nd in Sacramento!

On a similar note, on Tuesday May 23rd I am introduing a pro-bilingual education/language immersion programs resolution for our San Francisco Unified School District which if passed will expand our dozens of bilingual language immersion programs to include Cantonese, Spanish, Korean, Filipino enrichment, Japanese enrichment, to add new Russian and Mandarin programs as well. My pro-language equality school board resolution was drafted in the same spirit as another document I helped draft some 10 years ago, during our fight against the attacks on Bilingual Education in California and Proposition 227 [1998]. See the 1998 proactive policy statement on Multilingualism and Bilingual Education for the Northern California Coalition for Immigrant Rights. In 1997 we declared:

We see the anti-bilingual Unz Initiative [Prop 227] as an opportunity to increase our political participation as immigrants, to build cross-community alliances, and to bring together all people who believe in the rights and dignity of immigrants and educational equality for all.

While the NCCIR no longer exists, other alliances and coalitions have formed to continue the fight for immigrant rights and language equality in our region. Despite the Senate's English- Only Vote this week, we must continue to seek out the opportunities to increase grassroots political participation, build and strengthen progressive labor/community alliances and advance a relevant proactive agenda for human rights and dignity for all immigrants and all peoples.

CA High School Exit Exam Struck Down? Judge Says CA Exit Exam is Unfair

Education reporter Nanette Asimov reports this morning that the CA High School Exit Exam has tentatively been "Struck Down. " For more on the Valenzuela lawsuit and the Californians for Justice/Public Advocates suit - CFJ case Valenzuela case

JUDGE SAYS CALIFORNIA EXIT EXAM IS UNFAIR
Final ruling today could halt plans to deny diplomas

Though the article doesn't acknowledge the tens of thousands of students who have dropped out or been 'pushed out' because of the high stakes testing in our state, Asimov points out that of the 47,000 students who have not passed the exam, well over 60% are Latino or "economically disadvantaged", while 44% who have not passed are English learners. view chart

Judge Robert Freedman of Alameda County Superior Court said he based his ruling on the concept of "equal protection" and is expected to make a final ruling at a 2 p.m. hearing today.
His ruling comes just weeks before graduation ceremonies begin at 1,129 California high schools and just days after state schools Superintendent Jack O'Connell announced that 46,768 seniors -- 10.7 percent of the class of 2006 -- had not yet passed the exit exam. Of those students, 61 percent are poor, and 44 percent are English learners.

Some parent, teacher, student activists like those in LA's Coalition for Educational Justice have stressed the Racism and Class Bias of the exam itself. But the CFJ/Public Advocates suit and the Valenzuela case both focus on the educational injustice faced by most African Americans, Chicano/Latinos, English learners, and low income students who still do not have an equal opportunity to learn in California's public schools from San Francisco to LA.

But attorney Arturo Gonzalez of the San Francisco law firm Morrison & Foerster, who brought the lawsuit challenging the exam, said he was thrilled with the judge's tentative ruling.
"I felt strongly that the state should not deprive a student of a diploma unless the state can say that every student has been fairly and properly prepared for that test," Gonzalez said. "There is overwhelming evidence that students throughout the state have not been taught the material on the test. And many students have been taught by teachers not credentialed in math and English."
Gonzalez said he filed the suit after reading news reports last fall that about 100,000 seniors were poised to be denied a diploma.
The suit, Valenzuela vs. California, was named for its lead plaintiff, Liliana Valenzuela, who, like Iris Padilla, is a Richmond High senior. According to the suit, Liliana maintains a 3.84 grade-point average and is 12th in her senior class of 413 students. She has passed the math portion of the exam, but not the English portion. Her first language is Spanish. The suit said that students who have repeatedly failed the test -- especially English learners -- have not had a fair opportunity to learn the material because they are more likely to attend overcrowded schools and have teachers without proper credentials.

full SF Chronicle article; also see Joel Rubin in the Los Angeles Times; Laurel Rosenhall and Cameron Jahn in the Sacramento Bee; Luis Zaragoza and Connie Skipitares in the San Jose Mercury ;Cassandra Braun in the Contra Costa Times; JULIET WILLIAMS AP ...

Real critiques of NCLB; CA State Board of Education screws English learners [again]

Graphics from Rethinking Schools
Shari L's An Old Soul blog provides an excellent response to latest critiques of the NCLB:

On NCLB: AP outraged in all the wrong places
AP sure knows how to tap into NCLB outrage alright but it's outrage in all the wrong places. I think this is a seriously covert article pushing an agenda, and, hint, it's not the progressive one, folks. If you don't question their premise, boy, it's easy to fall for their propaganda. And, look, even Alternet takes the bait, hook, line and sinker.

See also: An Old Soul or NCLB =Contractors profit and AP sets it up for Spellings to come in and save the day ; Angela Valenzuela's Eductional Equity Blog from Texas ; For general progressive critiques of NCLB see Rethinking Schools ; Harold Berlak's Manual on NCLB & High Stakes Testing; or Kathy Emery's Education and Democracy website.
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Despite strong advocacy from immigrant communities, bilingual education advocates and civil rights groups, the California State Board of Education has done it again - screwing English learners and immigrant students throughout the state. See Duane Campbell's Choosing Democracy Blog.
In its decision yesterday to adopt mainstream criteria for materials for Reading/Language Arts/English Language Development, the state board of education missed an historic opportunity to demonstrate true and visionary leadership by amending and adopting criteria for new reading textbooks to address low test scores and narrow the achievement gap for English learners.

Critics of the current options for schools - including Assemblywomen Judy Chu, D-Monterey Park, and Jackie Goldberg, D-Los Angeles - wanted the board to also let schools use textbooks they said would help non-English speakers with vocabulary while learning basic subject matter.

The new textbooks could have provided California’s 1.6 million English learners with much better materials to prepare them for the rigorous tests of Reading/Language Arts and English proficiency.

Shelly Spiegel-Coleman, project manager for multilingual curriculum at the LA County Office of Education, said her group and others who favored change were shut out of talks."The curriculum that's going to be sustained for the next eight years ... will have the same lessons, same text, same teachers guide, no matter who sits in front of the teacher," she said.

Support grows for SF Immigrant Rights Hunger Strikers

San Francisco Immigrant Rights Hunger Strikers were in good spirits last night during their nightly candlelight vigils. The weather was a little warmer and the wind wasn't ripping through the concrete barriers surrounding the SF Federal Building as much last night.
Richmond/San Pablo activist Marilyn Langlois who works with CALCARE, an anti-high stakes testing alliance, was there to support her fellow West Contra Costa County teacher/activist hunger strikers Raul Alcaraz and Cesar Cruz.
SF teachers and education activist have organized a support rally this Saturday 3/25 -
RALLY: Saturday, March 25th, 2006, Noon at the FederalBldg. (Golden Gate and Larkin, SF) Teachers 4 SocialJustice.

Media coverage from the progressive and alternative press has been good, but the mainstream press seem to be 'whiting out' the hunger strikers and immigrant communities in general.
For a great article see Beyond Chron
http://www.beyondchron.org/news/index.php?itemid=3072#more
National Immigration Forum's Director Frank Sharry has a great piece in the New California Media's website as well -
http://news.newamericamedia.org/news/view_alt_category.html?category_id=14

For other resistance growing in immigrant communities -
check out the Immigrant Solidarity Network -
http://www.immigrantsolidarity.org/

March 25-28 Nationawide Weekend of Actions to Support Immigrant Solidarity!
3/25 Los Angeles GRAN MARCHA 2006!10 AM OLYMPIC AND BROADWAY, LOS ANGELESURL: http://www.nohr4437.org/Info: Jesse Diaz: (951)756-5712
3/25: Immigrant Rally at Denver, COSaturday, March 25th 10:00 AMCivic Center Park, downtown Denver, COContact: Jordan T. Garcia (303)623-3464
3/26 New York, NY: Protest HR 4437 NYC1:00 PM, at 165th Street and AudubonContact: Radhames (646)796-8657
3/26 Los Angeles, CA: Religious Mass, 3:30 PM Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels 555 West Temple St. Los Angeles, CAInfo: (213)637-7690
March 26-28 Washington DC: Conference & lobbying day Organized by Rights Working Group. URL: http://www.rightsworkinggroup.org/
3/27 Washington DC: National Action at the Capitol for Immigrant RightsMarch 27, 2006 @ 11 AMWest Lawn of the United States Capitol
Local SF Immigrant Rigths info -
http://immigrantrights.org/
http://www.indybay.org/immigrant/