Like freed slaves with second thoughts

Just so you know, we're hitting the doozy-alert button: Critics who continue to demand that the FCAT-centric system installed by former Gov. Jeb Bush either be overhauled or dismantled – despite some signs of academic progress - are like freed black slaves who had second thoughts about freedom, says state Board of Education Chairman T. Willard Fair (left).

Some freed slaves "were overwhelmed by the demands of freedom and wanted to go back," Fair, who is black, told the Times' education blog, The Gradebook, during a brief phone interview this week. In the same vein, he continued, there are some accountability critics who "no matter how much progress we're making, they say, 'Let's go back.'"

Those who follow education in Florida know Fair, a Jeb ally who was re-appointed by Gov. Crist, does not shy from the occasionally blunt and, depending on where you stand on the ed reform spectrum, eye-popping remark. At a BOE meeting in 2006, he told Gov. Bush: "In my judgment, there is no greater person on this Earth than you. I love you." A few months later, he heaped praise on departing Education Commissioner John Winn, likening him to Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. (for more on that, click here).

Fair's latest remarks came in response to a few questions from The Gradebook about the future of accountability in Florida. He was asked about yet another poll showing how unpopular the FCAT is; continued criticism of the System that Jeb Built (like this for example); and the Jan. 9 report from Education Week magazine that gave Florida credit for strong academic progress (see St. Petersburg Times story on that here).

"It's very difficult," Fair said, "for some people to admit to themselves and to the public that they were wrong."

- Ron Matus, state education reporter

Comments

Well said, sir, well said.

Pulling the slavery card out over the FCAT! How absolutely despicable.

We shall never truly resolve racial issues nor bridge the racial divide, so long as it remains a political tool used by ignorant people to pimp an ignorant agenda.

Shame on you, T. Willard Fair!

Oh shut up 2:22pm shame on you!! Your "Queen Hillary and King Bill" are pulling the race card and then blame it on the African American candidate for President. There is the shame!! Where is the outrage you ignorant fool?

2:22
What the man said was a very good analogy. There was no race card pulled.

Excuse me, 2:36, but exactly where do you come up with the whole "Queen Hillary and King Bill" angle… rather presumptuous of you don’t you think? Or is that the problem; you don’t think.

I guess racism is a problem, unless it serves your wants. BTW, Obama isn’t African American.

The man has the courage to speak the truth. What could be less racist than demanding that all children be held to high standards of learning? Enough with the excuse-making for failure and mediocrity.

The man has the courage to speak the truth. What could be less racist than demanding that all children be held to high standards of learning? Enough with the excuse-making for failure and mediocrity.

and lets not forget the hebrews, now wandering in the desert, having all sorts of troubles following YHWH, moaning to moses:

"why did you lead us out into the desert to starve? at least in egypt, we had food to eat!!"

that is, of course, not a comment on fcat, which im am sure, since it was devised by a shrubsibling, is totally corrupt and mindless.

but, thats a different matter, aint it?

"...Fair, a Jeb ally who was re-appointed by Gov. Crist, does not shy from the occasionally blunt and, depending on where you stand on the ed reform spectrum, eye-popping remark."

You're right, it all about the children.

... nuff said.

Just because you agree with someone, doesn't mean they are speaking the truth.

... AMEN to that!

2:22 pulling the race card is indeed a disgrace. Being completely outraged that anyone would do so, I assume you will join the millions of us who are besides ourselves that Hillary has used it so deftly to paint Barack Obama as the BLACK candidate, effectively preventing him from gaining widespread, accross the board traction. You wouldn't vote for a racist like Hillary, would you? Nah! Me neither!

[terminator]

gee, "Uncle Tom" Fair should visit some of the freed slaves that attend the D/F schools right around the corner from his office and home.

maybe he should visit some of the freed slaves at the jail where one third of all black males are locked up or maybe take a drive through beautiful Liberty City and witness all the vagrants, bums, crackheads, prostitutes, criminals, thugs and degenerates that populate his home turf.
I wonder how "free" they feel?

And by the way, did everyone see the Miami Herald expose about the Miami-Dade County empowerment zone that Fair chaired that ripped off taxpayers to the tune of millions of dollars?

The money was supposed to go to affordable housing but instead ended up in the pockets of cronies, friends and business associates.
The venerable Carrie Meek was on the gravy train as well.

Fair is a buffoon who knows little to nothing about public education and has done nothing to improve the ghetto schools in his neighborhood.

Willard, I think I hear Master Jeb calling, he wants his slippers and pipe. And make him a scotch while you're at it.

Better get moving double time boy!

Terminator, don't stop, please. I'm sure you can come up with a few more offensive statements.

ghetto schools
double time, boy
Master Jeb

Nice work. Really nice.

2:22 actually said the slavery card, not the race card. Who issues these cards anyway? Everybody seems to have them but they sure as hell aren't supposed to use them. I agree with Willard, anybody who doesnt' agree with Jeb is like a slave who doesn't understand that he/she has been set free by the brilliance of the former governor's ideas. See, isn't that much easier than arguing their points?

You people are all idiots.

[terminator]

5:29
thanks but is there anything that's incorrect regarding my assessments?

5:44
you're a real intellectual giant. And what levity did your post bring to the conversation?

[Clyde]

Keep in mind that Dr Fair is a professional educator with an agenda. Why expect it to make sense?

[terminator]

Clyde:
I don't believe Fair has a PHD. I've never heard him referred to as "Dr. Fair".

Also, he is NOT a professional educator. Fair was never a teacher, guidance counselor, AP, principal, district bureaucrat, superintendent, school board member, etc.

His profession was heading the Urban League of Miami.

He was appointed to the state board by his master Jeb Bush because Jeb needed a black poster boy to get blacks on board with his anti-public education policies such as taxpayer funded tuition vouchers.

he must have had something on Charlie Crist who initially failed to re-appoint then several months later re-appointed following his election as Governor December 06.

As I said in my previous post, all the schools in Fair's neighborhood are D/F inner city (does that satisfy you liberals) and schools with extremely high drop out rates.

During Fair's eight years on the state board there has been no improvement in inner city schools within Fair's neighborhood.

If he can't even improve the schools in his own neighborhood, do you think he really cares about improving other public schools in Florida?

[Another Free Slave]

Yes true to form Terminator, you're a chip off the old Billary Block, baring your white liberal soul and genetic hatred for black people who aren't kissing your a&s and begging you for our block of gov't cheese. I guess all of us uppity negros and run away slaves ought to keep our mouths shut before you direct your FEA overseers to cut out our tongues or slash off our feet at the ankles, eh?

Terminator, you should drop the racial language. It's unbecoming. This blog is familiar with the lower rungs of disourse. Raise your game a bit.

So, Fair is praise for “speaking the truth” and terminator is attacked for speaking the truth…. Hmmmm, so, who are the racists again?

[terminator]

8:45
amen brother!

seems as if there is a double standard with some of our african-american friends or liberals who always want to play the race card (a la Hillary vs Obama).

yes, my language may be provocative sometimes but it is meant to stimulate discourse.

I've got many black friends and during my thirty plus years in Florida education taught thousands of black kids (many of whom thought I was the greatest thing since sliced bread).

I will not attempt to disguise my contempt for individuals like Willard Fair who have no credentials to be in the position they are in and only got there through bizarre tokenism by exploitive capitalist politicians such as the Jebster.

He and Fair both deserve our condemnation and disgust.

My question again is: what has Fair done for the D/F inner city schools in the neighborhood he lives and works in?

I don't like Fair or terminator. I don't like seeing terminator use the "Uncle Tom" references. I don't believe that the "freed slaves" comments were any more on point.

There are good and bad things with our current accountability system. The worst thing is that the BOE, DOE, Governor and Legislature ignored the key component of accountability just two years after passing the A+ Plan. You see, the key component was that local districts were supposed to be held accountable for the success or failure of their decisions. Instead, the DOE, et. all have made every decision for the superintendents and school boards. How much PE should be taught? How many minutes of reading instruction? How much performance pay and how you will do it? How big a class size? And, the list is truly endless.

The second biggest shortfall of our accountability system is that it only measures three basic areas (math, reading, writing) with a little bit of science. The 21st Century Skills report shows that for Americans to compete in the world economy 20 to 30 years from now that we need to include high performance in a number of other subjects and skills (many of which are not even IN the curriculum of our schools at all).

Fair is sssssooooo worried about going backward that he is ignoring the major shortcomings of where we are with state policy. If the state would key on holding districts accountable instead of looking for new ways to regulate them or take power from them (like the FSE), real progress could still be made.

I wish that both terminator and Fair would stick to issues and not personal attacks. There is nothing about calling Fair and "uncle Tom" or Fair calling opponents of his board's positions "freed slaves that want to go back to their masters" that add any real information about the issues impacting students, parents and taxpayers at all. They should both get a time out for at least 15 minutes(unless they were students in Okaloosa where they still paddle the kids).

[FedUpWStupidity]

Smart people will vote NO! Look into it; don't just listen to the propaganda!