Mapping the terrain: Teach For America, charter school reform, and corporate sponsorship

Kretchmar, Kerry; Sondel, Beth; Ferrare, Joseph J.

doi:10.1080/02680939.2014.880812

Cited by 115 publications

(122 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…Researchers Kerri Kretchmar, Beth Sondel, and Joseph Ferrare (2015) used network analysis methodologies to map an intricate and rather dense web of relationships and partnerships between TFA and its partners, described as an "education entrepreneurial network." The network includes partnerships with a significant number of business executives, investment bankers, corporate foundation leaders, and venture philanthropists, government officials, but primarily national and regional charter management organizations (Kretchmar et al, 2014). The educational entrepreneurial network, in which TFA is described as "central node," endorses a slate of education reforms, most strongly the expansion of charter schools managed by private, nonprofit organizations and high-stakes turnaround efforts.…”

Section: Teach For America's Origins and Expansionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Kretchmar and colleagues (2014) were able to document that over half of the country's largest charter-school networks have ties with TFA and that more than a third of corps members are teaching in charter schools (Kretchmar et al, 2015;see also Beth Sondel in Westervelt, 2015). Several of TFA's primary network partners and donors also endorse policies such as high-stakes testing and accountability, and market-based initiatives tied to choice, competition, and merit-based promotion and pay structures for teachers, most of which are associated with attacks on teacher unions and collective bargaining rights (Kretchmar et al, 2014).…”

Section: Teach For America's Origins and Expansionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Teach For America’s paradoxical diversity initiative: Race, policy, and Black teacher displacement in urban schools

White

2016

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This article examines the paradox of Teach For America's diversity gains and its support for policies that contribute to Black teacher decline in urban communities. TFA has countered claims that its expansion is connected to teacher displacement, but its two-pronged structure-as an alternative certification program and an influential policy actor via its leadership model for education reform-requires a critical analysis of the impact of its policy commitments on Black teachers. I propose steps to better align TFA's policy orientations with its diversity values by leveraging TFA's policy influence to support better working conditions for teachers in urban schools, democratic school turnarounds, and teacher organizing linked to broad social justice movements. Keywords: diversity; Black teachers; displacement; turnover; Teach For America, teachers of color Education Policy Analysis Archives, Vol. 24 No.16 2 Teach For America y su paradójica iniciativa sobre la diversidad: Raza, política, y el Desplazamiento de docentes negros en las escuelas urbanas Resumen: En este artículo se examina las paradójicas mejoras de Teach For America en el área de diversidad en Estados Unidos y su apoyo a las políticas que contribuyeron a la disminución de los docentes negros en las comunidades urbanas. TFA ha negado las afirmaciones de que su expansión se conecto con el desplazamiento de esos docentes, pero su estructura dual-como un programa de certificación alternativa y como actor político influyente a través de su modelo de liderazgo para reformas educativas-requiere un análisis crítico de la repercusión de sus compromisos políticos en docentes negros. Propongo un modelo para entender mejor las orientaciones políticas de TFA y sus valores sobre diversidad mediante el análisis de la influencia política de TFA y su apoyo para mejorar condiciones de trabajo de los maestros de escuelas urbanas, proyectos de mejoras de escuelas, y la organización docente vinculados a movimientos que reclamas una justicia social amplia. Palabras clave: diversidad; docentes negros; desplazamiento; volumen de negocios; Teach For America, Profesores de minorías étnico-raciales Teach for America e sua paradoxal iniciativa sobre diversidade: Raça, política, e o deslocamento de professores negros nas escolas urbanas Resumo: Este artigo descreve e é examina as paradoxais melhorias de Teach For America na área de diversidade nos Estados Unidos e seu apoio às políticas que contribuíram para o declínio de professores negros em comunidades urbanas. TFA nega alegações de que sua expansão foi relacionados com o deslocamento desses professores, mas a sua estrutura dual-como programa de certificação alternativa e como um ator político influente através do seu modelo de liderança para a reforma educativas-exige uma análise crítica do impacto dos compromissos políticos de TFA sobre os professores negros. Proponho um modelo para entender melhor as orientações políticas de TFA e os valores sobre noção de diversidade, analisando a influência política do TFA e ...

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Section: Teach For America's Origins and Expansionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Teach For America's Origins and Expansionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Teach For America’s paradoxical diversity initiative: Race, policy, and Black teacher displacement in urban schools

White

2016

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“…Of course, it must be noted that this petitioning of national and state authorities assumes that these authorities are indeed still relevant to the school. Greater moves towards Charter schools in the USA, in the context of increasing neoliberal and libertarian agendas (Kretchmar, Sondel, & Ferrare, 2014;Lubienski, Brewer, & La Londe, 2016;Tanner, 2013), and the very presence of the PISA for Schools test itself, would appear to suggest that schools (and teachers), rather than systems, are increasingly positioned as the most important educational unit. This means that national and state-level authorities may, in the context of this enhanced global-local nexus, have a diminished ability to intervene in all schools, with this logic presuming that schools and teachers are, by extension, solely responsible for the performance of their students, outside of broader socioeconomic and cultural influences.…”

Section: Teachers 'Talking Back': Using Pisa For Schools To Challengementioning

confidence: 99%

Communities of practice and PISA for Schools: Comparative learning or a mode of educational governance?

Lewis

2017

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This paper examines the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's (OECD) PISA for Schools, a new variant of the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) that compares school-level performance on reading, math and science with international schooling systems (e.g., Shanghai-China, Finland). Specifically, I focus here on a professional learning community -the Global Learning Network (GLN) -of U.S. schools and districts that have voluntarily participated in PISA for Schools, and how this, arguably, helps to normatively determine 'what works' in education. Drawing suggestively across diverse thinking around contemporary modes of governance, and emerging topological spaces and relations associated with globalization, and informed by interviews with 33 policy actors across the PISA for Schools policy cycle, my analyses suggest that GLN allows the OECD to discursively and normatively constrain how 'world-class' schools and systems, and their policies and practices, are defined. However, and in light of the productive capacities of power relations, I also argue that GLN provides opportunities for local educators and leaders to undertake meaningful collaboration and sharing, and to find policy spaces outside of those defined by more performative discursive framings of school accountability. To this end, I explore how GLN may help to foster alternative policy spaces from which educators can 'talk back' to national and state authorities, and potentially promote more 'authentic' understandings of, and possibilities for, schooling accountability. Keywords: PISA for Schools; OECD; Global Learning Network; best practice; professional learning communities; topologyComunidades de práctica y PISA para escuelas: Aprendizaje comparativo o un modo de gobernanza educativa? Resumen: Este artículo examina la Organización para la Cooperación Económica y el Desarrollo (OCDE) PISA para escuelas, una nueva variante del Programa Internacional de Evaluación de Alumnos (PISA) que compara el desempeño a nivel de la escuela en lectura, matemáticas y ciencias con sistemas Internacionales (por ejemplo, Shanghai-China, Finlandia). Específicamente, centrarse aquí en una comunidad de aprendizaje profesional -la Red Global de Aprendizaje (GLN) -de los Estados Unidos Que las escuelas y distritos participaron en el PISA voluntariamente para escuelas, y como Esto, sin duda, normativamente ayuda a determinar 'lo que funciona' En la educación. Dibujo sugestivamente a través de un pensamiento diversificado en torno a modos contemporáneos de gobernanza, y espacios topológicos y relaciones asociadas a la globalización emergente, e informó por medio de entrevistas con 33 actores políticos en todo el PISA para ciclo político Escuelas, mis análisis sugieren que GLN Permite la OCDE a la OCDE Discursivamente y normativamente Restringir Cómo se definen las escuelas y los sistemas de "clase mundial" y sus políticas y prácticas. escolaridade prestação de contas Sin embargo, y teniendo en cuenta las capacidades productivas de las ...

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“…For example, charter organizations like KIPP, Uncommon and MATCH developed comprehensive and similar systems to induct new teachers and build expertise (Horn, 2015;KIPP.org, 2017;Lake et al, 2012). Looking at the practices of 22 CMOs across the country, Lake and colleagues (2012) found that frequent, intensive teacher coaching and student behavior management processes, particularly those implemented by Uncommon Schools and KIPP, were strongly associated with student achievement.…”

Section: Expert Knowledgementioning

confidence: 99%

“…For example, charter schools disproportionately rely on alternate routes to teaching to staff schools, especially Teach for America (TFA), with somewhat limited pre-service training for new teachers (Kretchmar, Sondel, & Ferrare, 2014). Additionally, and particularly in "no excuses" charter schools, teachers are expected to implement proven "systems" to help them attain high student test scores.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The New Professionalism? Charter Teachers’ Experiences and Qualities of the Teaching Profession

Torres

Weiner²

2018

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While teacher professionalism remains a contested topic, scholars increasingly acknowledge the field has entered a "new professionalism" wherein its parameters are dictated by management and the organization rather than those within the occupation. Many argue that this shift has served to decrease teachers' sense of professionali sm, efficacy and persistence. Simultaneously, no-excuses charter schools, considered to embrace this new professionalism, continue to proliferate. Yet little is known about how teachers within these schools view teaching and the qualities of teacher professionalism. To address this gap, we interviewed twenty new and novice teachers teaching in high profile charter organizations in the northeast such as Uncommon Schools, KIPP, MATCH, and Boston Collegiate. Our findings suggest that these teachers largely perceived their schools and the degree of professionalism positively. For example, teachers reported Education Policy Analysis Archives Vol. 26 No. 19 2 that their schools fostered teacher autonomy, professional accountability, and collaboration. However, their schools' high-accountability climates encouraged feelings of competition and caused teachers to question their efficacy, ultimately reinforcing views of teaching as a short-term endeavor. Finally, professional status and rewards were described as low with many teachers saying they felt underappreciated or undervalued. Our findings demonstrate how the climate of "new professionalism" can produce outcomes both consistent and in tension with efforts to professionalize teaching. Keywords: Charter schools; urban education; teacher professionalization; professionalism ¿El nuevo profesionalismo? Las experiencias y cualidades de los profesores autónomos de la profesión docente Resumen: Mientras profesionalismo docente sigue siendo un tema controversial, los académicos reconocen cada vez más que el campo ha entrado en un "nuevo profesionalismo" y sus parámetros son dictados por la administración y la organización en lugar de los que están dentro de la ocupación. Muchos argumentan que este cambio ha servido para disminuir el sentido del profesionalismo, eficacia y persistencia de los docentes. Simultáneamente, las escuelas autónomas "sin excusas", consideradas para abarcar este nuevo profesionalismo, continúan a proliferar. Sin embargo, se sabe poco acerca de cómo los maestros dentro de estas escuelas ven la enseñanza y las cualidades del profesionalismo docente. Para enfrentar esta brecha, entrevistamos a veinte maestros nuevos y novatos que enseñaban en organizaciones charter de alto perfil en el noreste como Uncommon Schools, KIPP, MATCH y Boston Collegiate. Nuestros hallazgos sugieren que estos maestros percibieron en gran medida sus escuelas y el grado de profesionalismo de manera positiva. Por ejemplo, los docentes informaron que sus escuelas fomentaban la autonomía de los docentes, la responsabilidad profesional y la colaboración. Sin embargo, los climas de alta responsabilidad de sus escuelas crearon sentimientos de com...

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Mapping the terrain: Teach For America, charter school reform, and corporate sponsorship

Cited by 115 publications

References 18 publications

Teach For America’s paradoxical diversity initiative: Race, policy, and Black teacher displacement in urban schools

Teach For America’s paradoxical diversity initiative: Race, policy, and Black teacher displacement in urban schools

Communities of practice and PISA for Schools: Comparative learning or a mode of educational governance?

The New Professionalism? Charter Teachers’ Experiences and Qualities of the Teaching Profession

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