For the past couple of decades there has been a movement toward an approach to education that relies heavily on standardized tests, charter schools, and various other elements that have one thing in common: They deny the value of teachers.

An article in today's NY Times shoves a big wooden stake into this concept. It profiles Diane Ravitch, a major architect of the Bush administration's "No Child Left Behind" policy, and the person whose posture on education underpins the Bloomberg/Klein approach to education. Dr. Ravitch has switched positions, coming around to the realization that all she has stood for is wrong.

Welcome to the real world, Dr. Ravitch. Michael Bloomberg and Joel Klein had better take notice.

As the Times article says, Ravitch has learned, among other things, that:

• "[T]he No Child law was not raising student achievement."
• "Charter schools ... were proving to be no better on average than regular schools, but in many cities were bleeding resources from the public system."
• “'Accountability, as written into federal law, was not raising standards but dumbing down the schools,' she writes."

Combine this article with another NY Times article that talks about how public schools are squeezed for space by being forced to share some of that space with charter schools.

It is now clear, and should be clear even to ardent Bloomberg supporters, that the Bloomberg/Klein team is hellbent on destroying the public school system in New York City. It is time for Klein to leave, it is time for Bloomberg to switch positions -- in short, it is time to rescue New York City's schools from the ravages of the past eight years.

Helen Sears has switched sides.

Just six months ago, Helen Sears was fighting to hold on to her City Council seat in Jackson Heights, Queens. She hadn't done much over the past eight years, and had voted to give herself a shot at a third term. Still, the Queens County Democratic machine, which was going to back Daniel Dromm for the seat before term limits were extended, now switched to longtime machine member Sears. (It's possible that they went so far as to make some sort of deal with Alfonso Quiroz, who had planned to run but dropped out suddenly and endorsed Sears. So far, there doesn't seem to be any payoff for Quiroz, however, despite several opportunities, so that possibility is in doubt.) Dromm got the active backing of the Working Families Party, and the fight was on.

Dromm won. Sears lost.

Now Hiram Monserrate has been expelled from the state Senate and a special election has been called for March 16. The Democratic machine (along with a lot of non-machine aligned people) is backing Assembly member José Peralta. Peralta is not completely clean (there are some pretty bad campaign finance violations), but he's about 99 44/100% better than Monserrate.

Meanwhile, Sears has turned against the party that used to back her. She has gotten the Republican line.

Why? Read on...  read more »

City Council member Larry Seabrook has been indicted in the continuing probe into the slush fund scandal.

The 13-count indictment charges Seabrook with soliciting and accepting bribes, extortion, money laundering, and funneling tax money into phony nonprofits that existed only to benefit him and some of his relatives. In addition, there are a number of unnamed "Seabrook associates" who allegedly helped carry out his schemes.

This was not a surprise; it was pretty well known that Seabrook was under intense scrutiny throughout the past couple of years, and that an indictment would probably be handed down early this year. What remains to be seen is how many (if any) of the charges will stick.

Meanwhile, there is little chance that the City Council will take action against Seabrook unless he is convicted. That is not only standard practice, but also proper; a person is supposed to be presumed innocent, and no matter how serious the charges Seabrook deserves that same presumption.

Charles Barron, who challenged Christine Quinn for the Speaker's chair (like that was a contest) and has gotten into several ... spirited debates with Quinn, is the only Democrat in the Council without a lulu (except for Simcha Felder, who is leaving the Council at the end of January).

Is anyone surprised?

Some interesting assignments (interesting to me, anyway), after the jump:  read more »

(Note: Cross-posted from my website.)

Fans of the television series "The West Wing" will recognize the title of this column. In a first-season episode, the Bartlet administration is one year old and flopping around, seemingly unwilling to dive into any issue, preferring instead to "dangle our feet in the water." After one year of the Obama administration, life seems to be imitating art.

The last ten minutes of that episode should be instructive to President Obama.

In the wake of the loss of the Senate seat held for almost 60 years by Kennedys (Ted and John), especially in one of the bluest states in the country, Democrats are now reportedly doing some soul searching.

Again.

More after the jump -- a lot more.  read more »