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George Wiley Center joins Chorus of Criticism versus PROCAP

ABC6 reports that the progressive community based organization – the George Wiley Center – has first-hand experience of the kind of “staggering mismanagement” that has led Mayor Angel Taveras and Council President Michael Solomon to call for the resignation of director Frank Corbishley and the State of Rhode Island to announce that its cutting off all funding to ProCap:

One of the Programs effected by the Agency’s issues is the George Wiley Center in Pawtucket. The center is the middle man between people that need help paying their utilities and programs like ProCAP that provide those services. For the past year, workers at the George Wiley Center say they can’t do their job, because ProCAP hasn’t been doing theirs.

Drawers of files at George Wiley Center show just how many Rhode Islanders come seeking help for paying their utility bills. It’s part of Debbie Clark’s job to refer them to programs like ProCAP.

“They’re the focal point of where everything starts, they’re where people can move on to the next step,” Clark says.

Clark says working with ProCAP has become a battle over the last year, hindering her from helping others.

“People are calling they’re not getting treated properly, I just think the whole thing needs to be revamped.”

(…)Clark says her program has had communication problems with ProCAP for a while and is hoping for change.

“Our hands are tied, we can’t change what’s happening at ProCAP, we can’t affect what’s happening at ProCAP, and all we can do is help these people on what to do moving forward.”

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Progressive Education in Providence?

Good news via the mayor’s Web site:

The Coalition of Essential Schools (CES), founded 25 years ago by renowned educator Theodore R. Sizer, is moving into its new offices on 325 Public Street, co-located with Big Picture Learning at the Met School’s Public Street campus in South Providence.

“The Coalition of Essential Schools is a great resource for educators who are committed to thoughtful teaching and learning practices—not just for Providence but throughout the country. We are thrilled to have the CES establish new headquarters in the Capital City, and we look forward to their partnership in improving the education of all of our students,” said Mayor Angel Taveras.

That’s a positive sign, but I’m left wondering how much of the progressive education model is actually being embraced.

Last weekend the Coalition hosted its annual Fall Forum. Speakers discussed the problems with current education policy, such as that being promoted by Education Commissioner Gist. What concerns Providence parents is that a focus on high-stakes test taking turns schools into what Fall Forum speaker, Alfie Kohn called “glorified test taking centers.” The question for parents is not so much reform as it is which reform and by which method. Here’s Kohn (“Speakers decry test-taking factories,” Projo 11/13/2011 – not available online):

“Education has become like the old Listerine commercial,” Kohn said. “If it tastes bad, you know it’s working. Traditional education is as unproductive as it [is] unappealing”…

“These types of schools,” Kohn said, “squeeze the intellectual life out of the classroom and victimize the very kids who most need an education that is engaging.”Kohn may be what Projo calls an “education contrarian,” but he’s in good company in the continuous improvement world. Process improvement guru, W. Edwards Deming was once interviewed by a group of educators who asked him, what to measure to improve student performance?. So what was his response?Dr. Deiming: Don’t measure. For heaven’s sake, I’ve been trying to say, “DON’T MEASURE.” Whatever you can measure is inconsequential.What’s important according to Deming is to “restore and nurture the yearning for learning that the child is born with” (for more I encourage you to read this section of “The New Economics For Industry, Government & Education”). That’s exactly the type of reform Kohn is talking about. Let’s just hope the mayor is listening.