Re-framing the “Bad Teachers” in the United States and Beyond

Abstract

This article analyzes current debates on education reform, paying particular attention to the ways that scapegoating public school teachers, teacher unions and teacher education masks more fundamental, systemic problems. It further demonstrates how reducing the problems in education to the level of individual (“bad”) teachers coincides with the sorting of both teachers and students. The article concludes with a call to engage in movement building as we reclaim public education and advance equitable education for all children.

Keywords:

• advocacy
• educational policy
• movement building
• school reform
• teachers

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Kevin K. Kumashiro

Kevin K. Kumashiro is dean of the School of Education at the University of San Francisco. He is the award-winning author or editor of nine books on education and social justice, including “Against Common Sense: Teaching and Learning toward Social Justice.” He is the founding director of the Center for Anti-Oppressive Education, and the current president of the National Association for Multicultural Education.