Source Form #5

Title:  Schwarzenegger’s Education Failures

http://www.thenation.com/doc/20040830/goldmacher

Summary: The Nation reports on the failures of California’s education infrastructure in 2004, accompanied by the culprit, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, who is refusing to help out with legislation causing a rapid decline in the money provided to many schools among which are the poorest schools.

 

 Topic: http://msaraceno.wordpress.com/question/

 

Category: The article is a Journalistic Source categorized in a branch of independent media.  The paper seems to be pushing liberal values with the undercurrent of its articles.

 

What is it? This is an online newspaper called The Nation.

 

Publication Information:  The Nation is the title of the online magazine.  The article was published on August 19, 2004. 

 

Author:  Shane Paul Goldmacher

 

Location: http://www.thenation.com/doc/20040830/goldmacher

 

Accessed: January 29, 2009

 

Support:  Barbara Kerr, president of California Teacher Association (CTA).  Arnold Schwarzenegger, Governor of California.  Delaine Easton, the former State Superintendent of Schools—California’s top education post.  Catherine Berman, a speech teacher who is retired as of 2002.  The quotes from Schwarzenegger are not direct and seem to be from speeches he has made in the past.  The other quotes are from people who have been working in the school systems infrastructure or on the front line for quite a while.  The sources seem to work together to build up an image of the hardships going on in the schools system all throughout California.  They all work together to fill in the gaps that one person knows about like a front line teacher who retired because of the current state of affairs to the former state superintendent who knows the ins-and-outs of what goes on behind closed doors.  Together they build on the information available and provide insight into what is going on in the education system in California and the effects it is having on a personal level.

 

Source Analysis:  The audience appears to be people who actively want more independent information not coming out of the mainstream.  A big portion of funding for this online publication is through the audience and their contributions.  The screening process for advertisements seems to coincide with what the audience comments appear to be pushing them towards.  Most of the ads are from non-profit organizations with a message like “send our troops home” and cliché’s as such.  This magazine has existed in paper form for a very long time.  The readership seems to be quite large and the reporting seems to echo that of the investigative reporting typical of independent style. 

 

Usefulness:  This article seems to have been created to reiterate the seriousness of the problems California was facing in 2004.  At the time, it seemed as if education was really being put on the back burner and the system was crumbling.  The article is helpful in providing information about the poorest schools in the California area that were suffering the worse and didn’t have as many resources as some of the wealthier schools.  The examples in this article help convey the need for a better infrastructure altogether but also help portray the victims who are cut in struggling schools along with many other things—such as the teachers.  Since the teachers are part of my question, having testimonials of teachers having political problems in their own districts and the effects on their jobs is helpful in showing the powerful nature of losing people in the education system.    I don’t necessarily see it leaving anything out as much as leading to no closure.  I am guessing this situation didn’t end on this event so I am sure there are some follow up articles regarding this topic.

 

Works Cited:  I found this information googling around after finding a picture through the library website.  

Advertisement