Google and Teach For America

By Stephen Downes - Stephen's Web. Announcement[Edit][Delete]: Google and Teach For America, Google [Edit][Delete] December 5, 2006
There have been a few fawning comments about this program, where Google places teachers into a classroom, working with a Google mentor, for two years before employing them. I am rather more sceptical. If Google wants to support education, why doesn't it simply pay more taxes, the way the rest of us do it (the same question could be asked of Bill Gates)? Why does Google focus on American classrooms - in my view it should focus on countries that really need teachers, not countries that merely don't want to pay for them. And what are the dangers of having company-selected teachers and Google mentors in the classroom? Do you want Google - or Coca-Cola, or Microsoft, or Disney, or Halliburton - teaching your kids. More...