'Education Nation: NBC News Hosting Education Summit In September

NEW YORK — NBC News is convening its own summit with education and political leaders in September to talk about ways to improve schools in light of statistics showing the U.S. lagging in student achievement.

The two-day "Education Nation" event in New York will be carried online, and is part of a week of programming concentrating on education issues on NBC News broadcasts such as "Today" and "Nightly News," and the MSNBC, CNBC and Telemundo TV networks.

It's also a chance for NBC to promote some of its education-related products, including a news quiz and historical archives of NBC broadcasts available to schools.

U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan, the governors of Minnesota and Tennessee, MIT President Susan Hockfield and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg have all said they would attend, NBC said. It will be held on the week of Sept. 27.

"I say this as a parent," said NBC News President Steve Capus, "I think we're tired of accepting the status quo and having America show up in the middle of the pack when it comes to the education of our children."

Two-thirds of American eighth graders cannot read at their grade level and most of these students never catch up, according to the Nation's Report Card. The Strong American Schools analysis of data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development said that American students rank 25th in math and 21st in science on a list of 30 industrialized nations.

Education is one of those issues that doesn't receive the attention it deserves from the news media, said Lisa Gersh, president of strategic initiatives at NBC.

"If you talk to most people, they will tell you they understand the issues involving education but that their school is just fine," she said. "And that's just not true."

Other news organizations are welcome to cover NBC's event, Capus said.

The education summit is a step up for the occasionally activist approach to news that NBC has taken recently. The network held a "health week" earlier this year to emphasize stories on better eating. For a few years, NBC has had twice-a-year "green weeks" to emphasize environmental issues, events some critics suggest are partly done to burnish the image of parent General Electric Co.

"Education Nation" brings newsmakers to New York to put the issue in the spotlight – an approach from a news organization that many people are going to appreciate, said Kelly McBride, ethics group leader at the Poynter Institute think tank.

"Part of what the public is frustrated about with the news industry is that we present the problems, but they don't lead to solutions," McBride said.

Capus said it was "an entirely appropriate move for a news division. We make decisions every day about where we're going to place emphasis, and why not place emphasis on this coverage and create the forums where we hope to have some dialogues? We're not going in with preconceived ideas."

NBC will build a "learning plaza" at Rockefeller Center where the public can see examples of interactive classroom technology and new teaching approaches. Among the products featured there will be NBClearn.com, where educators can buy access to film clips on historical events from the NBC News archives, and ICue, a news-based game.

Capus said those businesses have quietly become an important part of the news division, but he said the products will be a "tiny fraction" of the summit.

"This is not a sales exercise," he said.

McBride said that hawking the news products is a "minor conflict" that would only be a concern if it appeared that a major focus of the event was product promotion. They are issues likely to come up in the future as struggling news organizations develop niche products in an effort to help their bottom lines, she said.

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NBC is owned by General Electric Co.

Comments

[cjaco]

11:28 PM on 09/16/2010

A list of their summit guests. No teachers or parents allowed. The link below gives the number to their complaint line. CALL and give them hell about their bias!
http://perdidostreetschool.blogspot.com/2010/09/nbc-hates-teachers.html

[learningismessy]

12:32 AM on 09/15/2010

I see NBC News is providing a broadcast forum called “Education Nation.” NBC is billing it as: “Education Nation is a nationally broadcast, in-depth conversation about improving education in America.” As I look over the list of, “confirmed participating speakers” I see finance people, mayors, various other politicians, news people like yourself, business people, union representatives, current and former US Education Secretaries (none of whom were teachers), sponsors that paid money to get a seat at the table, and other “experts.” What I am not seeing represented in this “In depth conversation,” are teachers and students and parents.

I know, I know, you are having a “Teacher Townhall” where teachers can apply and might be chosen if their “...one major change that you think could help to transform education in America,” happens to be chosen.

Do you see any irony in the fact that none of the “experts” (speakers) are teachers, students or parents? (Much less many of them?).

And understand that teachers, parents and students actually have differing and well thought out positions on what education could and should be If this is really meant to be an "... in-depth conversation about improving education in America," give real voice to those that should be MOST prominent in this discussion. Otherwise frankly, it is of little real value. Mainly only those that always have voice because of their wealth and connections will be major parts of this important conversation.

[cjaco]

11:27 PM on 09/16/2010

They are marginalizing and/or deleting critics on FB. Bias is stunning.

[Leonie Haimson]

08:12 PM on 09/14/2010

Readers should check out what the above-quoted Kelly Mcbride from the Poynter Instittute said to Inside Higher Ed about the for-profit University of Phoenix buying its way onto Education Nation: “It looks like the University of Phoenix bought access...That image is a dangerous one for NBC’s credibility and it also undermines the credibility of the project.” (for the full article go here: http://m.insidehighered.com/news/2010/09/01/phoenix )

No kidding. As though NBC had any credibility left. The monolithic guest list on this program reveals that Gates and Broad, the other two co-sponsors, are controlling the agenda and the discussion with their dollars as well.

[TeacherSabrina]

06:37 PM on 09/14/2010

Next, NBC will host a health summit to highlight how unhealthy America is. They won't invite any doctors to contribute to any of the main events, but *will* broadcast tons of programming by those who just happen to have some interest in for-profit health ventures.

This is a sham. At least, it is right now. If they change course, and offer some real diversity in perspectives (read: views from actual teachers and parents, in schools and communities that are actually struggling, who *haven't* received any money from the Gates or Broad foundations), then it might be a worthwhile venture. But as it stands, this is shaping up to be a week's worth of one-sided propaganda (in a season already filled with it-- Waiting for Superman, anyone?). Kudos to those who are saying as much-- be sure to spread the word, and hold NBC accountable for offering a substantive dialogue.

[TFT]

06:03 PM on 09/14/2010

Poverty is the disease. Failing schools are a symptom.

Obama told kids to get off their bottoms and study in his speech today.

He forgot to help them by providing them health care, high-quality early childhood education, a more progressive tax code and better school food.

So his message is: get up off your bottom, pull yourself up, and wish you had a mom like mine.

[TFT]

06:00 PM on 09/14/2010

Three words will help you understand how America, and education reform, works:

"Follow The Money."

'Nuff said.

[DavidBCohen]

04:56 PM on 09/14/2010

The media and many of the pundits in the country have bought into one story, one narrative, about broken schools and mediocre teachers. The fact is that our struggling schools, like any social institution, could use some improvement, but in the big picture, they are a symptom of a larger problem caused by poverty, lack of health care, lack of adequate child care, etc. Those who harp on awful schools and international comparisons lump everyone together in a misleading way. Many of our public schools are doing wonderful work, producing all of the students filling our colleges and going on to successful and fulfilling adult lives. It's a shame that anyone pointing out that, "it's the poverty, stupid," is likely to be branded by the current education "reform" crowd as an apologist for the status quo. The comments by NBC execs above give some evidence of that - they have to sell the crisis to sell the program, which is sponsored by the people who want to sell the solutions to the crisis - Broad and Gates in particular.

[eric14]

09:10 PM on 08/15/2010

The most important topic is money. You need a couple of million more teachers to reduce class sizes and regain attention of children. Wealthier Americans are not prepared to pay for that.

So many rich and famous. So many well-loved, famous, obscenely wealthy people and you wonder why your education system is in permanent crisis. You know why.

[chayala]

09:15 PM on 07/24/2010

This seemingly altuistic project is strictly a for profit enterprise. Not that I have a problem with that but call it what it is.

[jetcitysurfer]

12:07 PM on 07/23/2010

Students in many countries now out-rank American students academically. Top-performing nations sound off on reforms that worked: http://asiasociety.org/education-learning/learning-world

Most reform ideas came from American schools. Why did it work overseas but not domestically?

One reason is we try to give SOME students an excellent education (ahem, charter schools and federal money for hiring private tutors), but have consistently failed to offer a great education to ALL students.

[TFT]

05:57 PM on 09/14/2010

Other countries don't report their lowest scores. We are still the most highly educated nation in the world. You are simply misled. Google "Yong Zhao"

[walkawayfrombanks]

11:43 AM on 07/23/2010

when i was in college,

everyone took courses that taught HOW TO MAKE (and sell of course) something

but they had no interest in classes that taught WHAT they were making and WHY.

that's the kind of "education" we have, in a nutshell.

[Melt5904]

06:31 PM on 07/20/2010

It's never a waste of time when it comes to our kids and the future of the country. But I agree that listening to a bunch of talking heads, politicians is a waste of time. We need to hear from the teachers about what are then needs in education. The discussion should start with how to have smaller class sizes, how to make more time for teachers to collaborate with one another about individual student performance and student needs, ways to support and educate struggling new teachers or ways to get bad teachers out. The discussion should also include the professional learning communities movement. In this case I would like to see the politicians there in silence as they listen. They need to listen to the teachers.

[allis1]

02:14 AM on 07/23/2010

"They need to listen to the teachers." Amen. LIstening to a bunch of talking heads and politicians is indeed a waste of time. I recently heard Bill Gates talking about education reform at the Aspen Ideas forum. It was enough to make me gag. I am so tired of people who don't educate thinking that they know what needs to be done and how to do it. Many of the comments he made were
so basic to what teachers have known and been practicing for years that it made him sound like a complete fool. There is such a lack of respect for teachers and education in general in this country. People keep talking about how important education is but then don't back it up
in word and deed.

[madashellvoter]

12:15 PM on 07/20/2010

Who will be in the classroom...Faux News employees?

[cjaco]

08:30 PM on 09/15/2010

Yes actually. They are losing their jobs as newspapers grow more defunct, and the only schools they can get jobs at are charters unless they go back to grad school and get credentialed. Tell the truth about the politics of charter schools and their billionaire foundation and hedge fund backers, no job for you!

[Betsy Woods]

10:08 AM on 07/20/2010

What about inviting teachers to the Education Summit (conveniently held in September)?

[TurgidCaterwauling]

05:41 AM on 07/20/2010

Did I miss the part about inviting teachers to participate?