CEO of 'We Are Teachers' Responds to Criticism

Sandy Fivecoat, CEO and founder of We Are Teachers (WAT) responds to my criticism concerning the "Knowledge Marketplace" and P21:

Great post. Thanks for sharing. In spirit of transparancy, I am CEO and founder of WeAreTeachers (WAT) -- so my comments are influenced by that work. I TOTALLY understand and support that we need TEACHERS more actively engaged with this discussion. This is one of the big reasons we believe the WAT platform was selected by the P21 Partnership leaders for this Cyber Summit. I know they share that view. Yup -- at WAT we do have a 'knowledge marketplace' -- -because we believe teachers who create content deserve to be published and compensated for their work. And we think there should be a place where great content can be accessed and purchased easily - BUT based on Teacher Recommendations -- not just a catalogue listing.The CENTRAL purpose of WAT is its value proposition for teachers -- to help them connect, collaborate, engage. But we also try to connect companies in the education space directly to teachers --- to ensure collaboration occurs there as well. We look carefully at the needs of teachers. Then we seek corporate sponsors to help fund and support things that really matter to teachers. Like Microgrants for supporting creativity. Or a scholarship program for inner city youth. Or a grant to support environmental education. We are stil learning, but we hope to help find that critical interection where 'what teachers need and 'what companies might provide' can intersect. We want to help connect dots that promote proper and useful conversations between end-user teachers and those commercial providers who publish great content. And the P21 forum is a great partner for that discussion -- and even controversy --- a very healthy thing in this connected world to move the needle in a positive way. Thanks again for a valuable discussion!

Your thoughts?

Do we 'need' corporate sponsors to help fund and support the "things that really matter to teachers"?

And, in the bigger picture, whose best interests do the board members of P21 most serve? The children of America? Or -- in terms of the majority corporate presence on the board -- their shareholders?

I tend to agree with the Tweet I received from @willrich45 yesterday in perfect abbreviated 140 character form: P21 is a bus. entity, plain and simple. It's nowhere close to the school transform we need.