Springer: We do not support Education in this country!

[patrice]

The TRUTH!! here in Cupcake Land.

Say it Jerry.

[getmeouttahere]

1. Lots of lip service....

absolutely no substance...meanwhile, the rest of the world passes us in that department too!

[Lydia Leftcoast]

5. One of my pet peeves:

As a society, we support people getting degrees, we support people getting training that will lead to a specific job, we support people having "school spirit," whatever the hell that is, but we do NOT support education, in the sense of becoming a well-informed, adaptable person.

We are actually prejudiced against "pointy-headed intellectuals." We believe that the purpose of school is to certify the students as job-ready and to provide them with opportunities for athletics and socializing. We'd rather have our children be popular and athletic than intellectually gifted and well-informed enough to see thorugh the nonsense that pervades the culture.

We get angry at teachers who expose our children to "ideas" or expect high levels of performance as a prerequisite for high grades.

When a student expresses an interest in art or history or...Japanese, we say, "But what are you going to do with it? Go major in business or computer science." When they have electives in their college programs, we tell them to take some computer science courses (if they're business majors) or some business courses (if they're computer science majors).

Because we treat art, music, and theater as frills and have decided that mindless regurgitation for state tests should be the focus of English and social studies classes, the quality of our culture is degraded. Students know nothing outside what commercial TV and radio pour into their heads, and they don't gain the thinking skills that result from taking English and social studies classes taught properly. Instead, they learn that learning is boring and pointless, just a hoop that you have to jump through on your way to the trophy house five miles from the mall.

And the saddest thing about all of this is that American schools are locally controlled. Except for the NCLB part of it, we did this to ourselves through ignorance and apathy.

[rman]

2. Actually, "we" do, but "they" don't

"No Child Left Behind" was not our idea, it was theirs. To underfund it also was not our idea, but theirs.
Why don't you say that, Jerry? You know it's true.

[DaveJ]

3. One example here...

Here is just one minor anecdotal example of how that's true: I have a computer science degree in a masters in telecommunications. In the process of sending out applications, it's not very often I get a response, maybe 2 or 3 times a year... when I do get a response, the recruiter or HR person never ever asks a single question about what I did on college, only about prior job experience, and only job experience. Because of the way they conduct their hiring, I would have been better off if I'd never gone.

[patrice]

4. I won't be able to get in on the call-line, but I'd tell Jerry one of the

problems is that Public Ed won't allow half-contracts for qualified, certified teachers like me, who don't want to teach 130 kids a day. Some of us want just 1/2 or 1/4 contracts and more control over class size.

One thing Pub Ed never did that might have had some benefit in it would have been : Block Scheduling; Full-year schedules (with substantial REGULAR blocks of time in and out of school); Around-the-clock operation 9 - 9pm.

But they chose Voucher issues and Charter Schools instead.

Charter Schools in themselves aren't bad. It's how they are run, they have to please their Market. International Baccalaureat Schools make very good charter-type schools.

[DaveJ]

6. Interesting...

By 'block scheduling' do you mean doing away with the traditional summer vacation that kids normally get? I guess I'm old fashioned and wish things were simple. Just have one kind of school and one way of doing things. Kids don't need to be subjected to the pressure of worrying about whether they are going to the best school or not.

And I do agree that they should hire or half or quarter contracts. Teachers can get tired from being overworked and that's not fair to anyone.

[patrice]

7. Block schedules can be constructed to allow individuation.

As a professional educator I would like to emphasize that breaking the whole year up into REGULAR sized blocks of time in and out of school, would allow for longer regular vacations, interspersed with about the same size (as now) blocks of time in the classroom. 9-9pm allows those with attendance issues, needing to work, or they've been in rehab, or they are older or "alternative" students, to get their educations also. There should be no time in any American's life, when they say "I want/need this education (say up to 12th grade) if they demonstrate they are committed to the work of their own edcation and they are Denied that education?; this should never happen in America.

[patrice]

8. P.S. International Baccalaureat-type schools shouldn't be limited

to charter- or magnet-style schools.

[DaveJ]

9. You're probably right

Again I just have an antiquated assumption that all kids should go to school at the same time. Otherwise how else can adults say "you should be in school!" when they see kids running around on a school day.

I think the basic problem with education is how it's received by people outside the classroom. That's because in the real world, some of the worst truants, flunkies, and bullies often become employers later on. If businesses paid more attention to the academic performance of its hires (not just grades but choice of studies, etc) this would not happen as much.

[patrice]

10. Real Teachers would like to take individuation seriously,

because they love education and kids. This is why class size is such a touchy issue.

People can accept less of a paycheck when a job fits their lives/values right.

[DaveJ]

11. You are correct on many levels.

I would presume that school administrators are unable to think outside the box in order to accept more progressive methods of scheduling. They probably feel it would cost more due to teacher benefits, and cut into their own bloated salaries. I know, if they were able to think outside the box a resolution to the issue could be established. Does the public have any say in these matters?