Michigan Republicans move to privatize public education

[Pam]

http://www.eclectablog.com/2012/11/m...of-reform.html

A new package of bills is making its way through the legislature [[there’s an Education Committee meeting on them today, in fact) that will all but end public education as we know it in Michigan. The bills, House Bill 6004 and Senate Bill 1358, House Bill 5923, and Senate Bill 620 are revolutionary and are so far-reaching/over-reaching that school superintendents and other administrators across the state are sounding alarm bells far and wide.

[JVB]

I disagree, we should continue to throw money at a failing system that continues to produce mediocrity. It's the American way.

[Kevgoblue]

Yes that would be stupid to continue funding public schools.

Instead lets let for profits come in and take over. They can pick the students they want and let the failing system deal with the rest. They can utilize the public buildings on the taxpayers dime. They can run their operation with minimal oversight, mimimal accountability and exemptions to about half the requirements of the school codes as determined by the state. And they can take their guarenteed margins off the top to boot! Sweet.

[Danny]

Republicans politicians in Michigan can't do that! Leaving state, federal and local governments out of providing free education violates our U.S. constitution. The people of Michigan will vote against any measure that would cause people rich or poor to pay for education. Michigan Democrats in their districts will block the proposals and folks in all Michigan will bust through the doors in the State capital in Lansing with protest signs and baseball bats.

[noise]

Charter schools certainly have better results than public schools, so why not?!?!

[Det_ard]

For decades Big Education has just done the same thing, over and over, with worse results. They are incapable of making improving themselves. They follow a century-old educational model aimed at producing good industrial production workers, on the schedule of farmers.

Big Education isn't innovative. The administrators, principals and teachers aren't high-performing. They are comfortable and insulated. They seek to solve modern problems with yesteryear's approaches.

They don't promote high standards because they are the product of low standards. Education majors have lower college entrance test scores than virtually every other major. Yet they have higher college GPAs than virtually every other major. They are told, and are convinced, that OK is Great and sub-standard is Very Good.

Professional educators swim in a sea of mediocrity. They were coddled in college and now tell each other how superb they all are and the public just can't appreciate their greatness. They simply don't know how unimpressive most of them are. Their performance isn't rigorously measured. Their failures have no consequences except to their students. To become "highly qualified" they obtain Master's degrees from the least competitive universities around via programs designed to still pass the least capable. Their compensation rises every year regardless of their job performance.

A truly terrible teacher is allowed to continue teaching while another class of his/her students fall further behind. Sometimes for years, sometimes for decades. The bad teachers are shipped around the district to other schools to be sprung on unsuspecting parents. The great teachers get the undereducated students the next year and have to work even harder, but they get no reward for being two or three times as effective as their "peers".

The Big Educational system is broken. It has been for years. It exists to serve the interests of the adults employed in the system, not the students, the families, the community or society. Is it any wonder some people in society, knowing the importance of education, are seeking to change a dysfunctional system protected by a complacent, powerful and self-interested few?

[JVB]

For decades Big Education has just done the same thing, over and over, with worse results. They are incapable of making improving themselves. They follow a century-old educational model aimed at producing good industrial production workers, on the schedule of farmers.

Big Education isn't innovative. The administrators, principals and teachers aren't high-performing. They are comfortable and insulated. They seek to solve modern problems with yesteryear's approaches.

They don't promote high standards because they are the product of low standards. Education majors have lower college entrance test scores than virtually every other major. Yet they have higher college GPAs than virtually every other major. They are told, and are convinced, that OK is Great and sub-standard is Very Good.

Professional educators swim in a sea of mediocrity. They were coddled in college and now tell each other how superb they all are and the public just can't appreciate their greatness. They simply don't know how unimpressive most of them are. Their performance isn't rigorously measured. Their failures have no consequences except to their students. To become "highly qualified" they obtain Master's degrees from the least competitive universities around via programs designed to still pass the least capable. Their compensation rises every year regardless of their job performance.

A truly terrible teacher is allowed to continue teaching while another class of his/her students fall further behind. Sometimes for years, sometimes for decades. The bad teachers are shipped around the district to other schools to be sprung on unsuspecting parents. The great teachers get the undereducated students the next year and have to work even harder, but they get no reward for being two or three times as effective as their "peers".

The Big Educational system is broken. It has been for years. It exists to serve the interests of the adults employed in the system, not the students, the families, the community or society. Is it any wonder some people in society, knowing the importance of education, are seeking to change a dysfunctional system protected by a complacent, powerful and self-interested few?

Quoted for truth.

[noise]

For decades Big Education has just done the same thing, over and over, with worse results. They are incapable of making improving themselves. They follow a century-old educational model aimed at producing good industrial production workers, on the schedule of farmers.

Big Education isn't innovative. The administrators, principals and teachers aren't high-performing. They are comfortable and insulated. They seek to solve modern problems with yesteryear's approaches.

They don't promote high standards because they are the product of low standards. Education majors have lower college entrance test scores than virtually every other major. Yet they have higher college GPAs than virtually every other major. They are told, and are convinced, that OK is Great and sub-standard is Very Good.

Professional educators swim in a sea of mediocrity. They were coddled in college and now tell each other how superb they all are and the public just can't appreciate their greatness. They simply don't know how unimpressive most of them are. Their performance isn't rigorously measured. Their failures have no consequences except to their students. To become "highly qualified" they obtain Master's degrees from the least competitive universities around via programs designed to still pass the least capable. Their compensation rises every year regardless of their job performance.

A truly terrible teacher is allowed to continue teaching while another class of his/her students fall further behind. Sometimes for years, sometimes for decades. The bad teachers are shipped around the district to other schools to be sprung on unsuspecting parents. The great teachers get the undereducated students the next year and have to work even harder, but they get no reward for being two or three times as effective as their "peers".

The Big Educational system is broken. It has been for years. It exists to serve the interests of the adults employed in the system, not the students, the families, the community or society. Is it any wonder some people in society, knowing the importance of education, are seeking to change a dysfunctional system protected by a complacent, powerful and self-interested few?

Very little of this is accurate.

[JVB]

Very little of this is accurate.

Such as...?

[Danny]

Charter schools certainly have better results than public schools, so why not?!?!

Let private schools stay private schools.

Let parochial schools stay parochial schools.

Let charter schools stay charter schools.

Let free government public schools stay free government public schools.

If the State of Michigan wants its government hands off of public schools. They would have to ask U.S. Congress and U.S. Department of Education to change historical contexts in our constitution to do it. But it will NEVER happen.

[JVB]

They would have to ask U.S. Congress and U.S. Department of Education to change historical contexts in our constitution to do it. But it will NEVER happen.

The US Department of Education wasn't created until 1979, and schools have only gotten worse since then. Maybe it's not working?

[Danny]

The US Department of Education wasn't created until 1979, and schools have only gotten worse since then. Maybe it's not working?

Even through The U.S. Department of Education was form in 1979. They oversee American academics and abide by the U.S. constitution. States who propose to change priviledge education must go through Congress and U.S. Dept. of Ed nad propose a bill. But they can't do that unless historical changes to the U.S. Constitution happens.

Education is America should a birthright, not a priviledge. Anyone can learn.

[JVB]

Even through The U.S. Department of Education was form in 1979. They oversee American academics and abide by the U.S. constitution. States who propose to change priviledge education must go through Congress and U.S. Dept. of Ed nad propose a bill. But they can't do that unless historical changes to the U.S. Constitution happens.

Education is America should a birthright, not a priviledge. Anyone can learn.

The U.S. Constitution grants no authority over education to the federal government. Education is not mentioned in the Constitution of the United States, and for good reason. The Founders wanted most aspects of life managed by those who were closest to them, either by state or local government or by families, businesses, and other elements of civil society. Since the federal government has taken over local control of schools in 1979, the quality has only gone down.

[Det_ard]

Since the federal government has taken over local control of schools in 1979, the quality has only gone down.

Yet per pupil spending, even after adjusting for inflation, has DOUBLED.

Still, the entrenched interests don't admit to the obvious problems. They whistle past the graveyard as the US slips farther behind our international competitors. Some still cling to the outdated notion that teachers are generally underpaid [[DPS and its ilk notwithstanding).

Anyone who's interviewed the average HS grad today knows there's a big problem. After roughly 15,000 hours in school from K-12 the graduate is all-too-often incapable of basic math, composing a readable paragraph or demonstrating an understanding of fundamental scientific principles.

[Papasito]

Comparatively speaking, the United States does not starve its education system of revenue. The U.S. is one of the leaders in spending on Education, and yet it's schools are rated "average" by international bodies.

The three-yearly OECD Programme for International Student Assessment [[PISA) report, which compares the knowledge and skills of 15-year-olds in 70 countries around the world, ranked the United States 14th out of 34 OECD countries for reading skills, 17th for science and a below-average 25th for mathematics.

Worse, out of 34 OECD countries, only 8 have a lower high school graduation rate. The United States' education outcomes most resemble Poland's, a nation that spends less than half on education than the U.S.

http://www.businessinsider.com/us-ed...d-world-2012-1

Our country should look at what the Japanese do, they spend far less money on education and get much better results.

Obviously the American people are not getting what we pay for. The system is inefficient and produces poor results. If we are comparing money to results, we are not getting our money's worth.

[oladub]

Even through The U.S. Department of Education was form in 1979. They oversee American academics and abide by the U.S. constitution. States who propose to change priviledge education must go through Congress and U.S. Dept. of Ed nad propose a bill. But they can't do that unless historical changes to the U.S. Constitution happens.

Education is America should a birthright, not a priviledge. Anyone can learn.

Danny, The Federal Government is in charge of Washington, DC schools which have a high school graduation rate of 59%; worse than that of any state.

"Public school systems spent an average of $10,615 per student in the 2010 fiscal year, Washington, D.C., schools topped per-pupil spending at $18,667. " Those results shouldn't encourage anyone to want federal involvement in their local schools. Even Presidents Clinton and Obama have sent their kids to a private school there. Carter was the last president to send his child to a Washington, DC public school. I think that the Obama's are spending $24,000/year for each daughter to attend Sidwell Friends School.

[poobert]

There is no silver bullet to education. The same people who preach "self-reliance" expect the education system to turn their children into CEOs with no help from home. Why, you're just supposed to move to the latest "good school district"!

These same "conservatives" then feed their kids fast food, watch TV all day, every day, revile and defund libraries and museums, abhor universities as "liberal", and then bitch because junior turned out to be a fucking loser - and of course it is someone else's fault- public education, of course.

Education begins at home and is a lifelong journey. Also, you Republican fucks lost because America thinks you suck. Was that not clear?

[RaumVogel]

It's not clear to them because they only pay attention to their own propaganda.
They think they lost because all Americans except the rich are idiots. Hey, they are privatizing the prison system that way they can empty the pockets of anyone that doesn't think like they do.
Stop the wasteful spending and corruption in ALL government departments and the situation will improve.

/BTW...is Kwame still in jail? Or is he down in Texas enjoying his mansion....

[rb336]

There is only ONE constant in educational success - parental involvement. Study after study show that once you control for parental involvement, there is little to no difference between public, private or charter schools [[actually, most of them have charters coming out at the low end and school district run specialty schools [["magnet schools") consistently at the top)

[Goose]

There is no silver bullet to education. The same people who preach "self-reliance" expect the education system to turn their children into CEOs with no help from home. Why, you're just supposed to move to the latest "good school district"!

These same "conservatives" then feed their kids fast food, watch TV all day, every day, revile and defund libraries and museums, abhor universities as "liberal", and then bitch because junior turned out to be a fucking loser - and of course it is someone else's fault- public education, of course.

Education begins at home and is a lifelong journey. Also, you Republican fucks lost because America thinks you suck. Was that not clear?

and the Democrat strongholds of cities like Detroit, Chicago, and Washington DC are perfect examples of how to get a quality eduation.....

Id rather have stupid kids by choice than the current system of having stupid kids by force......

[Jimaz]

Id rather have stupid kids by choice than the current system of having stupid kids by force......

Could that be an inheritable trait? Sincerely.

[Goose]

Could that be an inheritable trait? Sincerely.

stupid is as stupid does........ i have chosen to opt out of public education for my offspring......

[rb336]

stupid is as stupid does........ i have chosen to opt out of public education for my offspring......

we can only hope, for their sake, that you are not home-schooling them

[Cincinnati_Kid]

Republicans want to CHANGE everything, not necessarily for the good of ALL citizens. Didn't they get the memo? People aren't dancing to their music. They need to blow the party up and start from scratch.

[JVB]

Also, you Republican fucks lost because America thinks you suck. Was that not clear?

I'm not a Republican, but in their defense America also thinks Jersey Shore and American Idol are awesome shows, Justin Bieber and Lady Gaga are talented musical artists, and Twilight and 50 Shades of Gray is riveting literature. Maybe we shouldn't automatically give Americans too much credit for knowing what's good for them.

Obviously education starts at home, and many "parents" just don't take the education of their children very seriously. There is no way to fix that, so there has to be some role for public education, but I don't think it's unreasonable to expect the public schools to perform a lot better and more efficiently than they have been over the last 30 years.