If you didn`t get a chance to see the excellent
20/20 special with
John Stossel Last night, you can read his article in Reason Online:
Why your kids are probably dumber than Belgians
John Stossel In Belgium, for example, the government funds education—at any school—but if the school can't attract students, it goes out of business. Belgian school principal Kaat Vandensavel told us she works hard to impress parents. "If we don't offer them what they want for their child, they won't come to our school." She constantly improves the teaching, "You can't afford ten teachers out of 160 that don't do their work, because the clients will know, and won't come to you again."
"That's normal in Western Europe," Harvard economist Caroline Hoxby told me. "If schools don't perform well, a parent would never be trapped in that school in the same way you could be trapped in the U.S."
3 comments:
when I gew up in california, kids with straight f's would go to the next grade. So I am really not surprised.
Welcome penny silver, and christ, to my blog. It`s good to hear fresh voices on a fresh topic.
I was involved with the public school system from age 6 to 36, in one way or another. My parents were public school teachers, I often darkened their halls and lounges, and I certainly heard the complaints all through my childhood. My parents were absolutely dedicated and successful--and absolutely frustrated. My brother studied, paid thousands, and became a certified teacher. He was student teacher in a "good" public school, and put to work in a very, very bad one. He quit after one year and has never looked back.
My parents are still dedicated to the ideal of public education. I am dedicated to having everyone educated well, in good schools. I am afraid they might be disappointed to see these posts, actually. I was very disappointed in what I saw on the program, and what I read in Chris' site. I am starting to feel cheated by my own education--especially my state college. I'm glad I saw the program, and hope to see more.
"What's Wrong With Our Schools?" - cover story from Life Magazine published during the Eisenower administration.
"Mr. America walk on by,
your schools that do not teach." - Frank Zappa, ca. 1967.
This problem has been a part of American culture for so long that I really believe that reform is impossible until it is no longer valuable as a political football.
My first attempt at college, I was an Education major. When I discovered all the red tape and politics and administrative overhead that made the job of actually teaching almost impossible, I quit before I started. I have since been certified and have taught computer classes in Adult Education. A world of difference.
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