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talkpoliticsTeri Adams, Head of Independence Hall Tea Party and School Voucher Activist:
Our ultimate goal is to shut down public schools and have private schools only, eventually returning responsibility for payment to parents and private charities. It’s going to happen piecemeal and not overnight. It took us years to get into this mess and it’s going to take years to get out of it.
In other words, Adams would like education to be, along with medical care, available only to those who can pony up the cash for it.
The article I’ve linked to includes a few quotes from people speculating about what drives the American right’s hostility towards public education. The ban on teacher-led prayer is invoked, along with the mercenary desire to funnel the money now paid into public schools into private hands.
I suspect it’s much more simple than that. Without universal education, the far right wouldn’t have to contend with so many pesky arguments about the facts of history, math, science, etc.
Crossposted from Thoughtcrimes
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Re: If you're serious...
Date: 16/7/11 21:54 (UTC)http://www.intellectualtakeout.org/library/literacy/functional-illiteracy-and-literacy-problems-america
The U.S. Department of Education (USDOE) estimates that functional illiteracy affects 24 million Americans. Educator Chester E. Finn, Jr. states, “Just five percent of seventeen-year-old high school students can read well enough to understand and use information found in technical materials, literary essays, and historical documents. Barely six percent of them can solve multi-step math problems and use basic algebra." ("A Nation Still At Risk," Chester Finn, May 1989, p. 18). http://www.useless-knowledge.com/1234/aug/article321.html
The USDOE estimates 40 million Americans 16 years of age and older possess what are called “Level 1” reading and writing skills. This means they can sign their name, but can't understand such basics as the instructions for programming a VCR, reading a map, or accurately fill out an application for a Social Security card.
Re: If you're serious...
Date: 16/7/11 22:16 (UTC)I am a teacher of English. I've encountered students who the public school system have failed who struggle with the basics of English grammar, but they are by no means the majority of students. And while the fact that we lag behind other industrialized countries does concern me, I'm curious about what your solution is. Do you really think eliminating the public school system entirely would make things better?
Re: If you're serious...
Date: 16/7/11 22:21 (UTC)Re: If you're serious...
Date: 16/7/11 22:40 (UTC)I don't know. I've known some very good private schools. I've also known some (like some of the religious white-flight schools I saw crop up in the south in the wake of integration), that were substandard, especially when it came to science. In any event it's not a fair comparison because private schools, unlike public schools, have the option of refusing to accept students with serious cognitive or behavioral problems.
I've answered your question, so please answer my question. Do you think eliminating the public schools entirely would make things better?
Re: If you're serious...
Date: 16/7/11 22:42 (UTC)Re: If you're serious...
Date: 16/7/11 22:49 (UTC)Re: If you're serious...
Date: 16/7/11 22:52 (UTC)Re: If you're serious...
Date: 17/7/11 02:03 (UTC)From your third link:
We hit 2.2% right after public schools started outnumbering private ones, before things went downhill by WWII, presumably recovered, and then went downhill again recently. Which would suggest institutional reform is the solution, rather than gutting the public education system altogether.