We Don’t Need No Department of Education
See, this is what I’m talking about. Obama, like he should, is going after McCain on the issues — not just on Iraq but on key domestic issues like health care, abortion, and, now, education:
Our kids and our country can’t afford four more years of neglect and indifference. At this defining moment in our history, America faces few more urgent challenges than preparing our children to compete in a global economy,
Obama said at an event yesterday in Ohio.
The fact is, Obama and the Democrats are right, and Americans are right with them, on these issues. Presenting substantive policy proposals while aggressively differentiating himself from McCain and the Republicans allows Obama to define his opponent, repel smears, and influence the media-driven narrative that drives the campaign and dominates public sentiment.
So much of the talk of late has centered on Palin. To the extent that Palin seems to be a liar, and continues to lie, that talk, and the ongoing media investigation of Palin’s past, must continue. In other words, that, too, must be part of the narrative. But it is essential that the talk also focus sustantively on Obama and on what Obama would actually do as president. Contrasted with what McCain would do, that’s a clear winner for Obama.
Not least because, with respect to education, McCain once supported abolishing the Department of Education.
(Note: Please pay attention to double negatives. I don’t want anyone to misunderstand me.)
647 Responses to “We Don’t Need No Department of Education”
You get that you're basically describing a small private school, right? A group of teachers pooling resources and banding together to give students a well-rounded education.
Inner city schools don't fail because they lack resources. They fail because of the cultures surrounding them. I went to public school in West Philadelphia for 5 years – the kids who fell behind were the ones who lived in the scariest neighborhoods, who had the most pressure from gangs, and who had the most messed up family lives. When they showed up to school, they acted out, caused trouble, and brought their dangerous home lives into the building to affect everyone else. Giving them vouchers and telling them to find their own teachers sure as hell isn't going to work for kids like that. It doesn't matter how good the teachers are if the students never show up.
Your “plan” doesn't address that at all. Voucher or no voucher, kids who get mixed up in gangs or drugs are not going to show up ready to learn every day to a teacher's office. And forcing the teachers to go it alone or band together in small groups does not address the need for organized extra-curriculars – something that has been proven to keep kids out of trouble.
DC throws $16000 per student into the mess every year, but they don't address the real source of the problems in their school system. Why not spend that money on restructuring the schools? Set up dorms for public boarding schools. Recruit volunteers to organize more extra-curricular activities. Anything that keeps the inner city kids away from violence, drugs, and everything else that prevents them from succeeding in school.
Instead of tossing the whole system, why not look at places where it works? Montgomery County, just outside of DC, has a hugely diverse student population including a lot of recent immigrants and people just barely getting by financially. Yet they have a very successful education system that includes a lot of charter schools, tons of extra-curriculars, and increased student involvement in school decisions. They consistently rank among the top districts in the nation for SAT scores, especially among minority students, and in graduation rates. What do they do differently? And how can we implement those changes elsewhere?
You get that you're basically describing a small private school, right? A group of teachers pooling resources and banding together to give students a well-rounded education.
Inner city schools don't fail because they lack resources. They fail because of the cultures surrounding them. I went to public school in West Philadelphia for 5 years – the kids who fell behind were the ones who lived in the scariest neighborhoods, who had the most pressure from gangs, and who had the most messed up family lives. When they showed up to school, they acted out, caused trouble, and brought their dangerous home lives into the building to affect everyone else. Giving them vouchers and telling them to find their own teachers sure as hell isn't going to work for kids like that. It doesn't matter how good the teachers are if the students never show up.
Your “plan” doesn't address that at all. Voucher or no voucher, kids who get mixed up in gangs or drugs are not going to show up ready to learn every day to a teacher's office. And forcing the teachers to go it alone or band together in small groups does not address the need for organized extra-curriculars – something that has been proven to keep kids out of trouble.
DC throws $16000 per student into the mess every year, but they don't address the real source of the problems in their school system. Why not spend that money on restructuring the schools? Set up dorms for public boarding schools. Recruit volunteers to organize more extra-curricular activities. Anything that keeps the inner city kids away from violence, drugs, and everything else that prevents them from succeeding in school.
Instead of tossing the whole system, why not look at places where it works? Montgomery County, just outside of DC, has a hugely diverse student population including a lot of recent immigrants and people just barely getting by financially. Yet they have a very successful education system that includes a lot of charter schools, tons of extra-curriculars, and increased student involvement in school decisions. They consistently rank among the top districts in the nation for SAT scores, especially among minority students, and in graduation rates. What do they do differently? And how can we implement those changes elsewhere?
You get that you're basically describing a small private school, right? A group of teachers pooling resources and banding together to give students a well-rounded education.
Inner city schools don't fail because they lack resources. They fail because of the cultures surrounding them. I went to public school in West Philadelphia for 5 years – the kids who fell behind were the ones who lived in the scariest neighborhoods, who had the most pressure from gangs, and who had the most messed up family lives. When they showed up to school, they acted out, caused trouble, and brought their dangerous home lives into the building to affect everyone else. Giving them vouchers and telling them to find their own teachers sure as hell isn't going to work for kids like that. It doesn't matter how good the teachers are if the students never show up.
Your “plan” doesn't address that at all. Voucher or no voucher, kids who get mixed up in gangs or drugs are not going to show up ready to learn every day to a teacher's office. And forcing the teachers to go it alone or band together in small groups does not address the need for organized extra-curriculars – something that has been proven to keep kids out of trouble.
DC throws $16000 per student into the mess every year, but they don't address the real source of the problems in their school system. Why not spend that money on restructuring the schools? Set up dorms for public boarding schools. Recruit volunteers to organize more extra-curricular activities. Anything that keeps the inner city kids away from violence, drugs, and everything else that prevents them from succeeding in school.
Instead of tossing the whole system, why not look at places where it works? Montgomery County, just outside of DC, has a hugely diverse student population including a lot of recent immigrants and people just barely getting by financially. Yet they have a very successful education system that includes a lot of charter schools, tons of extra-curriculars, and increased student involvement in school decisions. They consistently rank among the top districts in the nation for SAT scores, especially among minority students, and in graduation rates. What do they do differently? And how can we implement those changes elsewhere?
You get that you're basically describing a small private school, right? A group of teachers pooling resources and banding together to give students a well-rounded education.
Inner city schools don't fail because they lack resources. They fail because of the cultures surrounding them. I went to public school in West Philadelphia for 5 years – the kids who fell behind were the ones who lived in the scariest neighborhoods, who had the most pressure from gangs, and who had the most messed up family lives. When they showed up to school, they acted out, caused trouble, and brought their dangerous home lives into the building to affect everyone else. Giving them vouchers and telling them to find their own teachers sure as hell isn't going to work for kids like that. It doesn't matter how good the teachers are if the students never show up.
Your “plan” doesn't address that at all. Voucher or no voucher, kids who get mixed up in gangs or drugs are not going to show up ready to learn every day to a teacher's office. And forcing the teachers to go it alone or band together in small groups does not address the need for organized extra-curriculars – something that has been proven to keep kids out of trouble.
DC throws $16000 per student into the mess every year, but they don't address the real source of the problems in their school system. Why not spend that money on restructuring the schools? Set up dorms for public boarding schools. Recruit volunteers to organize more extra-curricular activities. Anything that keeps the inner city kids away from violence, drugs, and everything else that prevents them from succeeding in school.
Instead of tossing the whole system, why not look at places where it works? Montgomery County, just outside of DC, has a hugely diverse student population including a lot of recent immigrants and people just barely getting by financially. Yet they have a very successful education system that includes a lot of charter schools, tons of extra-curriculars, and increased student involvement in school decisions. They consistently rank among the top districts in the nation for SAT scores, especially among minority students, and in graduation rates. What do they do differently? And how can we implement those changes elsewhere?
You get that you're basically describing a small private school, right? A group of teachers pooling resources and banding together to give students a well-rounded education.
Inner city schools don't fail because they lack resources. They fail because of the cultures surrounding them. I went to public school in West Philadelphia for 5 years – the kids who fell behind were the ones who lived in the scariest neighborhoods, who had the most pressure from gangs, and who had the most messed up family lives. When they showed up to school, they acted out, caused trouble, and brought their dangerous home lives into the building to affect everyone else. Giving them vouchers and telling them to find their own teachers sure as hell isn't going to work for kids like that. It doesn't matter how good the teachers are if the students never show up.
Your “plan” doesn't address that at all. Voucher or no voucher, kids who get mixed up in gangs or drugs are not going to show up ready to learn every day to a teacher's office. And forcing the teachers to go it alone or band together in small groups does not address the need for organized extra-curriculars – something that has been proven to keep kids out of trouble.
DC throws $16000 per student into the mess every year, but they don't address the real source of the problems in their school system. Why not spend that money on restructuring the schools? Set up dorms for public boarding schools. Recruit volunteers to organize more extra-curricular activities. Anything that keeps the inner city kids away from violence, drugs, and everything else that prevents them from succeeding in school.
Instead of tossing the whole system, why not look at places where it works? Montgomery County, just outside of DC, has a hugely diverse student population including a lot of recent immigrants and people just barely getting by financially. Yet they have a very successful education system that includes a lot of charter schools, tons of extra-curriculars, and increased student involvement in school decisions. They consistently rank among the top districts in the nation for SAT scores, especially among minority students, and in graduation rates. What do they do differently? And how can we implement those changes elsewhere?
You get that you're basically describing a small private school, right? A group of teachers pooling resources and banding together to give students a well-rounded education.
Inner city schools don't fail because they lack resources. They fail because of the cultures surrounding them. I went to public school in West Philadelphia for 5 years – the kids who fell behind were the ones who lived in the scariest neighborhoods, who had the most pressure from gangs, and who had the most messed up family lives. When they showed up to school, they acted out, caused trouble, and brought their dangerous home lives into the building to affect everyone else. Giving them vouchers and telling them to find their own teachers sure as hell isn't going to work for kids like that. It doesn't matter how good the teachers are if the students never show up.
Your “plan” doesn't address that at all. Voucher or no voucher, kids who get mixed up in gangs or drugs are not going to show up ready to learn every day to a teacher's office. And forcing the teachers to go it alone or band together in small groups does not address the need for organized extra-curriculars – something that has been proven to keep kids out of trouble.
DC throws $16000 per student into the mess every year, but they don't address the real source of the problems in their school system. Why not spend that money on restructuring the schools? Set up dorms for public boarding schools. Recruit volunteers to organize more extra-curricular activities. Anything that keeps the inner city kids away from violence, drugs, and everything else that prevents them from succeeding in school.
Instead of tossing the whole system, why not look at places where it works? Montgomery County, just outside of DC, has a hugely diverse student population including a lot of recent immigrants and people just barely getting by financially. Yet they have a very successful education system that includes a lot of charter schools, tons of extra-curriculars, and increased student involvement in school decisions. They consistently rank among the top districts in the nation for SAT scores, especially among minority students, and in graduation rates. What do they do differently? And how can we implement those changes elsewhere?
You get that you're basically describing a small private school, right? A group of teachers pooling resources and banding together to give students a well-rounded education.
Inner city schools don't fail because they lack resources. They fail because of the cultures surrounding them. I went to public school in West Philadelphia for 5 years – the kids who fell behind were the ones who lived in the scariest neighborhoods, who had the most pressure from gangs, and who had the most messed up family lives. When they showed up to school, they acted out, caused trouble, and brought their dangerous home lives into the building to affect everyone else. Giving them vouchers and telling them to find their own teachers sure as hell isn't going to work for kids like that. It doesn't matter how good the teachers are if the students never show up.
Your “plan” doesn't address that at all. Voucher or no voucher, kids who get mixed up in gangs or drugs are not going to show up ready to learn every day to a teacher's office. And forcing the teachers to go it alone or band together in small groups does not address the need for organized extra-curriculars – something that has been proven to keep kids out of trouble.
DC throws $16000 per student into the mess every year, but they don't address the real source of the problems in their school system. Why not spend that money on restructuring the schools? Set up dorms for public boarding schools. Recruit volunteers to organize more extra-curricular activities. Anything that keeps the inner city kids away from violence, drugs, and everything else that prevents them from succeeding in school.
Instead of tossing the whole system, why not look at places where it works? Montgomery County, just outside of DC, has a hugely diverse student population including a lot of recent immigrants and people just barely getting by financially. Yet they have a very successful education system that includes a lot of charter schools, tons of extra-curriculars, and increased student involvement in school decisions. They consistently rank among the top districts in the nation for SAT scores, especially among minority students, and in graduation rates. What do they do differently? And how can we implement those changes elsewhere?
You get that you're basically describing a small private school, right? A group of teachers pooling resources and banding together to give students a well-rounded education.
Inner city schools don't fail because they lack resources. They fail because of the cultures surrounding them. I went to public school in West Philadelphia for 5 years – the kids who fell behind were the ones who lived in the scariest neighborhoods, who had the most pressure from gangs, and who had the most messed up family lives. When they showed up to school, they acted out, caused trouble, and brought their dangerous home lives into the building to affect everyone else. Giving them vouchers and telling them to find their own teachers sure as hell isn't going to work for kids like that. It doesn't matter how good the teachers are if the students never show up.
Your “plan” doesn't address that at all. Voucher or no voucher, kids who get mixed up in gangs or drugs are not going to show up ready to learn every day to a teacher's office. And forcing the teachers to go it alone or band together in small groups does not address the need for organized extra-curriculars – something that has been proven to keep kids out of trouble.
DC throws $16000 per student into the mess every year, but they don't address the real source of the problems in their school system. Why not spend that money on restructuring the schools? Set up dorms for public boarding schools. Recruit volunteers to organize more extra-curricular activities. Anything that keeps the inner city kids away from violence, drugs, and everything else that prevents them from succeeding in school.
Instead of tossing the whole system, why not look at places where it works? Montgomery County, just outside of DC, has a hugely diverse student population including a lot of recent immigrants and people just barely getting by financially. Yet they have a very successful education system that includes a lot of charter schools, tons of extra-curriculars, and increased student involvement in school decisions. They consistently rank among the top districts in the nation for SAT scores, especially among minority students, and in graduation rates. What do they do differently? And how can we implement those changes elsewhere?
You get that you're basically describing a small private school, right? A group of teachers pooling resources and banding together to give students a well-rounded education.
Inner city schools don't fail because they lack resources. They fail because of the cultures surrounding them. I went to public school in West Philadelphia for 5 years – the kids who fell behind were the ones who lived in the scariest neighborhoods, who had the most pressure from gangs, and who had the most messed up family lives. When they showed up to school, they acted out, caused trouble, and brought their dangerous home lives into the building to affect everyone else. Giving them vouchers and telling them to find their own teachers sure as hell isn't going to work for kids like that. It doesn't matter how good the teachers are if the students never show up.
Your “plan” doesn't address that at all. Voucher or no voucher, kids who get mixed up in gangs or drugs are not going to show up ready to learn every day to a teacher's office. And forcing the teachers to go it alone or band together in small groups does not address the need for organized extra-curriculars – something that has been proven to keep kids out of trouble.
DC throws $16000 per student into the mess every year, but they don't address the real source of the problems in their school system. Why not spend that money on restructuring the schools? Set up dorms for public boarding schools. Recruit volunteers to organize more extra-curricular activities. Anything that keeps the inner city kids away from violence, drugs, and everything else that prevents them from succeeding in school.
Instead of tossing the whole system, why not look at places where it works? Montgomery County, just outside of DC, has a hugely diverse student population including a lot of recent immigrants and people just barely getting by financially. Yet they have a very successful education system that includes a lot of charter schools, tons of extra-curriculars, and increased student involvement in school decisions. They consistently rank among the top districts in the nation for SAT scores, especially among minority students, and in graduation rates. What do they do differently? And how can we implement those changes elsewhere?
You get that you're basically describing a small private school, right? A group of teachers pooling resources and banding together to give students a well-rounded education.
Inner city schools don't fail because they lack resources. They fail because of the cultures surrounding them. I went to public school in West Philadelphia for 5 years – the kids who fell behind were the ones who lived in the scariest neighborhoods, who had the most pressure from gangs, and who had the most messed up family lives. When they showed up to school, they acted out, caused trouble, and brought their dangerous home lives into the building to affect everyone else. Giving them vouchers and telling them to find their own teachers sure as hell isn't going to work for kids like that. It doesn't matter how good the teachers are if the students never show up.
Your “plan” doesn't address that at all. Voucher or no voucher, kids who get mixed up in gangs or drugs are not going to show up ready to learn every day to a teacher's office. And forcing the teachers to go it alone or band together in small groups does not address the need for organized extra-curriculars – something that has been proven to keep kids out of trouble.
DC throws $16000 per student into the mess every year, but they don't address the real source of the problems in their school system. Why not spend that money on restructuring the schools? Set up dorms for public boarding schools. Recruit volunteers to organize more extra-curricular activities. Anything that keeps the inner city kids away from violence, drugs, and everything else that prevents them from succeeding in school.
Instead of tossing the whole system, why not look at places where it works? Montgomery County, just outside of DC, has a hugely diverse student population including a lot of recent immigrants and people just barely getting by financially. Yet they have a very successful education system that includes a lot of charter schools, tons of extra-curriculars, and increased student involvement in school decisions. They consistently rank among the top districts in the nation for SAT scores, especially among minority students, and in graduation rates. What do they do differently? And how can we implement those changes elsewhere?
You get that you're basically describing a small private school, right? A group of teachers pooling resources and banding together to give students a well-rounded education.
Inner city schools don't fail because they lack resources. They fail because of the cultures surrounding them. I went to public school in West Philadelphia for 5 years – the kids who fell behind were the ones who lived in the scariest neighborhoods, who had the most pressure from gangs, and who had the most messed up family lives. When they showed up to school, they acted out, caused trouble, and brought their dangerous home lives into the building to affect everyone else. Giving them vouchers and telling them to find their own teachers sure as hell isn't going to work for kids like that. It doesn't matter how good the teachers are if the students never show up.
Your “plan” doesn't address that at all. Voucher or no voucher, kids who get mixed up in gangs or drugs are not going to show up ready to learn every day to a teacher's office. And forcing the teachers to go it alone or band together in small groups does not address the need for organized extra-curriculars – something that has been proven to keep kids out of trouble.
DC throws $16000 per student into the mess every year, but they don't address the real source of the problems in their school system. Why not spend that money on restructuring the schools? Set up dorms for public boarding schools. Recruit volunteers to organize more extra-curricular activities. Anything that keeps the inner city kids away from violence, drugs, and everything else that prevents them from succeeding in school.
Instead of tossing the whole system, why not look at places where it works? Montgomery County, just outside of DC, has a hugely diverse student population including a lot of recent immigrants and people just barely getting by financially. Yet they have a very successful education system that includes a lot of charter schools, tons of extra-curriculars, and increased student involvement in school decisions. They consistently rank among the top districts in the nation for SAT scores, especially among minority students, and in graduation rates. What do they do differently? And how can we implement those changes elsewhere?
You get that you're basically describing a small private school, right? A group of teachers pooling resources and banding together to give students a well-rounded education.
Inner city schools don't fail because they lack resources. They fail because of the cultures surrounding them. I went to public school in West Philadelphia for 5 years – the kids who fell behind were the ones who lived in the scariest neighborhoods, who had the most pressure from gangs, and who had the most messed up family lives. When they showed up to school, they acted out, caused trouble, and brought their dangerous home lives into the building to affect everyone else. Giving them vouchers and telling them to find their own teachers sure as hell isn't going to work for kids like that. It doesn't matter how good the teachers are if the students never show up.
Your “plan” doesn't address that at all. Voucher or no voucher, kids who get mixed up in gangs or drugs are not going to show up ready to learn every day to a teacher's office. And forcing the teachers to go it alone or band together in small groups does not address the need for organized extra-curriculars – something that has been proven to keep kids out of trouble.
DC throws $16000 per student into the mess every year, but they don't address the real source of the problems in their school system. Why not spend that money on restructuring the schools? Set up dorms for public boarding schools. Recruit volunteers to organize more extra-curricular activities. Anything that keeps the inner city kids away from violence, drugs, and everything else that prevents them from succeeding in school.
Instead of tossing the whole system, why not look at places where it works? Montgomery County, just outside of DC, has a hugely diverse student population including a lot of recent immigrants and people just barely getting by financially. Yet they have a very successful education system that includes a lot of charter schools, tons of extra-curriculars, and increased student involvement in school decisions. They consistently rank among the top districts in the nation for SAT scores, especially among minority students, and in graduation rates. What do they do differently? And how can we implement those changes elsewhere?
You get that you're basically describing a small private school, right? A group of teachers pooling resources and banding together to give students a well-rounded education.
Inner city schools don't fail because they lack resources. They fail because of the cultures surrounding them. I went to public school in West Philadelphia for 5 years – the kids who fell behind were the ones who lived in the scariest neighborhoods, who had the most pressure from gangs, and who had the most messed up family lives. When they showed up to school, they acted out, caused trouble, and brought their dangerous home lives into the building to affect everyone else. Giving them vouchers and telling them to find their own teachers sure as hell isn't going to work for kids like that. It doesn't matter how good the teachers are if the students never show up.
Your “plan” doesn't address that at all. Voucher or no voucher, kids who get mixed up in gangs or drugs are not going to show up ready to learn every day to a teacher's office. And forcing the teachers to go it alone or band together in small groups does not address the need for organized extra-curriculars – something that has been proven to keep kids out of trouble.
DC throws $16000 per student into the mess every year, but they don't address the real source of the problems in their school system. Why not spend that money on restructuring the schools? Set up dorms for public boarding schools. Recruit volunteers to organize more extra-curricular activities. Anything that keeps the inner city kids away from violence, drugs, and everything else that prevents them from succeeding in school.
Instead of tossing the whole system, why not look at places where it works? Montgomery County, just outside of DC, has a hugely diverse student population including a lot of recent immigrants and people just barely getting by financially. Yet they have a very successful education system that includes a lot of charter schools, tons of extra-curriculars, and increased student involvement in school decisions. They consistently rank among the top districts in the nation for SAT scores, especially among minority students, and in graduation rates. What do they do differently? And how can we implement those changes elsewhere?
You get that you're basically describing a small private school, right? A group of teachers pooling resources and banding together to give students a well-rounded education.
Inner city schools don't fail because they lack resources. They fail because of the cultures surrounding them. I went to public school in West Philadelphia for 5 years – the kids who fell behind were the ones who lived in the scariest neighborhoods, who had the most pressure from gangs, and who had the most messed up family lives. When they showed up to school, they acted out, caused trouble, and brought their dangerous home lives into the building to affect everyone else. Giving them vouchers and telling them to find their own teachers sure as hell isn't going to work for kids like that. It doesn't matter how good the teachers are if the students never show up.
Your “plan” doesn't address that at all. Voucher or no voucher, kids who get mixed up in gangs or drugs are not going to show up ready to learn every day to a teacher's office. And forcing the teachers to go it alone or band together in small groups does not address the need for organized extra-curriculars – something that has been proven to keep kids out of trouble.
DC throws $16000 per student into the mess every year, but they don't address the real source of the problems in their school system. Why not spend that money on restructuring the schools? Set up dorms for public boarding schools. Recruit volunteers to organize more extra-curricular activities. Anything that keeps the inner city kids away from violence, drugs, and everything else that prevents them from succeeding in school.
Instead of tossing the whole system, why not look at places where it works? Montgomery County, just outside of DC, has a hugely diverse student population including a lot of recent immigrants and people just barely getting by financially. Yet they have a very successful education system that includes a lot of charter schools, tons of extra-curriculars, and increased student involvement in school decisions. They consistently rank among the top districts in the nation for SAT scores, especially among minority students, and in graduation rates. What do they do differently? And how can we implement those changes elsewhere?
You get that you're basically describing a small private school, right? A group of teachers pooling resources and banding together to give students a well-rounded education.
Inner city schools don't fail because they lack resources. They fail because of the cultures surrounding them. I went to public school in West Philadelphia for 5 years – the kids who fell behind were the ones who lived in the scariest neighborhoods, who had the most pressure from gangs, and who had the most messed up family lives. When they showed up to school, they acted out, caused trouble, and brought their dangerous home lives into the building to affect everyone else. Giving them vouchers and telling them to find their own teachers sure as hell isn't going to work for kids like that. It doesn't matter how good the teachers are if the students never show up.
Your “plan” doesn't address that at all. Voucher or no voucher, kids who get mixed up in gangs or drugs are not going to show up ready to learn every day to a teacher's office. And forcing the teachers to go it alone or band together in small groups does not address the need for organized extra-curriculars – something that has been proven to keep kids out of trouble.
DC throws $16000 per student into the mess every year, but they don't address the real source of the problems in their school system. Why not spend that money on restructuring the schools? Set up dorms for public boarding schools. Recruit volunteers to organize more extra-curricular activities. Anything that keeps the inner city kids away from violence, drugs, and everything else that prevents them from succeeding in school.
Instead of tossing the whole system, why not look at places where it works? Montgomery County, just outside of DC, has a hugely diverse student population including a lot of recent immigrants and people just barely getting by financially. Yet they have a very successful education system that includes a lot of charter schools, tons of extra-curriculars, and increased student involvement in school decisions. They consistently rank among the top districts in the nation for SAT scores, especially among minority students, and in graduation rates. What do they do differently? And how can we implement those changes elsewhere?
You get that you're basically describing a small private school, right? A group of teachers pooling resources and banding together to give students a well-rounded education.
Inner city schools don't fail because they lack resources. They fail because of the cultures surrounding them. I went to public school in West Philadelphia for 5 years – the kids who fell behind were the ones who lived in the scariest neighborhoods, who had the most pressure from gangs, and who had the most messed up family lives. When they showed up to school, they acted out, caused trouble, and brought their dangerous home lives into the building to affect everyone else. Giving them vouchers and telling them to find their own teachers sure as hell isn't going to work for kids like that. It doesn't matter how good the teachers are if the students never show up.
Your “plan” doesn't address that at all. Voucher or no voucher, kids who get mixed up in gangs or drugs are not going to show up ready to learn every day to a teacher's office. And forcing the teachers to go it alone or band together in small groups does not address the need for organized extra-curriculars – something that has been proven to keep kids out of trouble.
DC throws $16000 per student into the mess every year, but they don't address the real source of the problems in their school system. Why not spend that money on restructuring the schools? Set up dorms for public boarding schools. Recruit volunteers to organize more extra-curricular activities. Anything that keeps the inner city kids away from violence, drugs, and everything else that prevents them from succeeding in school.
Instead of tossing the whole system, why not look at places where it works? Montgomery County, just outside of DC, has a hugely diverse student population including a lot of recent immigrants and people just barely getting by financially. Yet they have a very successful education system that includes a lot of charter schools, tons of extra-curriculars, and increased student involvement in school decisions. They consistently rank among the top districts in the nation for SAT scores, especially among minority students, and in graduation rates. What do they do differently? And how can we implement those changes elsewhere?
You get that you're basically describing a small private school, right? A group of teachers pooling resources and banding together to give students a well-rounded education.
Inner city schools don't fail because they lack resources. They fail because of the cultures surrounding them. I went to public school in West Philadelphia for 5 years – the kids who fell behind were the ones who lived in the scariest neighborhoods, who had the most pressure from gangs, and who had the most messed up family lives. When they showed up to school, they acted out, caused trouble, and brought their dangerous home lives into the building to affect everyone else. Giving them vouchers and telling them to find their own teachers sure as hell isn't going to work for kids like that. It doesn't matter how good the teachers are if the students never show up.
Your “plan” doesn't address that at all. Voucher or no voucher, kids who get mixed up in gangs or drugs are not going to show up ready to learn every day to a teacher's office. And forcing the teachers to go it alone or band together in small groups does not address the need for organized extra-curriculars – something that has been proven to keep kids out of trouble.
DC throws $16000 per student into the mess every year, but they don't address the real source of the problems in their school system. Why not spend that money on restructuring the schools? Set up dorms for public boarding schools. Recruit volunteers to organize more extra-curricular activities. Anything that keeps the inner city kids away from violence, drugs, and everything else that prevents them from succeeding in school.
Instead of tossing the whole system, why not look at places where it works? Montgomery County, just outside of DC, has a hugely diverse student population including a lot of recent immigrants and people just barely getting by financially. Yet they have a very successful education system that includes a lot of charter schools, tons of extra-curriculars, and increased student involvement in school decisions. They consistently rank among the top districts in the nation for SAT scores, especially among minority students, and in graduation rates. What do they do differently? And how can we implement those changes elsewhere?
You get that you're basically describing a small private school, right? A group of teachers pooling resources and banding together to give students a well-rounded education.
Inner city schools don't fail because they lack resources. They fail because of the cultures surrounding them. I went to public school in West Philadelphia for 5 years – the kids who fell behind were the ones who lived in the scariest neighborhoods, who had the most pressure from gangs, and who had the most messed up family lives. When they showed up to school, they acted out, caused trouble, and brought their dangerous home lives into the building to affect everyone else. Giving them vouchers and telling them to find their own teachers sure as hell isn't going to work for kids like that. It doesn't matter how good the teachers are if the students never show up.
Your “plan” doesn't address that at all. Voucher or no voucher, kids who get mixed up in gangs or drugs are not going to show up ready to learn every day to a teacher's office. And forcing the teachers to go it alone or band together in small groups does not address the need for organized extra-curriculars – something that has been proven to keep kids out of trouble.
DC throws $16000 per student into the mess every year, but they don't address the real source of the problems in their school system. Why not spend that money on restructuring the schools? Set up dorms for public boarding schools. Recruit volunteers to organize more extra-curricular activities. Anything that keeps the inner city kids away from violence, drugs, and everything else that prevents them from succeeding in school.
Instead of tossing the whole system, why not look at places where it works? Montgomery County, just outside of DC, has a hugely diverse student population including a lot of recent immigrants and people just barely getting by financially. Yet they have a very successful education system that includes a lot of charter schools, tons of extra-curriculars, and increased student involvement in school decisions. They consistently rank among the top districts in the nation for SAT scores, especially among minority students, and in graduation rates. What do they do differently? And how can we implement those changes elsewhere?
You get that you're basically describing a small private school, right? A group of teachers pooling resources and banding together to give students a well-rounded education.
Inner city schools don't fail because they lack resources. They fail because of the cultures surrounding them. I went to public school in West Philadelphia for 5 years – the kids who fell behind were the ones who lived in the scariest neighborhoods, who had the most pressure from gangs, and who had the most messed up family lives. When they showed up to school, they acted out, caused trouble, and brought their dangerous home lives into the building to affect everyone else. Giving them vouchers and telling them to find their own teachers sure as hell isn't going to work for kids like that. It doesn't matter how good the teachers are if the students never show up.
Your “plan” doesn't address that at all. Voucher or no voucher, kids who get mixed up in gangs or drugs are not going to show up ready to learn every day to a teacher's office. And forcing the teachers to go it alone or band together in small groups does not address the need for organized extra-curriculars – something that has been proven to keep kids out of trouble.
DC throws $16000 per student into the mess every year, but they don't address the real source of the problems in their school system. Why not spend that money on restructuring the schools? Set up dorms for public boarding schools. Recruit volunteers to organize more extra-curricular activities. Anything that keeps the inner city kids away from violence, drugs, and everything else that prevents them from succeeding in school.
Instead of tossing the whole system, why not look at places where it works? Montgomery County, just outside of DC, has a hugely diverse student population including a lot of recent immigrants and people just barely getting by financially. Yet they have a very successful education system that includes a lot of charter schools, tons of extra-curriculars, and increased student involvement in school decisions. They consistently rank among the top districts in the nation for SAT scores, especially among minority students, and in graduation rates. What do they do differently? And how can we implement those changes elsewhere?
You get that you're basically describing a small private school, right? A group of teachers pooling resources and banding together to give students a well-rounded education.
Inner city schools don't fail because they lack resources. They fail because of the cultures surrounding them. I went to public school in West Philadelphia for 5 years – the kids who fell behind were the ones who lived in the scariest neighborhoods, who had the most pressure from gangs, and who had the most messed up family lives. When they showed up to school, they acted out, caused trouble, and brought their dangerous home lives into the building to affect everyone else. Giving them vouchers and telling them to find their own teachers sure as hell isn't going to work for kids like that. It doesn't matter how good the teachers are if the students never show up.
Your “plan” doesn't address that at all. Voucher or no voucher, kids who get mixed up in gangs or drugs are not going to show up ready to learn every day to a teacher's office. And forcing the teachers to go it alone or band together in small groups does not address the need for organized extra-curriculars – something that has been proven to keep kids out of trouble.
DC throws $16000 per student into the mess every year, but they don't address the real source of the problems in their school system. Why not spend that money on restructuring the schools? Set up dorms for public boarding schools. Recruit volunteers to organize more extra-curricular activities. Anything that keeps the inner city kids away from violence, drugs, and everything else that prevents them from succeeding in school.
Instead of tossing the whole system, why not look at places where it works? Montgomery County, just outside of DC, has a hugely diverse student population including a lot of recent immigrants and people just barely getting by financially. Yet they have a very successful education system that includes a lot of charter schools, tons of extra-curriculars, and increased student involvement in school decisions. They consistently rank among the top districts in the nation for SAT scores, especially among minority students, and in graduation rates. What do they do differently? And how can we implement those changes elsewhere?
You get that you're basically describing a small private school, right? A group of teachers pooling resources and banding together to give students a well-rounded education.
Inner city schools don't fail because they lack resources. They fail because of the cultures surrounding them. I went to public school in West Philadelphia for 5 years – the kids who fell behind were the ones who lived in the scariest neighborhoods, who had the most pressure from gangs, and who had the most messed up family lives. When they showed up to school, they acted out, caused trouble, and brought their dangerous home lives into the building to affect everyone else. Giving them vouchers and telling them to find their own teachers sure as hell isn't going to work for kids like that. It doesn't matter how good the teachers are if the students never show up.
Your “plan” doesn't address that at all. Voucher or no voucher, kids who get mixed up in gangs or drugs are not going to show up ready to learn every day to a teacher's office. And forcing the teachers to go it alone or band together in small groups does not address the need for organized extra-curriculars – something that has been proven to keep kids out of trouble.
DC throws $16000 per student into the mess every year, but they don't address the real source of the problems in their school system. Why not spend that money on restructuring the schools? Set up dorms for public boarding schools. Recruit volunteers to organize more extra-curricular activities. Anything that keeps the inner city kids away from violence, drugs, and everything else that prevents them from succeeding in school.
Instead of tossing the whole system, why not look at places where it works? Montgomery County, just outside of DC, has a hugely diverse student population including a lot of recent immigrants and people just barely getting by financially. Yet they have a very successful education system that includes a lot of charter schools, tons of extra-curriculars, and increased student involvement in school decisions. They consistently rank among the top districts in the nation for SAT scores, especially among minority students, and in graduation rates. What do they do differently? And how can we implement those changes elsewhere?
You get that you're basically describing a small private school, right? A group of teachers pooling resources and banding together to give students a well-rounded education.
Inner city schools don't fail because they lack resources. They fail because of the cultures surrounding them. I went to public school in West Philadelphia for 5 years – the kids who fell behind were the ones who lived in the scariest neighborhoods, who had the most pressure from gangs, and who had the most messed up family lives. When they showed up to school, they acted out, caused trouble, and brought their dangerous home lives into the building to affect everyone else. Giving them vouchers and telling them to find their own teachers sure as hell isn't going to work for kids like that. It doesn't matter how good the teachers are if the students never show up.
Your “plan” doesn't address that at all. Voucher or no voucher, kids who get mixed up in gangs or drugs are not going to show up ready to learn every day to a teacher's office. And forcing the teachers to go it alone or band together in small groups does not address the need for organized extra-curriculars – something that has been proven to keep kids out of trouble.
DC throws $16000 per student into the mess every year, but they don't address the real source of the problems in their school system. Why not spend that money on restructuring the schools? Set up dorms for public boarding schools. Recruit volunteers to organize more extra-curricular activities. Anything that keeps the inner city kids away from violence, drugs, and everything else that prevents them from succeeding in school.
Instead of tossing the whole system, why not look at places where it works? Montgomery County, just outside of DC, has a hugely diverse student population including a lot of recent immigrants and people just barely getting by financially. Yet they have a very successful education system that includes a lot of charter schools, tons of extra-curriculars, and increased student involvement in school decisions. They consistently rank among the top districts in the nation for SAT scores, especially among minority students, and in graduation rates. What do they do differently? And how can we implement those changes elsewhere?
You get that you're basically describing a small private school, right? A group of teachers pooling resources and banding together to give students a well-rounded education.
Inner city schools don't fail because they lack resources. They fail because of the cultures surrounding them. I went to public school in West Philadelphia for 5 years – the kids who fell behind were the ones who lived in the scariest neighborhoods, who had the most pressure from gangs, and who had the most messed up family lives. When they showed up to school, they acted out, caused trouble, and brought their dangerous home lives into the building to affect everyone else. Giving them vouchers and telling them to find their own teachers sure as hell isn't going to work for kids like that. It doesn't matter how good the teachers are if the students never show up.
Your “plan” doesn't address that at all. Voucher or no voucher, kids who get mixed up in gangs or drugs are not going to show up ready to learn every day to a teacher's office. And forcing the teachers to go it alone or band together in small groups does not address the need for organized extra-curriculars – something that has been proven to keep kids out of trouble.
DC throws $16000 per student into the mess every year, but they don't address the real source of the problems in their school system. Why not spend that money on restructuring the schools? Set up dorms for public boarding schools. Recruit volunteers to organize more extra-curricular activities. Anything that keeps the inner city kids away from violence, drugs, and everything else that prevents them from succeeding in school.
Instead of tossing the whole system, why not look at places where it works? Montgomery County, just outside of DC, has a hugely diverse student population including a lot of recent immigrants and people just barely getting by financially. Yet they have a very successful education system that includes a lot of charter schools, tons of extra-curriculars, and increased student involvement in school decisions. They consistently rank among the top districts in the nation for SAT scores, especially among minority students, and in graduation rates. What do they do differently? And how can we implement those changes elsewhere?
You get that you're basically describing a small private school, right? A group of teachers pooling resources and banding together to give students a well-rounded education.
Inner city schools don't fail because they lack resources. They fail because of the cultures surrounding them. I went to public school in West Philadelphia for 5 years – the kids who fell behind were the ones who lived in the scariest neighborhoods, who had the most pressure from gangs, and who had the most messed up family lives. When they showed up to school, they acted out, caused trouble, and brought their dangerous home lives into the building to affect everyone else. Giving them vouchers and telling them to find their own teachers sure as hell isn't going to work for kids like that. It doesn't matter how good the teachers are if the students never show up.
Your “plan” doesn't address that at all. Voucher or no voucher, kids who get mixed up in gangs or drugs are not going to show up ready to learn every day to a teacher's office. And forcing the teachers to go it alone or band together in small groups does not address the need for organized extra-curriculars – something that has been proven to keep kids out of trouble.
DC throws $16000 per student into the mess every year, but they don't address the real source of the problems in their school system. Why not spend that money on restructuring the schools? Set up dorms for public boarding schools. Recruit volunteers to organize more extra-curricular activities. Anything that keeps the inner city kids away from violence, drugs, and everything else that prevents them from succeeding in school.
Instead of tossing the whole system, why not look at places where it works? Montgomery County, just outside of DC, has a hugely diverse student population including a lot of recent immigrants and people just barely getting by financially. Yet they have a very successful education system that includes a lot of charter schools, tons of extra-curriculars, and increased student involvement in school decisions. They consistently rank among the top districts in the nation for SAT scores, especially among minority students, and in graduation rates. What do they do differently? And how can we implement those changes elsewhere?
You get that you're basically describing a small private school, right? A group of teachers pooling resources and banding together to give students a well-rounded education.
Inner city schools don't fail because they lack resources. They fail because of the cultures surrounding them. I went to public school in West Philadelphia for 5 years – the kids who fell behind were the ones who lived in the scariest neighborhoods, who had the most pressure from gangs, and who had the most messed up family lives. When they showed up to school, they acted out, caused trouble, and brought their dangerous home lives into the building to affect everyone else. Giving them vouchers and telling them to find their own teachers sure as hell isn't going to work for kids like that. It doesn't matter how good the teachers are if the students never show up.
Your “plan” doesn't address that at all. Voucher or no voucher, kids who get mixed up in gangs or drugs are not going to show up ready to learn every day to a teacher's office. And forcing the teachers to go it alone or band together in small groups does not address the need for organized extra-curriculars – something that has been proven to keep kids out of trouble.
DC throws $16000 per student into the mess every year, but they don't address the real source of the problems in their school system. Why not spend that money on restructuring the schools? Set up dorms for public boarding schools. Recruit volunteers to organize more extra-curricular activities. Anything that keeps the inner city kids away from violence, drugs, and everything else that prevents them from succeeding in school.
Instead of tossing the whole system, why not look at places where it works? Montgomery County, just outside of DC, has a hugely diverse student population including a lot of recent immigrants and people just barely getting by financially. Yet they have a very successful education system that includes a lot of charter schools, tons of extra-curriculars, and increased student involvement in school decisions. They consistently rank among the top districts in the nation for SAT scores, especially among minority students, and in graduation rates. What do they do differently? And how can we implement those changes elsewhere?
You get that you're basically describing a small private school, right? A group of teachers pooling resources and banding together to give students a well-rounded education.
Inner city schools don't fail because they lack resources. They fail because of the cultures surrounding them. I went to public school in West Philadelphia for 5 years – the kids who fell behind were the ones who lived in the scariest neighborhoods, who had the most pressure from gangs, and who had the most messed up family lives. When they showed up to school, they acted out, caused trouble, and brought their dangerous home lives into the building to affect everyone else. Giving them vouchers and telling them to find their own teachers sure as hell isn't going to work for kids like that. It doesn't matter how good the teachers are if the students never show up.
Your “plan” doesn't address that at all. Voucher or no voucher, kids who get mixed up in gangs or drugs are not going to show up ready to learn every day to a teacher's office. And forcing the teachers to go it alone or band together in small groups does not address the need for organized extra-curriculars – something that has been proven to keep kids out of trouble.
DC throws $16000 per student into the mess every year, but they don't address the real source of the problems in their school system. Why not spend that money on restructuring the schools? Set up dorms for public boarding schools. Recruit volunteers to organize more extra-curricular activities. Anything that keeps the inner city kids away from violence, drugs, and everything else that prevents them from succeeding in school.
Instead of tossing the whole system, why not look at places where it works? Montgomery County, just outside of DC, has a hugely diverse student population including a lot of recent immigrants and people just barely getting by financially. Yet they have a very successful education system that includes a lot of charter schools, tons of extra-curriculars, and increased student involvement in school decisions. They consistently rank among the top districts in the nation for SAT scores, especially among minority students, and in graduation rates. What do they do differently? And how can we implement those changes elsewhere?
You get that you're basically describing a small private school, right? A group of teachers pooling resources and banding together to give students a well-rounded education.
Inner city schools don't fail because they lack resources. They fail because of the cultures surrounding them. I went to public school in West Philadelphia for 5 years – the kids who fell behind were the ones who lived in the scariest neighborhoods, who had the most pressure from gangs, and who had the most messed up family lives. When they showed up to school, they acted out, caused trouble, and brought their dangerous home lives into the building to affect everyone else. Giving them vouchers and telling them to find their own teachers sure as hell isn't going to work for kids like that. It doesn't matter how good the teachers are if the students never show up.
Your “plan” doesn't address that at all. Voucher or no voucher, kids who get mixed up in gangs or drugs are not going to show up ready to learn every day to a teacher's office. And forcing the teachers to go it alone or band together in small groups does not address the need for organized extra-curriculars – something that has been proven to keep kids out of trouble.
DC throws $16000 per student into the mess every year, but they don't address the real source of the problems in their school system. Why not spend that money on restructuring the schools? Set up dorms for public boarding schools. Recruit volunteers to organize more extra-curricular activities. Anything that keeps the inner city kids away from violence, drugs, and everything else that prevents them from succeeding in school.
Instead of tossing the whole system, why not look at places where it works? Montgomery County, just outside of DC, has a hugely diverse student population including a lot of recent immigrants and people just barely getting by financially. Yet they have a very successful education system that includes a lot of charter schools, tons of extra-curriculars, and increased student involvement in school decisions. They consistently rank among the top districts in the nation for SAT scores, especially among minority students, and in graduation rates. What do they do differently? And how can we implement those changes elsewhere?
You get that you're basically describing a small private school, right? A group of teachers pooling resources and banding together to give students a well-rounded education.
Inner city schools don't fail because they lack resources. They fail because of the cultures surrounding them. I went to public school in West Philadelphia for 5 years – the kids who fell behind were the ones who lived in the scariest neighborhoods, who had the most pressure from gangs, and who had the most messed up family lives. When they showed up to school, they acted out, caused trouble, and brought their dangerous home lives into the building to affect everyone else. Giving them vouchers and telling them to find their own teachers sure as hell isn't going to work for kids like that. It doesn't matter how good the teachers are if the students never show up.
Your “plan” doesn't address that at all. Voucher or no voucher, kids who get mixed up in gangs or drugs are not going to show up ready to learn every day to a teacher's office. And forcing the teachers to go it alone or band together in small groups does not address the need for organized extra-curriculars – something that has been proven to keep kids out of trouble.
DC throws $16000 per student into the mess every year, but they don't address the real source of the problems in their school system. Why not spend that money on restructuring the schools? Set up dorms for public boarding schools. Recruit volunteers to organize more extra-curricular activities. Anything that keeps the inner city kids away from violence, drugs, and everything else that prevents them from succeeding in school.
Instead of tossing the whole system, why not look at places where it works? Montgomery County, just outside of DC, has a hugely diverse student population including a lot of recent immigrants and people just barely getting by financially. Yet they have a very successful education system that includes a lot of charter schools, tons of extra-curriculars, and increased student involvement in school decisions. They consistently rank among the top districts in the nation for SAT scores, especially among minority students, and in graduation rates. What do they do differently? And how can we implement those changes elsewhere?
You get that you're basically describing a small private school, right? A group of teachers pooling resources and banding together to give students a well-rounded education.
Inner city schools don't fail because they lack resources. They fail because of the cultures surrounding them. I went to public school in West Philadelphia for 5 years – the kids who fell behind were the ones who lived in the scariest neighborhoods, who had the most pressure from gangs, and who had the most messed up family lives. When they showed up to school, they acted out, caused trouble, and brought their dangerous home lives into the building to affect everyone else. Giving them vouchers and telling them to find their own teachers sure as hell isn't going to work for kids like that. It doesn't matter how good the teachers are if the students never show up.
Your “plan” doesn't address that at all. Voucher or no voucher, kids who get mixed up in gangs or drugs are not going to show up ready to learn every day to a teacher's office. And forcing the teachers to go it alone or band together in small groups does not address the need for organized extra-curriculars – something that has been proven to keep kids out of trouble.
DC throws $16000 per student into the mess every year, but they don't address the real source of the problems in their school system. Why not spend that money on restructuring the schools? Set up dorms for public boarding schools. Recruit volunteers to organize more extra-curricular activities. Anything that keeps the inner city kids away from violence, drugs, and everything else that prevents them from succeeding in school.
Instead of tossing the whole system, why not look at places where it works? Montgomery County, just outside of DC, has a hugely diverse student population including a lot of recent immigrants and people just barely getting by financially. Yet they have a very successful education system that includes a lot of charter schools, tons of extra-curriculars, and increased student involvement in school decisions. They consistently rank among the top districts in the nation for SAT scores, especially among minority students, and in graduation rates. What do they do differently? And how can we implement those changes elsewhere?
Thank you, Amanda, for a breath of sanity on this thread.
jwest — First, I think you're wrong that 90% of kids in public school right now fall through the cracks. There are many, and that needs to change, definitely. But let's not get rediculous with the numbers here. Second, things were way, way better 8 years ago. No Child Left Behind was the worst thing that could have happened to education. I and many my age and older got an awesome education through the public system, but I graduated before NCLB. Third, As Amanda points out very well, your system is crazy. It's not a matter of being beholden to the system, or some inability to think out of the box. It's just that your idea is terrible, awful, unworkable, and pretty much would kill any chance this country has of having an educated population that can compete in the world.
Thank you, Amanda, for a breath of sanity on this thread.
jwest — First, I think you're wrong that 90% of kids in public school right now fall through the cracks. There are many, and that needs to change, definitely. But let's not get rediculous with the numbers here. Second, things were way, way better 8 years ago. No Child Left Behind was the worst thing that could have happened to education. I and many my age and older got an awesome education through the public system, but I graduated before NCLB. Third, As Amanda points out very well, your system is crazy. It's not a matter of being beholden to the system, or some inability to think out of the box. It's just that your idea is terrible, awful, unworkable, and pretty much would kill any chance this country has of having an educated population that can compete in the world.
Thank you, Amanda, for a breath of sanity on this thread.
jwest — First, I think you're wrong that 90% of kids in public school right now fall through the cracks. There are many, and that needs to change, definitely. But let's not get rediculous with the numbers here. Second, things were way, way better 8 years ago. No Child Left Behind was the worst thing that could have happened to education. I and many my age and older got an awesome education through the public system, but I graduated before NCLB. Third, As Amanda points out very well, your system is crazy. It's not a matter of being beholden to the system, or some inability to think out of the box. It's just that your idea is terrible, awful, unworkable, and pretty much would kill any chance this country has of having an educated population that can compete in the world.
Thank you, Amanda, for a breath of sanity on this thread.
jwest — First, I think you're wrong that 90% of kids in public school right now fall through the cracks. There are many, and that needs to change, definitely. But let's not get rediculous with the numbers here. Second, things were way, way better 8 years ago. No Child Left Behind was the worst thing that could have happened to education. I and many my age and older got an awesome education through the public system, but I graduated before NCLB. Third, As Amanda points out very well, your system is crazy. It's not a matter of being beholden to the system, or some inability to think out of the box. It's just that your idea is terrible, awful, unworkable, and pretty much would kill any chance this country has of having an educated population that can compete in the world.
Thank you, Amanda, for a breath of sanity on this thread.
jwest — First, I think you're wrong that 90% of kids in public school right now fall through the cracks. There are many, and that needs to change, definitely. But let's not get rediculous with the numbers here. Second, things were way, way better 8 years ago. No Child Left Behind was the worst thing that could have happened to education. I and many my age and older got an awesome education through the public system, but I graduated before NCLB. Third, As Amanda points out very well, your system is crazy. It's not a matter of being beholden to the system, or some inability to think out of the box. It's just that your idea is terrible, awful, unworkable, and pretty much would kill any chance this country has of having an educated population that can compete in the world.
Thank you, Amanda, for a breath of sanity on this thread.
jwest — First, I think you're wrong that 90% of kids in public school right now fall through the cracks. There are many, and that needs to change, definitely. But let's not get rediculous with the numbers here. Second, things were way, way better 8 years ago. No Child Left Behind was the worst thing that could have happened to education. I and many my age and older got an awesome education through the public system, but I graduated before NCLB. Third, As Amanda points out very well, your system is crazy. It's not a matter of being beholden to the system, or some inability to think out of the box. It's just that your idea is terrible, awful, unworkable, and pretty much would kill any chance this country has of having an educated population that can compete in the world.
Thank you, Amanda, for a breath of sanity on this thread.
jwest — First, I think you're wrong that 90% of kids in public school right now fall through the cracks. There are many, and that needs to change, definitely. But let's not get rediculous with the numbers here. Second, things were way, way better 8 years ago. No Child Left Behind was the worst thing that could have happened to education. I and many my age and older got an awesome education through the public system, but I graduated before NCLB. Third, As Amanda points out very well, your system is crazy. It's not a matter of being beholden to the system, or some inability to think out of the box. It's just that your idea is terrible, awful, unworkable, and pretty much would kill any chance this country has of having an educated population that can compete in the world.
Thank you, Amanda, for a breath of sanity on this thread.
jwest — First, I think you're wrong that 90% of kids in public school right now fall through the cracks. There are many, and that needs to change, definitely. But let's not get rediculous with the numbers here. Second, things were way, way better 8 years ago. No Child Left Behind was the worst thing that could have happened to education. I and many my age and older got an awesome education through the public system, but I graduated before NCLB. Third, As Amanda points out very well, your system is crazy. It's not a matter of being beholden to the system, or some inability to think out of the box. It's just that your idea is terrible, awful, unworkable, and pretty much would kill any chance this country has of having an educated population that can compete in the world.
Thank you, Amanda, for a breath of sanity on this thread.
jwest — First, I think you're wrong that 90% of kids in public school right now fall through the cracks. There are many, and that needs to change, definitely. But let's not get rediculous with the numbers here. Second, things were way, way better 8 years ago. No Child Left Behind was the worst thing that could have happened to education. I and many my age and older got an awesome education through the public system, but I graduated before NCLB. Third, As Amanda points out very well, your system is crazy. It's not a matter of being beholden to the system, or some inability to think out of the box. It's just that your idea is terrible, awful, unworkable, and pretty much would kill any chance this country has of having an educated population that can compete in the world.
Thank you, Amanda, for a breath of sanity on this thread.
jwest — First, I think you're wrong that 90% of kids in public school right now fall through the cracks. There are many, and that needs to change, definitely. But let's not get rediculous with the numbers here. Second, things were way, way better 8 years ago. No Child Left Behind was the worst thing that could have happened to education. I and many my age and older got an awesome education through the public system, but I graduated before NCLB. Third, As Amanda points out very well, your system is crazy. It's not a matter of being beholden to the system, or some inability to think out of the box. It's just that your idea is terrible, awful, unworkable, and pretty much would kill any chance this country has of having an educated population that can compete in the world.
Thank you, Amanda, for a breath of sanity on this thread.
jwest — First, I think you're wrong that 90% of kids in public school right now fall through the cracks. There are many, and that needs to change, definitely. But let's not get rediculous with the numbers here. Second, things were way, way better 8 years ago. No Child Left Behind was the worst thing that could have happened to education. I and many my age and older got an awesome education through the public system, but I graduated before NCLB. Third, As Amanda points out very well, your system is crazy. It's not a matter of being beholden to the system, or some inability to think out of the box. It's just that your idea is terrible, awful, unworkable, and pretty much would kill any chance this country has of having an educated population that can compete in the world.
Thank you, Amanda, for a breath of sanity on this thread.
jwest — First, I think you're wrong that 90% of kids in public school right now fall through the cracks. There are many, and that needs to change, definitely. But let's not get rediculous with the numbers here. Second, things were way, way better 8 years ago. No Child Left Behind was the worst thing that could have happened to education. I and many my age and older got an awesome education through the public system, but I graduated before NCLB. Third, As Amanda points out very well, your system is crazy. It's not a matter of being beholden to the system, or some inability to think out of the box. It's just that your idea is terrible, awful, unworkable, and pretty much would kill any chance this country has of having an educated population that can compete in the world.
Thank you, Amanda, for a breath of sanity on this thread.
jwest — First, I think you're wrong that 90% of kids in public school right now fall through the cracks. There are many, and that needs to change, definitely. But let's not get rediculous with the numbers here. Second, things were way, way better 8 years ago. No Child Left Behind was the worst thing that could have happened to education. I and many my age and older got an awesome education through the public system, but I graduated before NCLB. Third, As Amanda points out very well, your system is crazy. It's not a matter of being beholden to the system, or some inability to think out of the box. It's just that your idea is terrible, awful, unworkable, and pretty much would kill any chance this country has of having an educated population that can compete in the world.
Thank you, Amanda, for a breath of sanity on this thread.
jwest — First, I think you're wrong that 90% of kids in public school right now fall through the cracks. There are many, and that needs to change, definitely. But let's not get rediculous with the numbers here. Second, things were way, way better 8 years ago. No Child Left Behind was the worst thing that could have happened to education. I and many my age and older got an awesome education through the public system, but I graduated before NCLB. Third, As Amanda points out very well, your system is crazy. It's not a matter of being beholden to the system, or some inability to think out of the box. It's just that your idea is terrible, awful, unworkable, and pretty much would kill any chance this country has of having an educated population that can compete in the world.
Thank you, Amanda, for a breath of sanity on this thread.
jwest — First, I think you're wrong that 90% of kids in public school right now fall through the cracks. There are many, and that needs to change, definitely. But let's not get rediculous with the numbers here. Second, things were way, way better 8 years ago. No Child Left Behind was the worst thing that could have happened to education. I and many my age and older got an awesome education through the public system, but I graduated before NCLB. Third, As Amanda points out very well, your system is crazy. It's not a matter of being beholden to the system, or some inability to think out of the box. It's just that your idea is terrible, awful, unworkable, and pretty much would kill any chance this country has of having an educated population that can compete in the world.
Thank you, Amanda, for a breath of sanity on this thread.
jwest — First, I think you're wrong that 90% of kids in public school right now fall through the cracks. There are many, and that needs to change, definitely. But let's not get rediculous with the numbers here. Second, things were way, way better 8 years ago. No Child Left Behind was the worst thing that could have happened to education. I and many my age and older got an awesome education through the public system, but I graduated before NCLB. Third, As Amanda points out very well, your system is crazy. It's not a matter of being beholden to the system, or some inability to think out of the box. It's just that your idea is terrible, awful, unworkable, and pretty much would kill any chance this country has of having an educated population that can compete in the world.
Thank you, Amanda, for a breath of sanity on this thread.
jwest — First, I think you're wrong that 90% of kids in public school right now fall through the cracks. There are many, and that needs to change, definitely. But let's not get rediculous with the numbers here. Second, things were way, way better 8 years ago. No Child Left Behind was the worst thing that could have happened to education. I and many my age and older got an awesome education through the public system, but I graduated before NCLB. Third, As Amanda points out very well, your system is crazy. It's not a matter of being beholden to the system, or some inability to think out of the box. It's just that your idea is terrible, awful, unworkable, and pretty much would kill any chance this country has of having an educated population that can compete in the world.
Thank you, Amanda, for a breath of sanity on this thread.
jwest — First, I think you're wrong that 90% of kids in public school right now fall through the cracks. There are many, and that needs to change, definitely. But let's not get rediculous with the numbers here. Second, things were way, way better 8 years ago. No Child Left Behind was the worst thing that could have happened to education. I and many my age and older got an awesome education through the public system, but I graduated before NCLB. Third, As Amanda points out very well, your system is crazy. It's not a matter of being beholden to the system, or some inability to think out of the box. It's just that your idea is terrible, awful, unworkable, and pretty much would kill any chance this country has of having an educated population that can compete in the world.
Thank you, Amanda, for a breath of sanity on this thread.
jwest — First, I think you're wrong that 90% of kids in public school right now fall through the cracks. There are many, and that needs to change, definitely. But let's not get rediculous with the numbers here. Second, things were way, way better 8 years ago. No Child Left Behind was the worst thing that could have happened to education. I and many my age and older got an awesome education through the public system, but I graduated before NCLB. Third, As Amanda points out very well, your system is crazy. It's not a matter of being beholden to the system, or some inability to think out of the box. It's just that your idea is terrible, awful, unworkable, and pretty much would kill any chance this country has of having an educated population that can compete in the world.
Thank you, Amanda, for a breath of sanity on this thread.
jwest — First, I think you're wrong that 90% of kids in public school right now fall through the cracks. There are many, and that needs to change, definitely. But let's not get rediculous with the numbers here. Second, things were way, way better 8 years ago. No Child Left Behind was the worst thing that could have happened to education. I and many my age and older got an awesome education through the public system, but I graduated before NCLB. Third, As Amanda points out very well, your system is crazy. It's not a matter of being beholden to the system, or some inability to think out of the box. It's just that your idea is terrible, awful, unworkable, and pretty much would kill any chance this country has of having an educated population that can compete in the world.
Thank you, Amanda, for a breath of sanity on this thread.
jwest — First, I think you're wrong that 90% of kids in public school right now fall through the cracks. There are many, and that needs to change, definitely. But let's not get rediculous with the numbers here. Second, things were way, way better 8 years ago. No Child Left Behind was the worst thing that could have happened to education. I and many my age and older got an awesome education through the public system, but I graduated before NCLB. Third, As Amanda points out very well, your system is crazy. It's not a matter of being beholden to the system, or some inability to think out of the box. It's just that your idea is terrible, awful, unworkable, and pretty much would kill any chance this country has of having an educated population that can compete in the world.