Improving Education...

After watching a 'Meet the Press' panel discussion on public education I came away disappointed. Nothing I heard gave me
confidence improvements will materialize without a total rethinking of structural changes.

There is widespread agreement our children are not learning enough to meet the demands of an ever changing and competitive
society. They will not be prepared for the challenges that lie ahead, having gone through twelve years of schooling with little to
show for the time they attended. This poor performance is occurring at a time we are spending more on education than we ever
have.

So, what could be the cause(s)? Let's examine the major change which have affected public education for three decades, the
creation of the Dept. of Education (DOE) in 1980.

The DOE introduced centralization of oversight and standards, formerly the responsibility of the states. With this shift came
the allure of  Federal funds if criteria was met. This incentive could be the reason so many children are getting promoted but
not prepared for their next grade.  Many of our schools have been transformed into warehouses and our children human inventory
with an expiration date of twelve years.

The DOE involved itself in matters beyond education. It became an arm of the Justice Dept. measuring racial makeup in schools,
and moving children between schools to ensure diversity objectives were achieved as well as "padding" stats to falsely portray
schools were achieving performance goals to receive funds.

With this centralization came the influence of special interests; children "rights" groups, and racial diversity interests. Also,
classroom size limits, narrow minded & single-thinking curriculum, political correctness and partisanship played a role.

We also saw a growth of the influence by teacher's union at the national level coinciding with the establishment of the DOE. Its
lobby found a willing ally in Congress and used campaign contribution to promote favorable legislation, favorable for teachers.

Are the problems of poor performance, drop outs and discipline greater today than they were prior to the creation of the DOE and
the strengthening of union influence? If so, than we cannot dismiss the creation of the DOE as the cause, at least partially.
Its time the states regain the responsibility for public education they had prior to the creation of the DOE, and rely on their own legislatures to set the educational standards...It worked for our 100 years, and it can work again.

Without a discussion of what role the DOE has played in the failures in our pubic schools we may never resolve the problems.