Education Stimulus Expires and No Child Left Behind On Back Burner Puts Public Ed on Notice – What if Education Were “Set-Back” to 1960’s levels?

Politico asks the question: “Will cuts threaten education funding?” – and goes on to speak to the “$100 Billion” in aid to public schools that was written into the short-term Stimulus – as “fading away”. The short-term Stimulus allowed states to bolster their individual education programs by hiring or staving off layoffs for teachers in public school systems, however, the focus on keeping or increasing the number of teachers did little to improve the quality of education, or, for that matter even maintain an average. The 2011 Department of Education – “Nation’s Report Card”, will be released in September, the 2009 Report, was based on 11 out of 50 states, and showed an “improvement” over 2005 scores.

The 2009 Report, therefore, fell outside of the “stimulus”, and those 11 states scores were not particularly “stellar” – The scoring, based on a high of 500 points, shows the average score at 221, compared to 1992 when the average was at 217, or in simple mathematical score: a grade of 55.8 – or F - our students, with increased spending, are failing.

In a “snapshot” of the nations scores (PDF) – focused on the following score gaps: Females scored higher than males (see any significant changes there from the 1960’s?), Black and Hispanic Students performed at 25% below their “white” counterparts, and those eligible for “free lunch” were at 26% below other students. (What is of note in this particular study: DC, which offers a school voucher program scored in the higher percentile with 14 other states: most below the “Mason Dixon line”, with the exception of Alaska – which, is interesting in that the southern states were, in the past, given less in aid to education than their northern counterparts, and are considered traditionally “Conservative” in nature (sic: Republican).

This tells us that there have been no significant changes in education, despite increased funding, in the past 30 years – (see treatment here on education standards today versus 1970) so what gives?

There should be a study done of the differences between private parochial and public schools at every level, and then the federal government might want to stand up and take notice, and back off. Of course, keep in mind the reading statistics were based on the eleven states that participated, however, when one compares the costs of educating a student in a private parochial high school where the graduation rate is 100% and 98% of those students are on their way to a four year college at a cost per year to the parents of approximately $8,000, plus books and uniforms, to a public school in the same district where the average cost is approximately $12,000, and Massachusetts shows scores at reading levels that are (out of the 11 states), pretty much an “F” on average.

One has to question how, a private non-union, parochial school with regulations regarding dress and demeanor, and respect for teachers, can out-perform a public school which has more funding per student? Perhaps it is due to the focus on the student rather than the educator and the constant need for increased funds for programs to aid those students that may be in an “underperforming class” (i.e. male, black, Hispanic, or free lunch), rather than on actually teaching all students and demanding some respect. By contrast, as parochial schools are inclusive of males, blacks and Hispanics, as well as students that are not from families that have scads of cash (i.e. grants and financial aid are available), and the performance rate is obviously stellar, it begs a lot of unanswered questions – except in DC where they have school vouchers and families of students in underperforming public schools are allowed to opt out and into a performing parochial school. (Granted taking money from those public schools and paying a parochial school less for the same basic service.)

No Child Left Behind gets a lot of blame as the “Republican” plan – however another article in Politico on the subject suggests that the program will be cut – or actually expire in 2011 - The Act, which was the brainchild of both President George W. Bush and the late Senator Edward M. Kennedy (which makes one wonder how the “Republican Tag” became attached to the act when the most liberal Senator of our times, the Lion of the Senate, was in the entire act.) That said, standardized tests, the premise of the ACT, apparently is a huge burden to those states attempting to educate children to at least an “F” in reading – and the costs take away from other programs.
Flashback to the 1950’s, 1960’s where standardized testing was the norm – and students were not taught to a test (as in Massachusetts where students are taught to the “MCAS” to increase performance) rather they were taught, assessed and categorized, those who excelled given a pat on the back and those who failed were given special education status. Students were taught basics, and respect.

Were all districts the same? No – therefore, busing was instituted, students from underperforming schools were bused to districts where performance and funds were higher, instead of doing the obvious: giving aid to those inner city schools and bringing them up to snuff and leaving the other performing districts alone. See Boston school busing riots in the 1960’s.

Therefore, although it would be a wonderful world if every student was “college material” in grade speak, regardless of race or ethnicity or socio-economic background the facts remain that there will continue to be disparity - it is a fact of life – a student’s ability to learn is seriously hampered only by the fact that they are treated as a “special class” due to race and ethnicity, whereas, when in a private setting, there are no factors, only equal treatment – of course, in order to be in that particular setting, parents must a) pay out of pocket or procure loans or grants to keep their students in parochial schools and b)those students must work to remain in those schools and show respect to their teachers, who teach – instead of hoping on a plane to Madison WI to protest a 6% increase suggested by a Republican governor in the WI public school teachers contributions to their health care plans!


Would it not behoove those teachers to be in school, in their own districts, teaching? Teaching not to color, gender or ethnicity, rather teaching reading, writing and arithmetic, testing students on performance and then demanding that students do their part? (Granted factors such as teen pregnancy, and the inability to be proficient in English should be taken into account: 1) should be discouraged at all costs, and 2) see immersion at the parochial level that brings all students up to English proficiency faster than the Rosetta Stone series.) Therefore this utopian thought surfaces, if the education funding at the Federal Level is cut, and the quality of education is set back to the stone age (i.e. 1950, 1960’s and 1970’s) the worst thing that can happen is our students will once again be among the top in the world – one final note in this utopian idea, teachers would be heavily vested in teaching, which is a calling, and a profession, and those that excelled would be given increased salary and “tenure” while those than didn’t perform were given the boot.


This is of course, an opinion based solely on personal experience and the opinion of this blog, and a few statistics from that MASS DOE and archived articles on education pre-1970.