Education: Beginnings Towards A Fix

[Kathianne]

http://pajamasmedia.com/zombie/2010/09/03/proposals-for-an-educational-renaissance/?singlepage=true

Part 5

Some solutions to start with:


Proposals for an Educational Renaissance
September 3, 2010 - by Zombie


In the first four parts of this essay I touched on some of the things that are wrong with the American educational system. (And I only scratched the surface, really — one could make a career out of documenting endemic flaws in our schools.) But focusing on the negative and complaining doesn’t solve problems. So let’s get constructive and figure a way out of this mess.

This final post in my five-part back-to-school essay is all about solutions: How can we fix education in America?

Below, I will outline my vision for a new paradigm in education. Realistically, I don’t expect all — or even any — of these proposals to be adopted anytime soon by the entrenched powers-that-be. But we’ve got to start somewhere, so let the edu-renaissance begin.

No single approach or solution will solve the multifaceted deficiencies in the way our children are currently being educated. So we must attack the problem on several conceptual levels simultaneously. Hence, it may not be necessary to implement every single one of the proposals outlined below, but if even just a few were adopted, it would be a significant step in the right direction.

Most of the proposals below are not original to me: Some are already gaining widespread support, while some are excellent new ideas just beginning to get traction. And a few are fresh concepts I came up with to help stimulate a rebirth of American education.

Readers of all political persuasions are encouraged to propose and discuss their own ideas — and to critique mine — in the comments section.
Each of the main points and bullets are discussed at link.



Educational structures

• Introduce competition into the educational marketplace.

• Encourage homeschooling

• Break the monopoly of public education, but keep it as a safety net

Curriculum

• Get back to basics

• End the practice of mass-adoption of a few major textbooks

• Form centrist national pressure groups to make textbooks indoctrination-free

• Get politics and religion out of science classes

• Introduce and popularize “skills survey” courses

Pedagogy (methods of instruction)

• Group students by ability, not age or ethnicity; bring back “tracking”

• Have “small schools” or “departments” within large high schools

• Allow teachers with creative ideas to be idiosyncratic

Transparency and Independence

• Parental notification

• Break the teachers’ unions

• Bring back competition and individuality

[Kathianne]

http://pajamasmedia.com/zombie/2010/09/03/proposals-for-an-educational-renaissance/?singlepage=true

Part 5

Some solutions to start with:

Educational structures

• Introduce competition into the educational marketplace.
This has to do with vouchers and other ways of furthering beyond public schools education, that works. I have mixed feelings about parochial schools and the acceptance of vouchers, not so much on separation of church and state, as much as the acceptance of vouchers gives more voice to government, perhaps not in the best interests of the schools.

I do however favor vouchers in principle. Never has it been suggested that the voucher cover the costs of tuition or come close to the percentage of taxes collected for public school education.

I'm looking at my 2009 tax bill. Of the $4100 total, $1600 went to k-8 district. $1100 to HS district. While my kids are through all those grades, the districts spend about $11k per grade school child, while the HS spends about $16k. Today if my 3 children were in HS, the district would spend about $48k if they were enrolled. If instead if I sent them to private HS, tuition is about $16k per year. If there were vouchers they'd be about $3k each, so $9k. The district would still save $37k per year by not having to educate them, while I would pay $9k less in tuition.

• Encourage homeschooling
I regret not having done this, it was just starting when my kids were starting school and the internet was just beginning to be user friendly. I remember reading about some in Parent's Magazine, seemed to me that without teaching background, how would I do such a thing? If there had been support then, I would have seen the possibilities.

I can see possible problems with parents that aren't willing to actually do the work. It takes hours to do lesson plans. It also takes a lot of time to assess what the child has done, especially if you haven't had experience with the age of development.

Socialization is also of prime importance and anyone home schooling would have to be aware of groups to get together with. Kids aren't made to always work alone.

Financially I believe the public school districts should be supportive of the movement, while requiring the testing necessary to ensure the proper education goals are being met.




• Break the monopoly of public education, but keep it as a safety net
If the above ideas were coupled with some of the following ideas, I think there would not only be improvement in the education of our children, the public schools would have more resources for the children left.

Curriculum

• Get back to basics
It's an old refrain, but true. However, I don't see the likelihood of public schools doing this without massive change in the system. Private schools do teach to the basics to a large extent, home schools moreso. In any case, without change in major texts, there will be a problem, especially with math, science, and social studies.
• End the practice of mass-adoption of a few major textbooks

• Form centrist national pressure groups to make textbooks indoctrination-free

• Get politics and religion out of science classes

• Introduce and popularize “skills survey” courses

Pedagogy (methods of instruction)

• Group students by ability, not age or ethnicity; bring back “tracking”

• Have “small schools” or “departments” within large high schools

• Allow teachers with creative ideas to be idiosyncratic

Transparency and Independence

• Parental notification

• Break the teachers’ unions

• Bring back competition and individuality


I'm running into computer issues, so I'll have to come back to more points later.