Up for Subsim Debate: Defunding the Department of Education

[nikimcbee]

Originally Posted by Takeda Shingen

Funding or de-funding the DoE accomplishes nothing. Disbanding or further empowering the DoE accomplishes nothing. We have teaching standards. They are strict. We have government-imposed standardized tests. They remain ineffective. You can give power to the local government and it will make no difference. The problem is that it is very difficult to get rid of bad teachers.

By my own observation, about 6 of out every 10 teachers needs to go. These people are in the business for the wrong reasons; summers off, the perception that teaching is a cushy job, etc. However, the NEA and the local teachers unions make it ridiculously difficult to remove these teachers, and make it nearly impossible once they achieve tenure. As such, you can fund and change any number of programs you want, and alter the curriculums and assessments as you please, but as long as you have that same crappy teacher running those programs you might as well have thrown that money and time down a hole.

They need to diminish the union's influence at a national level. I don't have a clue how one would do that.

One thing that I noticed doing my pedagogical classes was (is) that the US k-12 system is the laughing stock of the world. I was more impressed with German system (the 3 types of education/schooling. Trade vs University prep)

I think our system is about having fun and catering to the lowest common denominator. I will also add, we are plagued with PCness. The rest of the world, is all business when it comes to school.

Just to stir the hornets nest, I'll add the US system's emphysis on sports.

I'm just trying to keep this on a national level and not local (per thread topic).