Maggie's Farm

Before we can absorb Obamacare, we get Obamacation. His latest rant on improving the schools and taking on the unions is the biggest laugh yet. He and Bill Ayres had their chance in Chicago when they managed the Annenberg Challenge, distributing 55 million dollars to Chicago schools over six years. Not only did the program not improve any of the schools involved (it's evaluators marked it a decisive failure), it took the focus OFF reading, writing and arithmetic to make schools the agents of social justice -- a very difficult term to define much less teach to elementary students. If fact, it simply strengthened the hold of unions in Chicago and deepened the bureaucracy.

Obama also killed the DC voucher program that had been helping low income students attend schools of their choice. Nice move, Mr. President. And politics doesn't help much. Michelle Rhee, Chancellor of DC schools, is probably in the revolving door now that her mentor has been replaced by voters.

Geoffery Canada's Harlem Initiative is local and successful and stresses basic skills. He's in the classrooms and knows what's working and what's not. A good model for other urban districts.

Get the Feds out of education! All politicians, for that matter as mayors are no more qualified to run school systems than the Feds. Pay teachers and principals by performance, giving the latter responsibility for the school's success. Get rid of tenure. Lenghten the school day and year. Souble up on math and science classes. Bring back physical education, art and music...and recess. Not many adults do well sitting still all day. Eliminate all the consultants that have not the slightest impact on students. In elementary school, allow teachers to keep the same class of students for two years, so they can better identify subtle learning styles and problems. Place non-English-speaking students into immersion classrooms and encourage their parents to join them. Bring back vocational education. Enourage internships and apprenticeships.

I could go on, but after working in and on education since the early 60's, I am exhausted. All the hours, all the money, all the emotional investment has done not one iota of good. Literacy continues to fall and the drop-out rate continues to rise. My daughter-in-law, a professor in early childhood education, just announced she, too, has "had it" and is leaving the field. Sad.

I just wish the O would stick with ONE thing long enough to stabilize it (like the economy) before totally discombobulating another area. Does he ever finish anything?.

Marianne,

Agree totally. (Sorry about the "souble"...proofread, proofread, proofread...)