Skool scores are in
And while they're not getting worse, there is a lot of room for improvement. According to the results, roughly one-quarter of Illinois schoolchildren failed to meet expectations in most categories of the latest round of statewide testing, and the failure rate approached 50 percent in some cases. As our economy continues its rapid globalization, we are going to get left in the dust by a lot of countries that are focusing on the fundamental skills needed to compete today and into the future.Elliot Regenstein, Blagojevich's director of education reform, acknowledged the scores reveal some problems, but he said the governor's programs - especially increased preschool programs - will help.How about fixing how we fund schools as a good starting point?"It takes time to change the system. We know there's a lot more work to be done," Regenstein said.
posted by Rep. John Fritchey @ 9/15/2005
3 comments
3 Comments:
Why not just fund the child, and stop funding educationally worthless concepts like "districts" and "systems."
Let's also stop pretending the "local property tax" is "local". It is state authorised, and could be cut to zero in one legislative act.
If you raised the income tax to 5%, funded each kid with about $6,000 ($7500 for special ed.), abolished the property tax for "skools", and phased out the entire bureaucratic infrastructure that is bleeding taxpayers dry...
..you'd be a real hero.
___
Or you could tell us how we NEED 800 plus "districts" laden with hundreds of "administrators", coordinators, psychologists, etc. etc. etc.
You can't do that though. It's a "jobs program" masquerading as an "education system."
Public schools are good. Extreme voucher systems would be an absolute disaster. There are huge economies of scale in having school systems open to neighborhood children. The transportation costs alone in an extreme voucher system, not to mention the lack of public accountability, make the extreme's idea....way too extreme. But on another topic: I think the school year is way too short (176 days I believe) and the school day (5 hours) is way too short. Should lengthening the school day and the school year be part of the 750 discussion?
John Galt - if that is your real name ;-)...
Your attitude toward Teachers Unions is passe. They occupy the same position as the Soviet Union did at about 1985.
They are 4-5 years from implosion - PROVIDED!! some one has the guts to go after them.
They've bankrupted the state (& nation) while miseducating the children they are supposed to serve.
Take your average voter and show them the obscene (as in "obscene profits" - Rep. Fritchey) end of career scams that artificially raise their retirement benefits (at the expense of taxpayers and younger teachers- who get screwed).
Next, explain how virtually every district has lied about "raises" by ignoring Step Increases, "extracurricular activity pay", and district payouts for pension compensation...
Next, show them the non-cash benefits packages that few private sector mid level execs get...
Next, show them how crooked adminstrators have gamed the "tax cap" law to extract much larger sums than ever thought possible (by shifting funds around and "phasing in" increases)...
Next, show them how they play with "Working Cash Bonds" between referenda in yet another circumvention of tax caps.
When you are done with all that, explain how decent educators (see Rockford) are isolated, and then fired for the sole reason that they actually brought decent curricula into the schools, and fought back when administrative hacks saw how much better they worked and pulled the rug out from disadvantaged children just starting to succeed.
www.illinoisloop.org/rockford
____
If the general population ever got wind of even 1/3rd of the systemic "Enronesque" corruption in schools, they'd rip the piggish education establishment a hole large enough to drive a truck through.
But, Mr. Galt, you are correct in one area. Toppling the USSR required a Reagan, not a dishrag like Carter, and IL is populated with either supporters of this corrupt gravy train, or dish rags - too many of which are Republicans.
___
Dan,
Your argument about economies of scale works fine for rolls of steel and Mail order houses. It falls completely flat re: education.
It may convince a few people
(who say they care - but really don't)
to stay on BIG EDUCATION's fat farm, but in a robust debate, it would whither under the light of reason.
You and Rep. Fritchey seem like decent people. If you say you care about the "children", please cease supporting the corrupt system that is using them to get powerful, rich, and fat.
Fund the child, not the bureaucracy.
Post a Comment
<< Home