No Child Left Behind IS Funded
I'm sure some of my readers are thinking, "Why is Sallyann on this 'education kick'?"
Im on it becus meny parwrents r told by techers ther kids rite an spel lik this becus ther lerning disabled wen ther not. Im on it becus haf r kids kant reed n rite n spel good. Im on it becus most skool districks stil blaim parwrents 4 not preeparin ther kids 4 skool n knot beein nterested n ther kids skooling. Im on it becus blu statrs tink mor mone is the ansr n aqus george bush 4 knot fundin no child left behind. (This paragraph could have been written by a third-grader who was taught to read and write using the "whole language method" instead of traditional phonics. )
I will continue to write my comments in the "phonics mode"--the way I was taught to read and write when I was in third-grade. I'm sure you'll notice a big difference.
In the days ahead I'll be addressing the various issues surrounding the failing state of our public school system. I'm starting with the contentious battle between Red-Staters and Blue-Staters on whether or not No Child Left Behind has been funded.
Let me fling some opinion on the walls and see what sticks. Since the late 50's and early 60's the U.S. embarked on a cultural shift effecting the way we raise our children. Instead of "children are to been seen and not heard" we shifted to the more progressive "we'll do anything FOR THE CHILDREN" to make sure their lives were better off than ours. Parents went from "denying" children material goods and liberties to strengthen character and keep them hungry for a life on their own to an "almost never denying" parenting approach. Enter Benjamin Spock, the most trusted pediatrician and best selling author on rearing children for that time. Under Spock's progressive child rearing practices and theories, post-war parents eagerly adopted his methods and the FOR THE CHILDREN mentality took hold and continues to this day.
That culture shift alone increased public school funding ten-fold. When school districts said they needed new schools or anything, parents willingly provided tax dollars so as not to deny THE CHILDREN. Over the years, carpeting, computers, teaching labs, sports programs for both sexes, teacher's aides, higher wages for teachers, staffs of psychologists and counselors, administrative increases all have been purchased by the taxpayer to provide the best education FOR THE CHILDREN.
To me it's similar to the old adage--Money doesn't buy happiness--Money didn't come close to buying even an adequate education FOR THE CHILDREN. To the contrary, the more money we spent, the more academic standards declined and the more our kids failed.
George Bush understands the problem with our education system is not money. And I believe many Red-Staters feel the same way.
(For an indepth read about the funding status of NCLB, click on the headline that will take you to a FACT SHEET published by House Education & the Workforce Committee.)
Im on it becus meny parwrents r told by techers ther kids rite an spel lik this becus ther lerning disabled wen ther not. Im on it becus haf r kids kant reed n rite n spel good. Im on it becus most skool districks stil blaim parwrents 4 not preeparin ther kids 4 skool n knot beein nterested n ther kids skooling. Im on it becus blu statrs tink mor mone is the ansr n aqus george bush 4 knot fundin no child left behind. (This paragraph could have been written by a third-grader who was taught to read and write using the "whole language method" instead of traditional phonics. )
I will continue to write my comments in the "phonics mode"--the way I was taught to read and write when I was in third-grade. I'm sure you'll notice a big difference.
In the days ahead I'll be addressing the various issues surrounding the failing state of our public school system. I'm starting with the contentious battle between Red-Staters and Blue-Staters on whether or not No Child Left Behind has been funded.
Let me fling some opinion on the walls and see what sticks. Since the late 50's and early 60's the U.S. embarked on a cultural shift effecting the way we raise our children. Instead of "children are to been seen and not heard" we shifted to the more progressive "we'll do anything FOR THE CHILDREN" to make sure their lives were better off than ours. Parents went from "denying" children material goods and liberties to strengthen character and keep them hungry for a life on their own to an "almost never denying" parenting approach. Enter Benjamin Spock, the most trusted pediatrician and best selling author on rearing children for that time. Under Spock's progressive child rearing practices and theories, post-war parents eagerly adopted his methods and the FOR THE CHILDREN mentality took hold and continues to this day.
That culture shift alone increased public school funding ten-fold. When school districts said they needed new schools or anything, parents willingly provided tax dollars so as not to deny THE CHILDREN. Over the years, carpeting, computers, teaching labs, sports programs for both sexes, teacher's aides, higher wages for teachers, staffs of psychologists and counselors, administrative increases all have been purchased by the taxpayer to provide the best education FOR THE CHILDREN.
To me it's similar to the old adage--Money doesn't buy happiness--Money didn't come close to buying even an adequate education FOR THE CHILDREN. To the contrary, the more money we spent, the more academic standards declined and the more our kids failed.
George Bush understands the problem with our education system is not money. And I believe many Red-Staters feel the same way.
(For an indepth read about the funding status of NCLB, click on the headline that will take you to a FACT SHEET published by House Education & the Workforce Committee.)
posted by sallyann | 6:19 PM
2 Comments:
Susanne: Copy and paste this address in your internet address window. It'll take you to a site where you can research your state's "report card".
http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/states/
Sallyann
Grizally:
Could you expand your thoughts on phonics and whole language approaches?
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