Changing Educational Paradigms Must Include Stopping Unions from Having a Stranglehold on Kids' Education

For the most part, our educational system is a debacle with massive amounts of money being misallocated by school districts. Our tax dollars are going down the tubes.  During the 2002-03 school year $440 billion was used to fund public education for kids from prekindergarten through secondary school.  Unfortunately because of the misappropriation of funds in order to benefit the adults instead of the students the effects of this have produced consequences including:  illiteracy, high secondary school drop out rates in democratically-controlled areas of the United States, and in 2009 results of testing showed that ONLY 60 percent of high school students are proficient in basic science skills .  These aforementioned examples show that it is imperative that we change the educational paradigm in the United States.  One question worth posing is what exactly does the phrase "basic science skills" refer to today?  How basic is "basic"?  The fact that 40 percent of high school students are unable to pass the basic proficiency science test is highly disconcerting and unconscionable.  This is further evidence that our public schools are failing, and the teachers' unions are failing to provide children with a good education. 
The teachers union in Detroit will have nothing to do with compromising their benefits for the sake of either the school children or the city of Detroit.  The unions greedy nature may force the closure of half of the public schools in Detroit.  If the unions, democrats and President Obama actually cared about educating our kids properly they would not have been against the DC Opportunities Scholarship Program (a voucher program), and defunded it. The program was an instant hit, and according to the Dept. of Education it was working. This program in Washington D.C. was helping disadvantaged youths yet those (Democrats and unions) who claim to champion for kids quashed the program which was working.  How dare those happy and successful kids siphon away money from unions (sarcasm). 


Virginia Walden Ford is an advocate for school choice.  As an adolescent her son William started struggling with academics and eventually started getting into trouble with the law.  Then a generous next door neighbor's intervention changed the trajectory of her son's life when he offered to help pay for William to attend a local parochial school. In a matter of only months there was a major transformation: William went from being an angry kid to really enjoying the learning process. After 2 years he transferred to a charter school and graduated as Valedictorian. He enlisted in the Marines, served in Iraq, and is now working for a real estate company in the Washington D.C. area.  After seeing how much a nurturing school enhanced her son's education in the 1990's Virginia became an outspoken advocate for the D.C. vouchers bill. Unfortunately the program was cancelled in 2009 but after the 2010 mid-term elections Ford is hopeful that with the help of Speaker of the House John Boehner the D.C. voucher program will breathe new life soon. 

With all the issues in our educational system it is an absolute necessity that we change the educational paradigm in order to prevent a calamitous outcome for the United States. 




Here are two videos on reforming our educational system. The first video is a trailer for the movie "Kids Aren't cars" and the second video is on changing educational paradigms. 






RSA Animate - Changing Education Paradigms

Michigan 6-Year-Old Suspended From School For Making Gun With His Hand -- Nanny-Dumb???

According to Fox News there was a 6-year-old student that was suspended from a Michigan School for making a gun with his hand. This is utterly ridiculous! It seems as though Nanny-Dumb has permeated through Michigan’s public schools.



While I disagree with the severity of the punishment the child was explicitly told by both his parents and his teacher multiple times to stop making his hand into the shape of a gun during class. Since the child didn’t listen to his teacher, I do believe that he needed to be punished in some fashion, but suspending the kid is way overboard and overkill in my opinion. I think that the boy was just fooling around during class time.


If this wasn’t done during school hours I would just think that this child was being creative(within reason), or a little boy having fun. I don’t think that this boy made this gesture out of malice.


He was suspended from school because both his classmates and his teacher were uncomfortable with him making his fist into the shape of a gun. Would these same students and this particular teacher be uncomfortable if there was a student who was deaf that used sign language? Should we really be letting people who are uncomfortable dictate when students are suspended? I am not saying the child shouldn’t be punished at all, but it seems like suspending the 6-year-old was not called for either.


I just think that this whole situation displays clearly that common sense was not used by the school in handling this situation. It sure seems like the State of Michigan, and its public school systems have established and are promoting a Nanny-Dumb, or a nanny state.

From Fox News:
A Michigan boy reportedly has been suspended from school for curling his hand into the shape of a gun and pointing it at another student.

Erin Jammer, said her son, Mason, was just playing around when he made the gesture Wednesday, the Grand Rapids Press reported.

"I do think it's harsh for a six-year-old. He's six and he just likes to play. Maybe what you could do is take his recess away. He's only six and he doesn't understand any of this," Erin Jammer said.

But officials at Jefferson Elementary School said the behavior made other students uncomfortable, and they suspended Mason for the remainder of the week, the paper reported.

School officials also told the paper that Mason had been warned repeatedly against pretending to aim his hand at students but continued the behavior over several months.

Jammer told the paper her son isn't violent and doesn’t have toy guns at home. She suggested a less harsh punishment, like taking Mason’s recess away, might be more effective in teaching him not to make a gun with his hand.

"He's only six and he doesn't understand any of this," she said.

Stossel On Charter Schools

School Choice is one of the most important elements to help students succeed in their schooling. 

A Big H/T goes to MAINFO