There is Hope for Education in America! Andrew Campanella Tells Us Why

[Sweyn78]

I wrote a small dossier containing ideas for the possible improvement of educational systems.

memberfiles {DOT} freewebs {DOT} com/83/49/55134983/documents/H­ow%20to%20Improve%20the%20Amer­ican%20Public%20Educational%20­System.pdf

Hope it helps! :) 

[4lifejackhammer]

More schools=more specialization. Not every student learns the same way. The public school system today focuses on those who think quickly, discriminating against over half the population who take in information in a way that is slower, but more likely to be retained. It favors obedience vs. knowledge. Teaching methods by teachers still favor either groups or individual work. Free-market in education will mean schools actually suited to students. Public schools will always discriminate.

[denisonM]

@4lifejackhammer exactly.

[kelliko70]

When I was in public school in the 70's and 80's I actually learned stuff that I still use today. Now I see kids coming out of school not knowing the difference between "to, too, and two" "your and you're" and "heroine and heroin." Kids who can't remember their multiplication tables are also common. No Child Left Behind has left all kids behind.

[XCritonX]

The concept of public education is strategically flawed. Just contrast the vast progress of privately developed technology in the last 20 years with the embarrassing lack of progress in public schools. No vast improvement will happen until we the consumer of education have the choice of where to spend our money. School choice is the right strategy.

Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory. Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat. - Sun Tzu

[HybridD91]

@XCritonX Public education wasn't flawed enough for America to use it against the Soviet Union but I do agree that school choice is a good idea.

[XCritonX]

@HybridD91 Dont forget that the Soviet Union also had public education, an even worse version than America had. Also, at the time the US education system was not under federal control, so their was at least some competence in the system.

[miketv]

@XCritonX I agree, but your Sun Tzu has no application here. That's just your distortion of a quote.

[XCritonX]

@miketv You are very wrong. The focus of public school "improvements" is to try various tactics without realizing that the strategy of having a top down government run education system is all wrong. With out the right strategy no tactical changes will be successful.

You probably just didn't understand the quote. Don't worry, not many people understand the whole strategy vs tactical thing. I coach business people who don't understand it, some never will.

[SanguineBullet667]

I'm a public school teacher and even though there's some minor bullying at the workplace, I refuse to join their Union! It's about KIDS, not your benefits.

[gskibum]

@SanguineBullet667 Do you live in a Right to Work state?

[SanguineBullet667]

@gskibum Yes

[tzasame]

Five unionized teachers watched this video.

[Thewizzardof9]

Each country makes its own standards for literacy. Our standards are higher than any other country in the world, so we are only failing our own standards. In some countries you must only need to read and write your name in what ever language you speak and you are 100% literate. Our standards are so high we blow every country away.

[NVJR1]

I just learned a sad stat 24 million Americans are functionally illiterate 1 out of 8.

[learn54]

What a crock of lies. It's always "for the kids." All the research shows that the number one factor that effects educational outcomes is poverty. Schools where over 50% of the students receive free and reduced lunch do much worse than schools where fewer students get such aid. The more students receiving free and reduced lunch, the worse that school and school district performs. There is plenty of data that shows this. Charter schools are a license to steal, and legislators know it.

[dd00hli]

Real Charter schools tend to work well for right now. Vouchers that allow students to move from the local public school to anywhere there's a seat in a better school is a great idea. All the funds for education are wasted on administration and union crime. Remove the waste and allow competition and see education improve. Block grant funds back to states and repeal the irs and let states look after themselves. Homeschooling proves to be positive. As does private school. Especially cost wise.

[aeternusero]

Local level education is the only way. Centralized power always fails, just give it time.

All you need is a list of things you should teach the kids; a bulleted menu that doesn't need explanation. Just type Science, Math, History, Civics,etc. And let the states fill in the blanks.

[Panpiper]

@aeternusero In my opinion, even having such a simple list is dangerous. How are we to know that some entrepreneur won't demonstrate that superior education can be delivered by nothing other than teaching critical thinking and suffusing kids in Socratic method, such that the kids educate themselves?

Don't do 'anything' that puts constraints on people.

[aeternusero]

@Panpiper

I just believe there should be a basic agreement on what should be taught, not the methods used to teach.

Otherwise, where I live, kids will be taught Adam and Eve rode dinosaurs, lol

[Panpiper]

@aeternusero Yes, and our centrally dictated schooling teaches that Roosevelt saved us from the great depression by presiding over it for 12 years, with is a fallacy every bit as absurd as what you are afraid of. I do not trust any central authority to not fuck things up for everyone. I would rather have local fuckups in a few areas than giving anyone a chance to do so on such a grand scale.

[eirefrance]

OOOH!! OOOOH!!! OOOOH!!!! Can I guess? Can I guess? We're gonna hand over education to people whose motivation is maximizing profit and that will ensure the best results for everyone? Is that hope for education?

[toymation]

@eirefrance Yes, and in order to maximize profits, you actually have to perform better. It seems you want education to be the hands of an entity that has no motivation to perform well?

[TylerNutify]

@toymation Yes, and in order to maximize profits you also have to increase the student / teacher ratio to lower cost.

How does that help education?

[toymation]

@TylerNutify In order to stay consistent, you must carry this principle with all industries -- cars, food, etc.? To make it most efficient, the government monopolizing it is the solution?

[4lifejackhammer]

@TylerNutify not true at all; the profits encourage more school creation, and specialization, resulting in schools teaching many different styles with varying student/teacher ratios. Maybe its smaller classes that cost more, or maybe someone is smart enough to pay cheaply for a list of materials and tests; No single entity can teach the best way for each person to learn; it is simply impossible.

[chronDiggity]

@eirefrance

First of all, YES, profits would give incentive to companies to come in and bring a better education. Competition would drive innovation.

Even if we switched to a voucher system where each student represented a certain amount of money schools would compete for, we would get SUCH better education for what we spend.

The problem is dopes like you. Sorry. You're so afraid of education getting corrupted you can't see it's already happened, as if government is incorruptible.

[Panpiper]

@eirefrance How is it that you think that people will 'maximize profits' by offering substandard education for the price? Offering anything substandard for the price is a certain recipe for loosing your shirt, not making profits.

[eirefrance]

@Panpiper Oooh!! Oooooh!! I know the answer the that!!! People who can afford it will get a good education. People who can't won't get a good education. Is that the answer? Is that it?

[Panpiper]

@eirefrance Well, my education was purchased for the price of an encyclopaedia. Good education does not have to be expensive. Some of the best education in the 19th century was given for literally pennies a day (a school where older kids taught younger kids), for instance.

In any case, the discussion in the US is about vouchers and such, so poor people would still pay for (relatively expensive) schooling on the public dime.

[dubified89]

@eirefrance No

[gskibum]

@eirefrance They will maximize profit only if they produce the best product.

Now let's see if you can figure out what the product is that needs to be produced best.

[4lifejackhammer]

@eirefrance look at the teacher's union. The motive for maximizing profits already exists; the question is how to do this in a way that best supports education. The top down approach is bad; I had to re-learn history, and i would not have been motivated to do so if not for "evil" people like Glenn Beck challenging the conventional history. Beck is wrong on a lot of things, history included, but the fact is that his profit motives encouraged me to learn more than 4 teachers wasting much more time

[soonerdave01]

Public education in america is a roaring success. No need to change anything.

It produces exactly the type of citizens it's creators intended: politically correct, inside-the-box thinkers with herd-mentality who look upon the federal government as a third parent.

[kushluk33]

@soonerdave01 tee hehehe. yes

[HybridD91]

@soonerdave01 Conservatives?

[PanzerDivisionBOM]

@soonerdave01

Or, for about 1/3 of all US children, a second parent.

[Vegemighty]

I am so SMRT!

[shade1978x]

educashion iz dumm.

[TheTubbtubb]

But what about teh teacherz!?!?! They need the jobs! The problem is funding! Just throw money at the problem until it goes away! What we need are stronger teachers unions. A small turnover rate for teachers makes them feel worried about getting fired. If teachers couldn't be fired, they wouldn't worry so much and they would perform better. More regulation is needed to, preferably by a centralized planning agency in the federal gov't. If you disagree, you HATE children.

/libtard

[i8hy6e3]

education is a lie. I would study alone. school is bullshit and waste of money. what if those teachers are stupid than you and you don't realize you are smart when you are young? and they lie? they are same dumbs who are blind with love of money. they never tell you truth.

[henleythecat]

@i8hy6e3 "education is a lie."

Education is what gave you the ability to lie on this thread. Think about it.

Go ahead, you can do it.

[Panpiper]

@henleythecat The only thing I ever learned in school was long division. And of course now we have calculators for that. I am quite certain that if I had not gotten that when I did in school, I would have gotten it on my own at some other point. EVERYTHING else I learned in my life was self taught, not because of school, but in spite of it. School for me was a TOTAL waste of time. Learning is what counts. Do not assume that education is about being 'taught'. It is not.