Sad commentary in US education trends

[desertslave]

Anti-intellectualism running rampant. I love many things about my home state, but their education record is definitely not on that list.

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2012/may/18/anti-intellectualism-us-book-banning

 

[Handley_Page]

Anti-intellectualism running rampant. I love many things about my home state, but their education record is definitely not on that list.

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2012/may/18/anti-intellectualism-us-book-banning

Big (and ignorant) Brother not too far away, then ?

 

[Zeb_Carter]

The American Indoctrination Centers...er....the public school system of the US has forsaken intellectualism for dependence on government. A whole generation has already succumbed to the current teachings.

 

[sr71plt]

Ah, Arizona.

 

[robertreams]

The American Indoctrination Centers...er....the public school system of the US has forsaken intellectualism for dependence on government. A whole generation has already succumbed to the current teachings.

Dependence on government? Did you read the story? It was the parents and the local school board who did this, in spite of attempts from the federal government to outlaw censorship and improve inclusiveness. At worst it is an interference from Texas government! When states like Texas, Mississippi and Alabama continually place at the bottom in every category of educational achievement, and seem inordinately proud of it, is exactly when the federal government should be stepping in to improve conditions. One half the students in every southern state are on federal lunch programs because they fall below poverty levels. Would you have them forgo lunch to satisfy local pols?

 

[legerdemer]

Dependence on government? Did you read the story? It was the parents and the local school board who did this, in spite of attempts from the federal government to outlaw censorship and improve inclusiveness. At worst it is an interference from Texas government! When states like Texas, Mississippi and Alabama continually place at the bottom in every category of educational achievement, and seem inordinately proud of it, is exactly when the federal government should be stepping in to improve conditions. One half the students in every southern state are on federal lunch programs because they fall below poverty levels. Would you have them forgo lunch to satisfy local pols?

Thank you! (I read the article.)

Parents who run for school boards, like congressmen who run for Congress, need to prove they have the minimum level of education and ability to apply logic to show they can and deserve to lead.

 

[Over_Red]

The anti-ethnic studies law passed by the state prohibits teachings that "promote the overthrow of the United States government," "promote resentment toward a race or class of people," "are designed primarily for pupils of a particular ethnic group," and/or "advocate ethnic solidarity instead of the treatment of pupils as individuals."

And this act is used to ban books they don't like. Seems like the author is rightly denouncing crazed political correctness from the right.

Ironically, there's a link to an article about how political correctness has been scientifically proven to be the best thing for individuals right at the top of that intellectualism article.

Both articles read like someone's progressive activism blog, not an impartial news source.

I can't trust the nutjobs burning books on the right, and I can't trust the idiots screaming contradictory double-think messages on the left. The total incompetence at all levels of our society is absolutely astounding.

 

[desertslave]

And this act is used to ban books they don't like. Seems like the author is rightly denouncing crazed political correctness from the right.

Ironically, there's a link to an article about how political correctness has been scientifically proven to be the best thing for individuals right at the top of that intellectualism article.

Both articles read like someone's progressive activism blog, not an impartial news source.

I can't trust the nutjobs burning books on the right, and I can't trust the idiots screaming contradictory double-think messages on the left. The total incompetence at all levels of our society is absolutely astounding.

So very this!!! I'm so relieved that my kids are out of school, now, and on to colleges that promote and provoke independent analysis and thoughtfulness.

 

[DreamCloud]

Ban what you want. It will only increase its readership.

 

[Zeb_Carter]

Dependence on government? Did you read the story? It was the parents and the local school board who did this, in spite of attempts from the federal government to outlaw censorship and improve inclusiveness. At worst it is an interference from Texas government! When states like Texas, Mississippi and Alabama continually place at the bottom in every category of educational achievement, and seem inordinately proud of it, is exactly when the federal government should be stepping in to improve conditions. One half the students in every southern state are on federal lunch programs because they fall below poverty levels. Would you have them forgo lunch to satisfy local pols?

Power corrupts. Absolute power corrupts absolutely.

 

[robertreams]

Thank you! (I read the article.)

Parents who run for school boards, like congressmen who run for Congress, need to prove they have the minimum level of education and ability to apply logic to show they can and deserve to lead.

I could not agree more

 

[Bramblethorn]

If it makes you feel any better, our Prime Minister just gave a knighthood to the Queen's husband. As somebody or other said, it's like giving Jay-Z a Beyoncé CD for Christmas.

Even Rupert Murdoch seems to have given up on covering for him.

 

[Handley_Page]

Thank you! (I read the article.)

Parents who run for school boards, like congressmen who run for Congress, need to prove they have the minimum level of education and ability to apply logic to show they can and deserve to lead.

To my mind, ANYONE running for any representative post should have some 'qualifications' and be fairly coherent

If it makes you feel any better, our Prime Minister just gave a knighthood to the Queen's husband. As somebody or other said, it's like giving Jay-Z a Beyoncé CD for Christmas.

Even Rupert Murdoch seems to have given up on covering for him.

Erm. . . Who ?
<snigger>

 

[49greg]

Ah, Arizona.

Not a new thing in that State. I went to Brit schools for much of my education in grade and high school. My freshman year I had to spend the second semester in an AZ high school. Actually I went from 3rd form in a Brit school to Freshman in and AZ highschool.

It was like a vacation, the math class was years behind where I was, ditto french and geography. History was a challenge as it was US history oriented, something I hadn't had much of.

When I got back to my Brit school I was in trouble and behind. Had to work hard.

When I went to college and had to take "College Algebra", I had done it all before.

This was back in the sixties.

 

[sr71plt]

Not a new thing in that State. I went to Brit schools for much of my education in grade and high school. My freshman year I had to spend the second semester in an AZ high school. Actually I went from 3rd form in a Brit school to Freshman in and AZ highschool.

It was like a vacation, the math class was years behind where I was, ditto french and geography. History was a challenge as it was US history oriented, something I hadn't had much of.

When I got back to my Brit school I was in trouble and behind. Had to work hard.

When I went to college and had to take "College Algebra", I had done it all before.

This was back in the sixties.

The same happened with my children both times they moved from a private British school back to an American public school.

 

[PennLady]

Dependence on government? Did you read the story? It was the parents and the local school board who did this, in spite of attempts from the federal government to outlaw censorship and improve inclusiveness. At worst it is an interference from Texas government! When states like Texas, Mississippi and Alabama continually place at the bottom in every category of educational achievement, and seem inordinately proud of it, is exactly when the federal government should be stepping in to improve conditions. One half the students in every southern state are on federal lunch programs because they fall below poverty levels. Would you have them forgo lunch to satisfy local pols?

Also, Texas has a huge impact on the textbooks that all kids receive because it's such a large state with so many kids in school. Publishers will and have made adjustments to satisfy Texas requests, and those books go to other states as well.

 

[MatthewVett]

Power corrupts. Absolute power corrupts absolutely.

Are you saying state school boards have absolute power, are able to flout laws, execute individuals without trial, &c?

 

[MatthewVett]

As for a trend, banned books in the US have a long history, dating back to at least 1939: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Book_censorship_in_the_United_States

 

[49greg]

Are you saying state school boards have absolute power, are able to flout laws, execute individuals without trial, &c?

In Texas it's pretty much like that. Getting appointed to head the school board in a big city is a big political thing. And in many cases has been far more lucrative than what their paycheck shows. In Dallas anyway. I left in 2001 so I don't know if it has changed since then, but I doubt it.

 

[DeYaKen]

A couple of years back our education secretary (Michael Gove) wanted books by foreign authors taken out of the English lit curriculum. He wanted to ban books like To Kill a Mockingbird, Of Mice and Men, The Catcher in the Rye, and replace them with books by lesser known British authors like himself, for instance.
Yes we do things differently here. Ever since Margret Thatcher centralised everything, central government dictates what children do and do not study.

 

[Handley_Page]

A couple of years back our education secretary (Michael Gove) wanted books by foreign authors taken out of the English lit curriculum. He wanted to ban books like To Kill a Mockingbird, Of Mice and Men, The Catcher in the Rye, and replace them with books by lesser known British authors like himself, for instance.
Yes we do things differently here. Ever since Margret Thatcher centralised everything, central government dictates what children do and do not study.

And it behoves the wise parent to do a bit better by way of supervision.

 

[DeYaKen]

And it behoves the wise parent to do a bit better by way of supervision.

Supervision of whom, the children or the secretary of state for education?

 

[sr71plt]

Their own children, absolutely. The state secretary of education, possibly. But first their own children.

 

[robertreams]

I was a teacher for years in American public high schools. Every exchange student I ever spoke to was bored with U.S. education. The most interesting comments I heard from foreign youths were about sports (Why are they done at school?). And freedom: (Why don't American kids have any?) Many exchange students were amazed at how little we trust our children, and how little we allow them to do.

Any innovation or attempt to modernize schools and curriculum are immediately squelched by most school boards and school administrators, despite strong efforts by most teachers.

Many teachers will verify that U.S. school administrators and school boards stifle all attempts at change or creativity.