The Demise of Public Education (Cathryn Crawford)

Washington Dispatch ^ | September 26, 2003 | Cathryn Crawford

[Scenic Sounds]

There are two issues commonly focused on by the American people at this time in our history – the war on terror and the economy. While both have to do with our everyday and contemporary survival, there is another issue that is of deep and long-lasting importance that seldom gets the attention that it deserves – the demise of the public school system in America. Public education is fading away, and while it is doing so, it is taking a whole generation of children with it. The problem lies within the very foundation of public education – the notion that education itself entails parenting and raising children instead of educating them. Instead of simply being accents of parents and families, public schools have become the families themselves, and the results have been devastating.

We are losing our unchallenged standing and superiority in commerce, industry, science, and technology to a rising tide of mediocrity. Teachers are no longer concerned with whether or not their students have a firm grasp of the core curriculum – they are more concerned about whether or not they offend someone with their curriculum. Instructors must embrace every child’s opinion – no matter how wrong it may be - in order to teach them in a politically correct manner. Teachers are taught in college to teach from every point of view, so instead of a nationalistic viewpoint, the content is more general, and students suffer from the lack of depth and detail.

Public schools are facing declining test scores, poor performance, high functional illiteracy rates, watered-down curriculum, and declining standards, and yet no one sees any correlation between these statistics and the expanded role of public schools as socialization centers. Public education has become all things to all people, and academics are suffering. It has become so focused on providing nutritional, medical, psychological, religious, and social care that it has lost sight of its original purpose – to educate. Public schools are no longer places of learning – they are set up instead to be social service centers that, according to Sharon Robinson of the American Educational Research Association, “accelerate progression toward the day when reform is guided by the joint efforts of researchers, practitioners, parents, social workers, health professionals, law enforcement officials, members of the business community, and other civic-minded citizens.”

Beyond the very important argument that the government makes a horrible parent, there is the added issue of “busyness” that has overtaken schools. By focusing on too many programs, their standards are lowered and their focus on the details of academics – science, history, and language – is lost. Instead of making sure that students have a firm foundation of knowledge, public schools are focusing on solving the social problems of the community around them. Instead of education, it has become socialization.

Is there a solution? Not under the existing structure. In a socialistic system – our current public educational structure - there is no competition; therefore there is no incentive for improvement or innovation. Public schools have a monopoly on the education market. Private and charter schools are only allowed to compete on a limited level because of high costs.

The only viable solutions that can be seen are either complete privatization of the public school system, or, barring that, school vouchers. Competition improves quality, and until we see public schools having to fight for their funding, we will see no improvement whatsoever in the educational system. When schools are privatized – when the government is no longer a factor in education – then we will see a difference; with vouchers, parents no longer are chained to a horrible district – they can take their money and children elsewhere.

Cathryn Crawford is a student at the University of Texas. She can be reached with comments at feedback@washingtondispatch.com.

[Scenic Sounds]

Cathryn Crawford's latest!!

[Scenic Sounds]

Cathryn Crawford Ping!

[Chad Fairbanks]

Adjectives! That's what I like to see! Adjectives! ;0)

[July 4th]

A great article, very clearly laid out. Nice job!

[NCjim]

Please add me to your CC ping list. Thanks!

[Sir Gawain]

The only viable solutions that can be seen are either complete privatization of the public school system, or, barring that, school vouchers.

Giving power back to the states will solve many of the problems we're seeing today. Education would be one of them. We should study the early American educational system and understand why they did it that way, and understand why it was right. Educational control (along with a lot of other things) belongs at the township, and at worst, the state level.

[LiteKeeper]

SPOTREP

[E.G.C.]

BTTT!!!!!!

[wizardoz]

You go, girl!

[wizardoz]

I like my women like I like my coffee - Hot, and in a big cup.

You go, guy!

[Scenic Sounds]

Please add me to your CC ping list. Thanks!

Done! ;-)

[only1percent]

The problem isn't schools being public or private, the problem is irresponsible and/or powerless parents. Public schools where most of the parents are responsible, and where the parents effectively control the schools by way of a locally-elected school board more afraid of parents than of the teachers union, do just fine.

The public schools in my neighborhood outperform the local Catholic and independent schools by almost any measure. (In a 180-degree twist from the urban model, the expensive local independent school is regarded as a place where parents send lazy or discipline-problem kids who can't cut it in the demanding public school environment...)

[1Old Pro]

there is another issue that is of deep and long-lasting importance that seldom gets the attention that it deserves – the demise of the public school system in America.

The truth alert meter reads 100% with this statement.

[aristeides]

What about homeschooling? The government may make a bad parent, but parents make excellent teachers, certainly in comparison with the products of education colleges. And fostering homeschooling will strengthen the family. Finally, homeschooling is how most people were educated before the 19th century. (Our Founding Fathers were not the products of government schools.)

[A Navy Vet]

"Adjectives! That's what I like to see! Adjectives! ;0)"

Wuts a adjuctiv?

[jmc813]

Wonder how long it will take the public school groupies to show up and post a picture of that 14 year-old kid.

[BeerSwillr]

Blah, Blah, Blah.

I'm sure she has correctly depicted many schools and school districts, but many more are not like this at all. You know what the difference is? Parental involvement, not only in the schools, but with the children at home.

You can't make a broad brush statement and say that Americas schools are failing because they are not. Granted some are, and those schools are the ones making the headlines. Most schools are doing a good job educating their children.

"The only viable solutions that can be seen are either complete privatization of the public school system, or, barring that, school vouchers."

This is the proof that what I say is true. School vouchers don't do a dem thing to make schools better, but they do give a parent the option of moving their child out of a poorly performing school district, and into a better one.

[1Old Pro]

You can't make a broad brush statement and say that Americas schools are failing because they are not. Granted some are, and those schools are the ones making the headlines. Most schools are doing a good job educating their children.

Even affluent suburben schools could use some copetition as there is plenty of room for improvement. Most schools are not doing a good job. Test scores are not improving at even the "best" schools. Why, becauase they are not teaching the basics because their cirriculum is chock full of PC crap that is mandated.

[Cathryn Crawford]

By default, they make districts as a whole better. As students move away from bad schools and into good schools - through vouchers - the bad schools close, therefore eliminating our wasting money on them. In this way, vouchers do improve the public school system.

[Scenic Sounds]

What about homeschooling? The government may make a bad parent, but parents make excellent teachers, certainly in comparison with the products of education colleges. And fostering homeschooling will strengthen the family. Finally, homeschooling is how most people were educated before the 19th century. (Our Founding Fathers were not the products of government schools.)

I think that homeschooling is fine if the parents are willing and able to provide it.

What percentage of kids do you think have parents that can perform that function these days?