The Peregrin Falcon

The current state of our economy and what seems like an endless amount of government hands in our pockets on an increasing scale has prompted me to write this post. In conjunction with the obvious problems on a national scale my local school district is joining with the state to propose a state amendment that would prohibit the state from taking money from education.

In an economic downturn that means that the rest of the state suffers, but education is ok. I have to ask my self “Really,? Is education more important than say Highway Patrol? or Transportation? or Water/Sewer Maintenance? or Commerce?” Do we really think that when times are tough that everything else is second to Education? So, I wanted to take one slice of the premise for the amendment and dissect it a little further. It is the contention of many in power today that more money equals more high school graduates. Having more high school graduates is supposed to equal more success in the market and more business, etc.

The question for me is “Does more money equal more graduates?” To answer the question, I didn’t have to look very far. In fact with some help from the U.S. Census Bureau and the pro everything education EdWeek.org I was able to see quite clearly that simply putting more money into the system will not necessarily produce more graduations. That’s right, it is terribly difficult to find ANY report that lists costs per student next to graduation rates for a simply, flat comparison. So, I made one.

The following report lists the graduation rates for each state in 2006 and the U.S. Census data of spending for US elementary and Secondary schools during the 2006-2007 fiscal year.

CostPerStudentComparison

You may notice something that became very clear to me. Initially, it looked as if what had been said was true. Of the schools performing under the average (less than average graduation rates) 72% had under spent the average and only 28% had over spent. Right out of the box this would be a great case for spending more to get more.

However, upon further looking, I found that of the schools that over performed compared to the average 58% had under spent, leaving 42% as the over spenders. In case you missed it, let me rephrase. Out of 51 states (including DC, I know it is not a state) 19 of them spent under the average and out performed the average graduation rate; while 13 under spent and under performed.

Clearly there is not a direct correlation between spending (i.e. Money) and results (i.e. Graduates) and so like most things in life it is more complex than a cursory glance would suggest.

I know that this will not be popular with the NEA leadership. I know that someone will say the teachers in the under spend out perform bracket are low balling tests and thus getting more results; or just passing bad students.

If that were so, why is it such a small percent of the majority that are over spending and getting over average results? Wouldn’t the teachers want to hold back the kids to the numbers would play out in their favor? I think the teachers are trying and are not short changing to get more money or pass more students.

What it all boils down to is this simple fact; more money does not necessarily equal more graduations. In the coming months, many school districts will call for more money, as they have done annually for nearly a hundred years. In this time of economic hardship, let’s stop using children as political capital and start taking real-factual consideration of the situation and be able to say no, not this year. We need more graduations, and that will not come from more money each and every year.

The answer to getting more graduations is a long and complex set of discussions; so for now, I am saying enough is enough.

Here are some basic questions I believe everyone should know the answers to in order to make an educated and informed vote for any elected official. These are all questions that any high school history student has seen before. However, how many adults learned the lessons? How can we be a great nation when so many of us fail to understand our basic historical foundations?

These questions are just some of the most important. They outline the basics for the reasons behind our founding; how we got to where we are today; what framed the original classic divides of the modern era of politics and why a voter should care.

In my humble opinion, these questions form a foundation, like that of a house made of bricks. One or two missing bricks in a supporting wall and the house will stand. However, enough missing bricks and the house will crumble. See how many of these questions you can answer without Googling them. How many can your friends answer? How many can your adult family members and co-workers answer?

Listed in no particular order:

1. What was the case Plessy v. Ferguson about and why is it important?
2. What was the Dredd Scott case and how did it affect race relations in America?
3. What was the Stamp Act and how did it affect American history?
4. Who were the Molly MacGuires?
5. What was the Louisiana Purchase?
6. Who is William Jennings Bryan?
7. What was the Scopes Monkey Trials?
8. What are the Rights granted in the Bill of Rights? And who grants these Rights?
9. What is the difference in the original terms between Natural Conservationists and Environmentalists?
10. Who was Standard Oil, and why is knowing that important?
11. Why did the founders protest with the phrase “No Taxation without Representation”, if there were representatives for the colonies in the British Parliament?
12. What was the Iran-Contra affair? And how did it reveal the political atmosphere in Washington D.C.?
13. What was the Land Act of 1820 and how have we changed since then?
14. What specific powers are given to the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial branches of the government according to the U.S. Constitution as ratified by the Continental Congress?
15. What rights were are granted in the Geneva Convention? Who granted them?
16. Who was Martin Luther? Why is he important?
17. Who voted to abolish Jim Crowe laws in the South? Who voted to uphold them?
18. What was Medicaid /Medicare/ Social Security originally setup for? What was the original cost estimate per year?
19. Who was the Mujahideen? How did the US help them? Who did they become?
20. Who were the Vietcong? Who backed them throughout the Vietnam War?
21. Throughout the history of ‘voting’ societies, Greece and Rome, what criterion for the ability to vote was constant? How did the U.S. compare at its foundation? Why did it change?
22. Who were the Axis, and who were the Allied powers in WWII?
23. Who first coined the term “Iron-Curtain”? Why?
24. Who are Stalin, Lenin, Gorbachev, and Khrushchev? Why is that important?
25. Who were the Bolsheviks?
26. What is the difference between Communism, Socialism, Marxism, and Capitalism?
27. What is a Representative Republic v. a Democracy?
28. Who are the Palestinians? And who were they prior to the creation of the state of Israel after WWII?
29. What U.S. President served for the longest period of time and what major historical events occurred under his watch?
30. What does the phrase “E Pluribus Unum” translate into, and why would the U.S. choose it as a motto?