American Education - an adventure of issues

The landscape of American education is dotted with many issues and plenty of controversy. This discussion will lead us into a range of topics that explore what government education means with respect to our liberty and success as individuals.

Among the success stories, there are also a number of problems. Some of the problems have been wrestled to the ground, and some of them we are still wrestling with. From my perspective, most of the problems in American education stem from government involvement.

Government is often the source of problems in our lives, and yet we so often turn to government to solve the very problems that it has created.

I don't know who said it, but the idea that "government is the cure for its own disease" is an idea that we need to keep in mind.

American education is no exception. Our system of education is often referred to as "public education" or a "public school system", when in fact much of what we view as public is really only a euphemism for government schooling.

If I told you about Russian schools and how the teachers, administrators, buildings and curriculum are all part of the government, you might consider it a likely result of such a government controlled regime. Nevertheless, this is exactly how our "public" schools are organized and operated in America - it's a government operation through and through.

Thankfully there are other options, both government and private, and we'll touch on those as we go along.

The Importance of Education

If you want to understand the importance of education, just have a conversation with one of the many unemployed hourly wage earners that has a limited skill set, and can't find a job. American education was there for them, but they failed to make good use of it.

Perhaps he or she would lament not taking advantage of opportunities for education. Perhaps they would regret not having an interest in higher education.

With an educated populace, everyone benefits to some degree. Let's list a few examples:

• more well-rounded citizens overall
• potential employees with better qualifications
• sufficient problem solving skills for challenging tasks
• better fit within a sophisticated society
• more reasoning, less violence
• better decision-making
• more high income earners
• people that are more capable of being employers

People naturally learn culture and skills. You don't have to have a formal American education for that. Knowledge also comes naturally through interaction with others. The benefit of a formal education is that the depth and breadth of learning and knowledge is increased.

When I was in school, I always wanted to know how the information could be applied in a practical manner. I wanted to know how some knowledge or skill might benefit me or others. It was the "glue" that made my studies stick.

Sadly, only a few things ever "stuck" with me because I couldn't bridge the gap between what was being taught and how I might apply it. I often thought that some portion of the American education process should be less structured and more adventure oriented. It was always hard for me to pinpoint just where I was headed based on what I was being taught.

As it turned out, most of the higher value learning experiences took place in college, and the best learning was "on the job" during a coop program while I was in my last couple years at the university. Learning from others "in situ" is what really stuck with me.

So it seems that many of the instructors and much of the curriculum just weren't rooted in real life - they lacked the "glue". Another way of looking at it is simply that we have teachers that teach, and they aren't necessarily good at doing things in the real world.

One of my favorite lines from Woody Allen's movie Annie Hall is: "I remember the staff at our public school. You know, we had a saying, uh, that those who can't do, teach, and those who can't teach, teach gym. And, uh, those who couldn't do anything, I think were assigned to our school."

As Woody Allen fans out there know, his comic genius is the ability to walk the fine line between comedy and tragedy - the tragedy of course is the truth in what he is saying.

It's clear that the general product of our American education system of "public" schools is less that desirable. Are there answers to these failing? Yes, of course.

Problems in American Education - and Solutions

Let's look at some of the problems we face in American education, and some of the solutions that have been proposed and implemented. As we discuss each of these topics, keep in mind that the most important factor is parental choice and participation, the child is the second most important factor, then the government should come in last as a facilitator.

I think you'll find that in many cases the government inserts itself as the top priority in American education. What ever happened to "a sense of service" in government? Aren't they supposed to be representative of the interests of the communities they serve? We can clearly see that government has become a stand-alone player and surrogate parent in many situations that involve the education of our children.

Why is this? It's all because we allow it to happen.

It would be nice to understand the history of American education. It's something that I was never taught. At least, it was never taught in a manner that allowed it to sink in and "stick". We've all heard of the one room schoolhouse where children of all ages attended together. Other than that, what do we really know about the roots of American education?

Charter schools have been influential in this country for quite a while. Here in Wyoming they are getting the shaft. I know why. A charter school represents competition with the government school system, so naturally those in authority want to crush any competition before it shows them up.

Sadly, the government schools are missing out, because success at a charter school means opportunities for the government schools to mirror that same success. One can make the other smarter and better, all based on competition. Let's look at charter schools to see how they work.

And, there is no need to be concerned about costs and funding of charter schools. They are a type of "public" school so charter school funding is addressed in a manner similar to traditional government schools.

Lotteries for education have been touted as a great boost for education. You know, more money will fix everything, just like throwing more people at the problem will fix everything. Someone told me once that "you can't put too much money into education" and I think he was right. No matter how much money you put into American education, it's never enough.

Busing was another great invention of our government school system. I think it's gone away now, but it's worth looking at from a historical perspective. In the case of busing, social engineers desired forced racial integration, so they made plans to bus children all over the place.

The idea was to take children from schools their parents tax dollars paid for, and bus them to schools they hadn't paid tax dollars for. It was known as cross district busing. The whole problem of course is that this was in the hands of politicians. Again, evidence that government fouls up things that work well in American education. To look at it another way, education shouldn't be political because parents and children are always squeezed in the middle.

The whole topic of higher education reminds me of the old saying: "You can always tell a college boy, but you can't tell him much." It also reminds me of a professor I had in college that told the class repeatedly throughout the semester that she was a "Marxist Leninist Humanist". At least she was right up front about where she was coming from. You have to give her credit for that.

My experience in "higher" education was an eye opener in many respects. Many classes were watered down to reach lower achievers that made it to college - somehow. Other classes were challenging. Few were linked to real-life situations. Few instructors had real-life experience to offer practical examples of how concepts might be applied in the real world.

I viewed my college education as getting my "ticket punched" so I was qualified to seek higher paying opportunities in the world. It worked just fine for that.

What would education be without grants, loans and scholarships? Another way in which we have come to rely on the government to pay for education, this time, higher education. Again, it puts the educational process in the hands of government to some extent, and that's when the voice of reason often goes out the window.

I've seen what some of the government money can do to American education. It puts people in school that shouldn't be there, and it puts pressure on instructors to throttle back the class and operate it much like a high school classroom. This isn't exactly what we should be offering as examples of American education.

The idea of school uniforms is one I remember from my childhood days of watching kids go to and from some of the Catholic schools in my area. Everyone looked the same. Very "uniform" indeed. I never wore a uniform, and I don't think I would like it, but if you're looking for uniformity in education, I suppose this is a place to start.

Here is an overview of school uniforms pros and cons. There are valid points to be made on each side of the argument. The problem I see is that once again our government "one size fits all" approach doesn't work very well.

Take a look at the benefits of school uniforms. There are many, but few that would compel me to want a uniform requirement for all students. I'm against school uniforms for government schools because it's more government and less freedom.

If America is really the land of the free, then the American education system should emphasize freedom first, and that means a great big "NO" to school uniforms.

The issue of school funding is always on the minds of teachers, administrators and parents. This was especially true of my parents since my father was a high school teacher, and now he depends on retirement income from the school system. I remember each election cycle my parents would be concerned about the "millage" passing. It always did.

How about issues like prayer in school? That's got to be lots of fun. We want racial integration so we all get along, but we can't stand it if someone is different than us and wants to pray - or not pray. It's the dichotomy of let's tolerate one another, except if it's something that I don't like, then let's ban it.

And, there is always homeschooling for children. That's where you teach your own children or with a circle of friends so you can actively manage their education. In a home school, you can have prayer, faith and other beliefs, and promote core American values as part of the educational process. You get to teach your children without the influence of those in government who "know better" than you. Home schooling is a challenge, and it generally requires a more traditional family structure to be successful, but it has great results.

Let's look at home school laws and how they influence personal choice in homeschooling. Let's also look at a typical home school curriculum and what it's like to operate in home schools. The state usually has nearly unlimited educational resources, but what about home school resources for those that choose to educate their children at home?

Also, how does home school testing stack up with testing in the government schools, and what are some of the comparisons that we can make between homeschooling vs public schools? I think you'll find much of this discussion of interest, especially some of the home school statistics that are readily available and demonstrate both the challenges and successes attributable to home schools.

So, these are some of the key issues in American education. All will be discussed, and some will be disgusting. I'll let you decide.

While reviewing these issues, I urge you to discard the idea that American education should be "child centric" but rather it should be focused on the needs and desires of the parents. After all, they are ultimately in charge of the child's welfare. With rare exception, the state has no children to care for nor educate, but it does have taxpaying parents that are responsible for the care and upbringing of their children.

Let's focus on American education being in the hands of Americans that have children to educate. As a Libertarian, I believe that school choice is simply a part of freedom of choice in a society that is supposed to be free.



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