Thursday, August 14, 2008
Beinart Suggests Class Instead of Race for Affirmative Action
Reference:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/12/AR2008081202827_pf.html
The idea is to get Obama to champion targeting class, not race, for affirmative action. Supposedly, this ploy would change the race argument for Obama, and innoculate him from attacks on his blackness.
What does "class"mean? Obviously, class refers to income levels of the parents of prospective college students, and perhaps for certain job applicants as well. It would seem that academic capability, HS grades, IQ, or SAT scores would become meaningless for a percentage of applicants; merely being broke as a family is adequate credentials for a government handout of about $40,000 or so a year per student, plus living allowances of, say, $6,000 a year, for a total of almost $50,000 a year.
What this means to the taxpayer is just about universal college for most teens, since a majority of parents cannot pay $50,000 a year for their child to go to college, and if they have two children. paying $100,000 a year is certainly not possible. Even with a "deductable" of a given amount the parents could be expected to pay of, say, ($10,000 x 4 years) or $40,000 all told, by way of a loan, this would still admit the majority to college with tuition, books, and living free.
So, the hidden factor here is in reality very near to Universal College Education for All at taxpayer expense. This is yet another liberal objective to add to free health care (Hillarycare), and many other government handouts liberals champion to buy votes, along with Open Borders, and Guaranteed Employment.
Individual responsibility and initiative can be put to bed now.
Labels: Education, Government Handouts
Thursday, November 01, 2007
Public Education
Some Thoughts on Our System
1. Throwing more money at public education is by and large futile. The problem isn't money.
2. We have thousands of solid teachers in our systems that are not motivated by money.
3. The state of the school buildings is not relevant to the learning process if the HVAC works.
4. In most cases, adding money results in overpriced rebuilding--that's where money is made.
5. In most cases, adding money results in more "experts", studies, and administrators.
6. The Federal government should get out of the education business: let state and locals do it.
7. Political correctness is stifling our teachers, and giving them redacted books to use.
8. Parents are, in many cases, indifferent to their children's schooling--it is babysitting.
9. Students are indifferent to their own education because of their parent's indifference.
10.The main problem is a cultural one: the culture surrounding the students.
11. This problem will not be solved easily: it will take generations.
12. A politician that promises to raise school budgets is a tip-off to a con job.
13. We have 48 million K-12 students; 3 million teachers; pupil/teacher ratio of 15.8.
14. We spend $473 Billion a year on education; Feds-8.8%; States-48.6%; Locals-42.7%.
15. Teacher pay average is $47.7 thousand.
16. Average cost per student is $8,300.
17. Even if we doubled this budget, the residual problem will still be there: the cultural drag.
