Public School Education System Thread

[apeman]

Didn't see a thread for post on the public school system, but didn't look very hard either.

Wanted to post this:



Link to article:
https://fee.org/articles/the-failure-of ... one-chart/

Is this chart clear and convincing proof that throwing $$$ at the govt school system is not the answer? Anything misleading? All I can think of is that the costs may not be adjusted for inflation.

[SilverEagle]

Good post....but lets be honest....You don't need a chart to realize how F'ed up our Education system in the country is.

[apeman]

The author's intent -- and my hope -- is that this chart is more effective than trying to explain the issue to a third party.

My question: does the chart succeed? Am I missing something?

[SuburbanFarmer]

Shows pretty clearly how bad the government inflation statistics are.

https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d09 ... 09_078.asp

Estimated average annual salary of teachers in public elementary and secondary schools: Selected years, 1959-60 through 2008-09

Average public school teachers' salary
School year Current dollars constant 2007-08 dollars2
1969-70 8,626 48,343
2008-09 53,910 53,168

Salaries haven't gone up much, according to their inflation metrics. Also, the costs of equipment, benefits, security, food, have all skyrocketed, with our much-higher standards for schools today. They barely served food, and most didn't bother with air conditioning in the 70s.

There's plenty of ways to twist this around, but I'd chalk it up to massive inefficiencies in the system, and a lot of government beaurocracy. Also, the chart format is incredibly misleading, unless you were expecting Reading scores to somehow rise by 200% and keep track with the other metrics on there.

[apeman]

Good post.

I am likely somewhat blinded by my priors on this issue because I so strongly believe our school system is a toxic dumpster fire, so it is helpful for me to folks to criticize the chart.

[SuburbanFarmer]

Good post.

I am likely somewhat blinded by my priors on this issue because I so strongly believe our school system is a toxic dumpster fire, so it is helpful for me to folks to criticize the chart.

The school system isn't great, but it's being used as a red herring to distract from many, many other issues. Same as unions were the Reason For Decline throughout the 90s. It's just the new boogyman to look at while the Corporate Masters rip our wallets out of our pockets.

[apeman]

Disagree strongly there, but no need to get into it.

[SuburbanFarmer]

Disagree strongly there, but no need to get into it.

Well, that's what this place is for. Lay it on me, man.

I don't see an alternative - defunding public schools certainly isn't going to help anything.

[apeman]

The whole red herring argument holds no water, education is extremely important, and the system is terrible. This should be a very top priority.

How many high school grads do you know that can't do basic math, do not even know what abstract thinking is, can barely read and find reading so laborious that they won't even try, and have absolutely no sense of even recent history?

In the worst performing inner city schools, and entire generation of kids have gone through the system with no tangible skills whatsoever.

[SuburbanFarmer]

The whole red herring argument holds no water, education is extremely important, and the system is terrible. This should be a very top priority.

How many high school grads do you know that can't do basic math, do not even know what abstract thinking is, can barely read and find reading so laborious that they won't even try, and have absolutely no sense of even recent history?

In the worst performing inner city schools, and entire generation of kids have gone through the system with no tangible skills whatsoever.

Totally agree. But you appeared to be making the argument that we should lower funding for the education system, rather than increase or maintain...

The red herring I was referring to was Republitards proposing to abolish the Dept. of Education, or defund schools. Media blaming 'fatcat' overpaid teachers, etc.. There are solutions, but it is always presented as if it should be handled with a sweeping funding change somehow.