Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Race to the Bottom

One of the most commonly agreed upon elements in academic success for k-12 students in class size. Smaller classes lead to better outcomes for students for a number of reasons. Among these is the ability of teachers to get to know their students, work with them individually and offer extra help to those in need. Smaller classes also allow for more skill level variation and even better planning of heterogenous groupings. Smaller classes often allow good teachers to create "communities of learning" where students and teachers work collectively to ensure success for all. Fewer students fall through the cracks. Yet cash strapped cities and states continue to cut funding to schools, and recently have instituted major layoffs in most major metropolitan areas in the U.S. What is the cost? The future of too many children and ultimately the ability of these students and the country as a whole to compete in the global economy. We are essentially holding our future hostage to the interests of corporations and a party that never saw a progressive tax they didn't want to reduce and flatten. Can we as a society really afford to allow this trend to continue? Can we allow the continued dumbing down of America, exacerbated by popular culture and its celebration of stupidity? Can we really throw away the future of so many children? As Congress continues to be bogged down in a disfunctional abyss, the calls for increased funding for education to states goes largely unheeded: http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2010-07-12-duncan-school-funding_N.htm. One wonders how long bad policy will continue to dominate educational policy, and at what cost.                                           

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