>>My comments about the "level playing field" are more aimed at those >>school systems that take away scores from games, adjust >>scoring methods so that everyone passes and hold competitions where
>>everyone involved gets a ribbon. There are some cases where there >>has to be a looser. > > Sidestepping the issue then. > I'm not sure what you mean by this... >>Without a doubt the military is getting more technically >>advanced. At >>the same time there are some core values, including respect for >>authority, attention to detail and concentration under >>pressure that you >>can't teach in a classroom. I also don't think that the >>military is the answer for every case. > > Blind obedience to orders is always nice. Discouragement of independent > thought, lack of critical thinking skills, or training in logic is right up > there too. > > Pardon I'm being a bit extreme there. I have nothing against the military. I > think it would be a very good option for many people. However the place of > the military is to defend the country from outside aggessors, not educate > kids. To finish your sentence "I think it would be a very good option for many people ... but not myself". I spent 4 years in the military and because of my time in service I now have a degree in Electronics, a house, and a healhy respect for the country that I live in. Military service is what you take away from it. I got pretty bitter with the whole process until I took the time to talk with some friendly officers. There is a reason why the Chain of Command works. There is a reason why tradition, customs and protocols are kept for centuries. Unfortunately, that's a whole different line of conversation. My point is that if you take someone that has grown up with no care to personal obligation and very few responsibilities and throw them out into the real real world, they're going to take some bumps and bruieses. It is how they deal with life after failing that shows the true character of a person. My opinion is that military or public service of some kind (which I said before) helps to teach things that people need in real life. > What money. Yes if you come from a rich school district, you have money > thrown at you. Remember the primary source of funding is at the local level. > You come from a poor district and you do not have a lot to spend on things. > In the schools I saw, they were nearly breaking the budget on basic > supplies. Many of the schools counted themselves lucky if the plumbing > worked. This is the stuff that "throwing money at" could actually make a > difference. Poor schools without any money can only pay for poor teachers. Maybe in Virginia the education system is set up that way. Around here the Buffalo schools are getting tons of money from Albany (state) and DC. Buffalo's tax base is shrinking, has been shrinking and is now to the point where there are some people that think they should let the city disincorperate. Unfortunately, the school board and teacher's unions are both focused on the dollar signs. They threw enough of a fit that local politicians went to Albany begging for more money three times. They finally got what they wanted, even though the State has enough financial woes. All this sends the message to students that if they don't get what they want, whine complain and beg until they do. Great lessons... Hatton ______________________________________________________________________ Get the mailserver that powers this list at http://www.coolfusion.com Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/index.cfm?sidebar=lists
