Stupid In America

[_random_]

Please be trolling.

Sometimes I suspect Mr. Cooper really is the only sane man in a world gone mad. I mean, he's on the unconventional side of the sanity fence for sure.

I am aware of charter schools that actually do something kinda similar to that. I dated a girl that taught at one for a while.

How'd that work out for them? And in general, what do you think of the complaint that unions make it too difficult to fire people who really oughtn't teach?

 

[downtown]

How'd that work out for them? And in general, what do you think of the complaint that unions make it too difficult to fire people who really oughtn't teach?

Shaming people into success works for some, not for others. The school was contemplating changing their policy around the time when we broke up, but now I don't talk to her so I don't really care what's happening at the school haha.

I am somewhat sympathetic to the argument (teacher's unions have traditionally made firing a teacher really hard), but the idea that unions are the primary cause of our educational problems is total garbage.

 

[peter grimes]

How'd that work out for them? And in general, what do you think of the complaint that unions make it too difficult to fire people who really oughtn't teach?

Unless and until it can be shown that union legacy rules are the major contributing factor to poor student performance this idea os unfireable bad teachers should be treated as the bullsht it is. For this hypothesis to hold any water at all we need to assume that a structural majority or teachers - who have been professionals in their field for decades - have given up and stopped doing what they love.

Very hard to belie ve

 

[Cutlass]

Exactly, partisanism is only OK if your a Democrat!

There aren't any journalists that are partisan Democrats.

 

[Leoreth]

We should go back to that. Kids ought to be issued uniforms based on GPA. Let them wear their shame. Also, when addressing higher rated kids, the muppets should have to say sir.

I suggest blue, dark green, light green and orange for the uniforms.

 

[Cryptic_Snow]

The "best" of Stossel is partisan hackery at it's worst. The man isn't a journalist at all.

How is Stossel partisan? He openly criticizes republicans and all politicians in general.
Stossel attacks collectivism in all forms, and both parties are beholden to it.

 

[CELTICEMPIRE]

There aren't any journalists that are partisan Democrats.

That's laughable.

 

[jtb1127]

When I was going through the system they simply separated the kids who wanted to learn and displayed some sense of purpose from those who just didn't give a darn. That worked better.

That's what they do with advanced/intensified or IB and AP classes. I'd bet most schools already have that so it's clearly not the best of ideas.

 

[Cutlass]

How is Stossel partisan? He openly criticizes republicans and all politicians in general.
Stossel attacks collectivism in all forms, and both parties are beholden to it.

Stossel lies through his teeth to push a a radical agenda.

 

[Bamspeedy]

Statewise, the worst US public schools are concentrated in the South, which has the weakest teacher unionization.

They would be at the bottom whether they had a strong union or not.

As a son of Iowa, I’m no stranger to bragging about my home state’s ranking on various standardized test. Like Wisconsin we Iowans usually rank near the top of the heap on average ACT/SAT scores. We are usually joined there by Minnesota, Nebraska, and the various Dakotas; Vermont, Maine, New Hampshire…

… beginning to see a pattern? Perhaps because a state’s “average ACT/SAT” is, for all intents and purposes, a proxy for the percent of white people who live there. In fact, the lion’s share of state-to-state variance in test scores is accounted for by differences in ethnic composition. Minority students — regardless of state residence — tend to score lower than white students on standardized test, and the higher the proportion of minority students in a state the lower its overall test scores tend to be.

Please note: this has nothing to do with innate ability or aptitude. Quite to the contrary, I believe the test gap between minority students and white students can be attributed to differences in socioeconomic status. And poverty. And yes, racism. And yes, family structure. Whatever combination of reasons, the gap exists, and it’s mathematical sophistry to compare the combined average test scores in a state like Wisconsin (4% black, 4% Hispanic) with a state like Texas (12% black, 30% Hispanic).

http://blogs.ajc.com/kyle-wingfield/2011/03/03/do-unionized-teachers-really-produce-better-results/

 

[Terxpahseyton]

How is Stossel partisan?

Hm...

Stossel attacks collectivism in all forms,

There you go.

 

[Borachio]

Sometimes I suspect Mr. Cooper really is the only sane man in a world gone mad. I mean, he's on the unconventional side of the sanity fence for sure.

I find myself very fond of Mr. Cooper.

I'm not really sure why.

I would miss him, if he went.

 

[Ayatollah So]

What a good name for that video.

And who but John Stossel to bring us the stupid? Meanwhile, back in reality:

Some schools are having a difficult time educating children – particularly children who are impoverished, speak a language other than English, move frequently or arrive at the school door neglected, abused or chronically ill. But many pieces of this complex mosaic are quite positive. First data point: American elementary and middle school students have improved their performance on the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study every four years since the tests began in 1995; they are above the international average in all categories and within a few percentage points of the global leaders (something that few news reports mention).

But hey, No Child Left a Dime defined a category of "failing schools" to be measured by test scores. So, suddenly we have an outbreak of schools being classified as failing! That must mean that educational achievement is actually declining!

What's wrong with this picture? John Stossel is in it, that's what.

 

[Terxpahseyton]

I would miss him, if he went.

He is a right wing nut (sort of at least, don't mean to degrade, just using existing categorizing), but not the kind that just bores the hell out of you. OT needs that I think.

But not that I have actually read much in recent times.

 

[Core Imposter]

Why is my name being bandied about in this particular thread?

Who is the Core Imposter?

 

[Borachio]

http://www.chugcore.org/2011/06/burnt-at-stake-illustrations-of.html
Google "Core Imposter" for some very interesting results.

Is this what you mean?

 

[downtown]

They would be at the bottom whether they had a strong union or not.

That's mostly true. The biggest problems are those related to poverty, family structure, and racism. The current call against unions is a political stunt to destabilize a major Democratic leading constituency in state politics.

 

[gangleri2001]

High school student here, I have to say I'm pretty satisfied the system

High school student here. I have to say I'm pretty satisfied with the system.

 

[Borachio]

Me, too. I'm satisfied with the system, by the system, and through the system.

(I think Abraham Lincoln said that.)

 

[wabatt]

I really hope you are just gently trolling us there with the grammar and punctuation errors...

Opps looks like I accidentally a word.

The purpose of school is not to out preform the Chinese on standardized tests and years of math. Education, should prepare for a person joining the work force, and developing fundamental social and living skills. The current assessments of school performance are taking their numbers from the wrong place. And as for separating classes based on GPA, I find the worship of intelligence abhorrent, smart people are not always better people. They think too much for their own good.

I'll assume you go to MWHS.

Ah gods no, definitely not Maggie Walker.
Edit: I'm flattered though.