Archive for the ‘education priorities’ Category
What is being taught? What is being learned?
April 21st, 2008
Students at Medina Valley High School in Castroville say more of them spent the day in in-school suspension than in class because they chose to wear the color green to school after being told not to.
So now we know what’s important to students and that the school administration is more than capable of making a mountain out of a molehill.
“I wore green because they told me, ‘well, you can’t wear green’ and seeing as how wearing green is not against the rules, I’m gonna do it just to make you mad,” Holloway said.
Some suggested links for the students and administration:
Because it will improve academics
September 18th, 2007
Still, while the vote is a merely a first step, it is a significant first step, one that could have ramifications beyond the football field.
Academics represent the foundation of a university, but athletic programs add prestige, and prestige, in turn, enhances academics, creating a positive, vibrant cycle.
Football programs also help attract students from beyond the area, a phenomenon that could help UTSA grow from a commuter school to a higher tier university.
Yup, all those kids want to get into Rice because of its football team. And everyone knows what the football team has done for Harvard’s prestige and it’s ability to attract students from across the country.
Certainly a football team can help strengthen the sense of community among the student body. That, in of itself, is a good thing. But as far as growing into a “higher tier university,” the students could have taken the same money and spent it on National Merit Scholars and really reached a higher tier in the ways that matter.
But no one pays to watch National Merit Scholars work, do they? If a school wants a football team, fine. Just spare us the academic justifications for the program. Oh wait, I forget, we’re in Texas. Never mind.
Technorati Tags: UTSA, football, athletic fee, University of Texas at San Antonio
Education priorities in Texas
August 10th, 2007
New state law bolsters use of Bibles in classrooms
But if just 15 students at any school request such a course, according to the new law, the district must find a way to offer an elective focusing on the Bible’s historic or literary value, said state Rep. Wayne Christian, who co-wrote the bill.
Too bad students can’t get together to request other classes. Actually, they can make the request, the district just doesn’t have to do anything about it. If 15 students ask for an AP Biology class, the district can ignore it. If they ask for a Latin class, the district can dismiss them. If they ask for a computer coding class, the district can claim they don’t have the resources. But if they ask for a Bible class (does it specify the version?) the district has to provide it. How’s that for education priorities in Texas? Maybe the students can just pray for the other classes.
Technorati Tags: Bible classes, Texas, public schools, Wayne Christian
Schools–education and so much more
August 4th, 2007
Another example of education not being the only concern of public schools:
Mexia Daily News - District pulls 4-day school week proposal
The Lancaster school board voted 5-1 last month to allow Lewis to seek a waiver exempting the district from the required 180-day school calendar. Under the proposal, the 6,000-student district south of Dallas would have longer days Monday through Thursday and Fridays off.
Supporters say the short week would boost academics by allowing longer uninterrupted stretches of class time and save money as the district deals with a funding deficit.
Critics have protested the idea over concerns about the cost of child care on Fridays and unsupervised students getting into trouble.
It’s an interesting cost benefit issue. The schools could save money and (theoretically) improve academics by switching to a shorter week. That would seem to meet the generally stated goals of public education.
But the argument against is that it will cost parents in day care and the possibly the community in general with increased youth crime. So shouldn’t the voters of the Lancaster district be willing to spend (you know, tax themselves) to address this social issue? It looks like it’s going to cost them either way, so why not send the money to education?
Too bad they don’t have some critical tourist industry that needs to operate on Fridays using student labor–the Lancaster board probably wouldn’t have ever been sent the 15 questions from TEA to begin with.
Technorati Tags: 4 day school week, Lancaster school district, Larry Lewis, Robert Scott, TEA, Lancaster Council of PTAs
