The deliberate dumbing down of America...

[Insein]

America's education system is a joke. Compared to that of even the most remedial of third world countries, America's public education system has the efficiency of 2 high school parking lot attendents clearing a Wal-Mart parking on a weekend while high. There is no leadership, no direction, no accountability, no punishment. There is only endless circles of beuracracy piled on top of indifference.

Now for many years, I simply felt that this was due to incompetent leaders being in charge of this institutions. I always felt that if a business mind would be allowed to run the "business" ened of a school system, then it would improve productivity. Then it began to dawn on me that the reason business minds do not run school systems is deliberate. Idiots run school systems because they are chosen to run this facilities into the ground. Principals and Superintendents do not back up their teachers with unruly students. Curriculum guides are so convuluted and pointless that even if a student figured them out, they would be learning nothing. Endless standardized tests wear students down to the point that they just don't care what they get anymore.

With teachers afraid to discipline students for fear of not having any judgement placed on the offender there by underminding their power, they have become prisoners in their own classrooms. The inmates run the asylums. Students are passed on to the next grade because they do not want to be dealt with again despite their inability to grasp the fundamentals of that grade level.

My wife is a teacher. She works with low income students. Just a sampling of what she deals with on a daily basis includes students that routinely mouth off and leave the classroom only to have an incompetant guidance counselor say that they are "dealing with stuff at home and need some time to cope." Combine that with a principal that treats said students like a buddy that they would hang out with after work and you create a child that knows they don't have to do anything and can make the teacher's life hell.

Some other tidbits she has seen. A student that reads on a kindergarten level in 6th grade was recently moved to 7th grade (in april) because the administration "didn't want to deal with them." Next year they will move on to 8th grade. The student reads at a kindergarten level and is graduating to 8th grade. How will this person become a productive member of society.

My thoughts are so jumbled and random right now and I wish I organized them better but my whole thought process on this is that the American Education system is not merely incompetent. It has deliberately been setup to fail in order to breed morons that can be controlled by the government.

[n0spam4me]

The school system is truly a joke.
I dropped out of high school in the '60s
and ya, it was a mess then also.

There is a legal term, "by accedent or design..."
that is used to point to the end result of some action,
that is the fact that kids are NOT getting an education in USEFUL INFORMATION THAT THEY CAN USE, and not that it doesn't matter if the people running the schools have intended this result, or they are incompetent, given the result, they are still at fault.

I have noticed a rise in awareness in homeschooling and private schools.

This is a good thing, & I hope its not too little too late.
oh well....

There is another feature of the whole scene, and that is the ownership of the media, kids grow-up these days watching a LOT of TV and the media does a lot toward shaping their world view.

I look at what the "GOV" has gotten away with even in the last 8 years and all I can say is ... THE EMPEROR IS NAKED!

WHY do people continue to NOT see or not recognize what they are seeing when they see it?

Some of the education responsiblilty is on the PARENTS, I heard from one parent recently who was very proud that his 8 year-old (who is attending public school .. btw...) could recite the entire Declaration of Independence.
Groovie! Some PARENTS care and do some instruction to suplement the Public School work.

[glockmail]

My grandfather graduated from the 8th grade back when High School was the privileged of very few. He was one of the most well spoken men that I have ever known. He started work when he as 13 and kept at it until he was 82, and never had a problem keeping up with the technology of his chosen career: manufacturing chocolate.

The dumbing down of America is entirely intentional, and related to the socialist movement under the Affirmative Action President that we are seeing today. Dumb students make dumb adults who vote Democrat.

My grandfather was a Republican until the day he died and never worked for a union. He hated the unions and saw then for what they were.

[Agnapostate]

The dumbing down of America is entirely intentional, and related to the socialist movement under the Affirmative Action President that we are seeing today. Dumb students make dumb adults who vote Democrat.

Referring to the policies of the current president as "socialist" is an inaccurate distortion of political economy. That being said, my opinion is that reference to political economy may actually have some relevance to this topic.

My own view is that modern schooling functions as an instrument of oppression due to its compulsory, hierarchical, and authoritarian nature. Numerous theoreticians of the most diverse political perspectives are united on this fact.

For instance, we might consider the perspective of socialists Bowles and Gintis in Schooling in Capitalist America: Educational Reform and the Contradictions of Economic Life, in which they argue that the hierarchical subordination of students inherent in schooling is designed to indoctrinate students so that they might conform to the hierarchical subordination of labor under capital later in life. The libertarian socialist (and indeed, the Marxist) is able to recognize the role of this form of hierarchical schooling in preparing students for the similarly hierarchical workplace and weakening the working class so that they may score few victories in class conflict.

If we are displeased with the perspective of socialists, we might consider the perspective of classical liberals. (Described as "libertarians" in modern American political circles.)

[Psychoblues]

Any cursory reading of these threads proves that the dumbing down has been going on for years. Some here promote it with vigor!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[April15]

My children had excellent education in the public system. All have very nice careers. None are republicans.

[Insein]

Any cursory reading of these threads proves that the dumbing down has been going on for years. Some here promote it with vigor!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The GOP,,,the party of fear and loathing,,,sad,,,,

:beer::cheers2::beer:

Psychoblues

Thank you for proving my point so well. By the way, those little pictures to the right are not actually words but I do know its hard for you to express yourself with that great public school education you got.

[Psychoblues]

Now,,,,ain't you a special one!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!




Thank you for proving my point so well. By the way, those little pictures to the right are not actually words but I do know its hard for you to express yourself with that great public school education you got.

The GOP,,,the party of fear and loathing,,,sad,,,,

:beer::cheers2::beer:

Psychoblues

[Insein]

My children had excellent education in the public system. All have very nice careers. None are republicans.

When did Republicans or democrats come up? This is about control. The activities that I speak of are all done within in urban settings. Students are set up to fail and become burdens on society. Actually succeeding is frowned upon by administration (not teachers mind you) because that would be one less mindless robot to manipulate.

Your immediate jump to "D vs R" shows the level of control they have over you as well. You are so focused on this ridiculous battle of Elephants vs donkeys that you don't see the puppet master pulling your strings and laughing while you dance to his tune. Defending one side of the battle over the other is a knee jerk reaction for you as they want it. Thinking for yourself and analyzing the situation doesn't really occur anymore. Republican = bad, Democrat = Good is all you were taught to respond.

So thank you for proving my point also.

[n0spam4me]

A! I agree that the silly contest between the Donkey and Elephant is
counter-productive.

I'm the guy who was thrown out of Chemistry for being a FREE RADICAL!

oh well...

How do you suggest that we wake up AMERICA to the fact that the
D vs R fiasco is BOGUS?

[Insein]

Not really sure. The media has such a large hold on our country and its easy to shape the minds of those who were taught not to think for themselves. A revamping of the public education system would be in order but they would have to let us do that. I doubt that the powers that be are simply going to let people change the idiot factory.

It would have to be grassroots to the core. Elect brand new officials across the board. The key is to get people in power who will pass term limits for senators and congressmen. Right now, those in power would never vote to limit their power despite the people wanting this. We need to get as many honest people in their as we can (D's, R's, I's, G's, whatever affiliation) and have them change that one thing to limit the power that these individuals can yield in the future. From there we may be able to retake control of our government.

[April15]

When did Republicans or democrats come up? This is about control. The activities that I speak of are all done within in urban settings. Students are set up to fail and become burdens on society. Actually succeeding is frowned upon by administration (not teachers mind you) because that would be one less mindless robot to manipulate.

Your immediate jump to "D vs R" shows the level of control they have over you as well. You are so focused on this ridiculous battle of Elephants vs donkeys that you don't see the puppet master pulling your strings and laughing while you dance to his tune. Defending one side of the battle over the other is a knee jerk reaction for you as they want it. Thinking for yourself and analyzing the situation doesn't really occur anymore. Republican = bad, Democrat = Good is all you were taught to respond.

So thank you for proving my point also.

Please read post # 3. I felt it imperative to rebuff this silly post. As to the puppet master; Glockmail is fully under his spell.
Now as to education. Public schools have had an influx of illegals or non english speaking and that has dumbed down much of the education system. The educators I know have said NCLB has exacerbated things. They spend so much time teaching for a test that many important subjects get pushed aside.

[April15]

A! I agree that the silly contest between the Donkey and Elephant is
counter-productive.

I'm the guy who was thrown out of Chemistry for being a FREE RADICAL!

oh well...

How do you suggest that we wake up AMERICA to the fact that the
D vs R fiasco is BOGUS?Perhaps when the r's wake up and admit what they have done. When they take raygoon off the pedestal.

[Kathianne]

Please read post # 3. I felt it imperative to rebuff this silly post. As to the puppet master; Glockmail is fully under his spell.
Now as to education. Public schools have had an influx of illegals or non english speaking and that has dumbed down much of the education system. The educators I know have said NCLB has exacerbated things. They spend so much time teaching for a test that many important subjects get pushed aside.

It's not the 'problem of teaching to the tests', the problem comes from the requirement that all students pass at a certain level. Public schools are required to 'teach' all students, some of whom are Down's, autistic to varying degrees, on respirators, etc. Then there are the schools where the students are predominately ESL. Then there are the 'rich' schools with perhaps a 1% or less poverty level enrollment. If a certain percent of that 1% fail to 'pass', the school goes on 'warning.' That is what the teachers are teaching to.

[April15]

Kathianne,
I am not a teacher so all I know is what I am told by friends who are. They are dismayed that they don't really educate anymore.

[Kathianne]

Kathianne,
I am not a teacher so all I know is what I am told by friends who are. They are dismayed that they don't really educate anymore.

Well I am and I do read about what the public schools are facing. It's wrong to set benchmarks that are not attainable. If they made allowances for handicapped-more than 'more time' or 'reading questions aloud', they could probably actually raise the bar and the teachers could just teach best methods. But alas, that is the government for you. Yes, I KNOW-Bush and Kennedy.

[Psychoblues]

kewl,,,,,,ain't it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!



Can I get anyone a refreshment?!?!?!?!??!?!?!??!

[n0spam4me]

Ya got any fat weasel Beer?

oh well.....

[Psychoblues]

Do you mean what I think you mean, n0spammy?!?!?!???!?!?!??!??!



Ya got any fat weasel Beer?

oh well.....

[glockmail]

My children had excellent education in the public system. All have very nice careers. None are republicans.The indoctrination went smoothly.

[n0spam4me]

"Do you mean what I think you mean, n0spammy?!?!?!???!?!?!??!??!"

What?

have you not heard of "FAT Weasel beer" or?

color me clueless.....

or?





anyhow ... the emperor is still NAKED!

[Trinity]

You can not leave the education of your child solely on the public school system. I guess you can if you want them taught how to take tests, and learn only what is on those tests.

I try to expose my children to learning situations and research things with them. That way if they have other questions, I can answer as we go or we can search for the answer.

I will say out of all the teachers my 13 year old has had, he absolutely loves his world history teacher this year. According to my son he says this guy treats us like adults and not little kid's. He teaches us stuff we need to know, but he also talks about other stuff and teaches things that aren't on the tests, but are related to world history. Williams words "Mr. Curtis ROCKS!"

I also teach my kid's critical thinking skills, to question everything and not just take what someone says and believe it is true. Ask Questions and research for answer's if need be.

I guess I taught him well. We had drawn up a contract with the boy's on the household rules and had put in it no cussing. William was heard cussing and was sent to his room for 10 minutes. While in his room he heard my husband cuss. When William came out he was all about that contract we all signed, and was debating it with my husband, on the legalities of him cussing and what was his punishment. My son said you signed the contract too so you need to be punished as well. My son was like where's that contract let me see it I am going to call a lawyer. He kept repeating you signed the contract too.

At this point I was laughing so hard. My husband was getting a little ticked off with a 13 year old debating with him. I had to say he does have a point it is in the contract.

I finally had to say look it does not specify in the contract the punishment for cussing, it is our discretion on what that will be. But I told him he was more then welcome to review the contract and make a list of what he thought was an acceptable form of punishment, for any of the rules that get broken, and we would review them with him. And then make a addendum with the punishments clearly stated.

He's still working on it. :coffee: