EDUCATION AND IT’S BIGGEST PROBLEM

Basically education has two big glaring problems that have glared at the public and politicians ever since it started. What to teach children and how to pay for it. In the beginning of American Education families paid for their Children’s education. No doubt grades were better and there were fewer discipline problems. Later some communities passed taxes and made education compulsory. Later whole States began assuming the responsibility and passed statewide taxes in support of education. Then States began to set minimum courses to pass before a child could pass to the next higher grade and eventually graduate with a general education which prepared the graduate to take the next step which could be more formal training on the college level, trade school, business school or other training for a particular job or profession. College was available for those willing to work their way through school or could pay for it. The States financial support was a mixed bag. Here we will discuss in on the local Elementary and Secondary level. Louisiana at one time had a quality finance and subject requirement program. Other States came to visit Louisiana to see if they could copy it. Our program essentially split the cost. The local Boards through taxation provided the buildings, janitorial services, extra pay for coaches and Principals above teachers pay and the State paid for State required courses, text-books library books, State minimum teachers salaries, transportation and all other State requirements. A local school Board could pay for extra teacher salaries but must show this in their budget letter. As well as any other extras they were paying above the state requirement. The required courses were referred to as the Minimum Foundation Program of Studies or MFP for short and were paid for with an Equalization Formula. This meant that each student had the same amount of money spent for his or her education regardless of sex or race. Teacher salaries were all paid the same by the state regardless of sex or race. This stayed in place from 1948 until Governor Edwards came along and dismantled it to use as a method to get votes from the larger towns and cities which were of course getting less per child overall because it cost more to educate children that had to be transported long distances. Now the politicians don’t have the backbone to put the simple system back in or they just don’t want to. Maybe the new Governor will see the light and do something. A student educated in a poor parish might marry one from a rich parish.

One thing is for sure testing has never worked in moving children from one grade to the next. It might help a few where the professionals don’t take pride in student centered education but “leaving no child behind” has never considered the ones that should be moved ahead.

Another thing is the word education is not even in the constitution yet billions of dollars are mostly wasted on education in this Country each year. It is justified by “its for the common good of the people”. I say “hogwash”. The Social Progressive movement is using education to gradually gain control of the country through the educational system. They took a good lesson from old Adolph Hitler.