Re: 2224 Public school "extras"
Luz Shosie and Ned Vare
on 8/10/02 9:25 AM, [email protected] at
[email protected] wrote:
Sandra wrote:
In an effort to end the flame fanning, I asked Sandra not to respond to my
posts. She can't resist. Now she wants us all to think I don't know what I'm
talking about because she guesses I was never in band. She seems to need me.
What does being in band have to do with knowing how schools scam us? It
doesn't. Band instruments was merely an example. Next time, it'll be shoes
for the bowling team.
The public school mentality is Entitlement. Everyone is entitled to spend
other people's money for every need they can imagine.
In my town, about 85% of the school budget pays for employees salaries and
benefits.
The budget pays for one employee for every six students. Are none of those
"extras"? There are at least twice as many employees in my town's public
schools as are needed, making them cost more than twice what the average
private school charges in tuition. Extras, like "deans," lunchroom monitors,
police in the corridors, special ed for fifteen percent of the children
mostly because they weren't taught to read.
How 'bout psychological profilers and other mind-snoopers? How bout
psychological testing that schools pay bundles for (to the Lutheran Church
think tank called The Search Institute, in Minneapolis) and don't tell
parents about until after they're administered and keep the purpose and the
results secret. How bout all the standardized testing that's done, often
against parents's wishes. Those few examples are "extras" that the schools
provide within the bloated budgets. If only ONE unnecessary employee were
eliminated, out of dozens of them that should, or one unnecessary set of
tests, there would be money to burn for "extras."
But, since Sandra missed my point, the children plying the streets for money
is not really for money -- schools already have far too much -- it's to keep
the entire community FEELING that the schools need more. It's PR,
"See, we absolutely have to send your children out into the neighborhoods
door to door begging because YOU taxpayers don't give us enough. Sending the
children into the streets, endangering them, forcing them to beg from
strangers, is stricly a public relations scam. The kids are used.
A few years back, my town's voters went to the polls to vote on whether or
not to accept the school budget for the next year. The town knew that the
budget was inflated as usual, and they voted it down. The superintendent's
response was not to eliminate the fluff in the spending, but instead, he
chose to eliminate the band for the following year. It eliminated ONE
salary, a pittance compared to the entire cut that was made and finally
accepted. But the effect was to make the cuts hurt the children who loved
playing music, and the whole town who enjoyed the playing of the band at
games and in the annual parade. The measure could only be described as a
mean trick by the superintendent because it forced him to accept a more
appropriate amount of money to run the schools.
The long term effect was to hold the town hostage to his budgets ever since.
No one dares to challenge anything about school funding for fear that it
will be taken out on the kids. The system works well. Coercion is a great
tool when you have the power to use it.
Ned Vare
Unschooling is everything that school isn't.
All we need to do is make a list of what schools do, and do the opposite.
[email protected] wrote:
Sandra wrote:
> Ned, I'm guessing you were never in band.Ned responds:
>
> <<They run one scam after
> another keeping the ball rolling for school employees.>>
>
> The fundraising money goes to extras, and you KNOW that, but you will use
> anything, won't you, to fuel the fire people have asked you to stop flaming
> here?
In an effort to end the flame fanning, I asked Sandra not to respond to my
posts. She can't resist. Now she wants us all to think I don't know what I'm
talking about because she guesses I was never in band. She seems to need me.
What does being in band have to do with knowing how schools scam us? It
doesn't. Band instruments was merely an example. Next time, it'll be shoes
for the bowling team.
The public school mentality is Entitlement. Everyone is entitled to spend
other people's money for every need they can imagine.
In my town, about 85% of the school budget pays for employees salaries and
benefits.
The budget pays for one employee for every six students. Are none of those
"extras"? There are at least twice as many employees in my town's public
schools as are needed, making them cost more than twice what the average
private school charges in tuition. Extras, like "deans," lunchroom monitors,
police in the corridors, special ed for fifteen percent of the children
mostly because they weren't taught to read.
How 'bout psychological profilers and other mind-snoopers? How bout
psychological testing that schools pay bundles for (to the Lutheran Church
think tank called The Search Institute, in Minneapolis) and don't tell
parents about until after they're administered and keep the purpose and the
results secret. How bout all the standardized testing that's done, often
against parents's wishes. Those few examples are "extras" that the schools
provide within the bloated budgets. If only ONE unnecessary employee were
eliminated, out of dozens of them that should, or one unnecessary set of
tests, there would be money to burn for "extras."
But, since Sandra missed my point, the children plying the streets for money
is not really for money -- schools already have far too much -- it's to keep
the entire community FEELING that the schools need more. It's PR,
"See, we absolutely have to send your children out into the neighborhoods
door to door begging because YOU taxpayers don't give us enough. Sending the
children into the streets, endangering them, forcing them to beg from
strangers, is stricly a public relations scam. The kids are used.
A few years back, my town's voters went to the polls to vote on whether or
not to accept the school budget for the next year. The town knew that the
budget was inflated as usual, and they voted it down. The superintendent's
response was not to eliminate the fluff in the spending, but instead, he
chose to eliminate the band for the following year. It eliminated ONE
salary, a pittance compared to the entire cut that was made and finally
accepted. But the effect was to make the cuts hurt the children who loved
playing music, and the whole town who enjoyed the playing of the band at
games and in the annual parade. The measure could only be described as a
mean trick by the superintendent because it forced him to accept a more
appropriate amount of money to run the schools.
The long term effect was to hold the town hostage to his budgets ever since.
No one dares to challenge anything about school funding for fear that it
will be taken out on the kids. The system works well. Coercion is a great
tool when you have the power to use it.
Ned Vare
Unschooling is everything that school isn't.
All we need to do is make a list of what schools do, and do the opposite.
[email protected]
SO Ned,
What do you want US to do?
Almost everyone here has already pulled their child out of schools, And
since we are attempting to spend most of our time creating a joyous swirly
sort of unschooling existance with our precious boys and girls (many of whom
are still young and cant be left home alone) we may not have time to storm
the enemy's castle.
You keep pointing out what is wrong with the schools, yet most of us already
KNOW there is something drastically wrong and that's why we are *here*.
I personally feel that by removing my children, I am making a HUGE statement
to the schools. But I think you may expect more.
So, like I said, What *would* you like us to do? (Because after all our
beautiful babies to grow up)
~Elissa Cleaveland
"It is nothing short of a miracle that the modern methods of instruction
have
not yet entirely strangled the holy curiosity of inquiry." A. Einstein
What do you want US to do?
Almost everyone here has already pulled their child out of schools, And
since we are attempting to spend most of our time creating a joyous swirly
sort of unschooling existance with our precious boys and girls (many of whom
are still young and cant be left home alone) we may not have time to storm
the enemy's castle.
You keep pointing out what is wrong with the schools, yet most of us already
KNOW there is something drastically wrong and that's why we are *here*.
I personally feel that by removing my children, I am making a HUGE statement
to the schools. But I think you may expect more.
So, like I said, What *would* you like us to do? (Because after all our
beautiful babies to grow up)
~Elissa Cleaveland
"It is nothing short of a miracle that the modern methods of instruction
have
not yet entirely strangled the holy curiosity of inquiry." A. Einstein
[email protected]
(Because after all our
beautiful babies to grow up)
DO! Do grow up!
~Elissa Cleaveland
"It is nothing short of a miracle that the modern methods of instruction
have
not yet entirely strangled the holy curiosity of inquiry." A. Einstein
beautiful babies to grow up)
DO! Do grow up!
~Elissa Cleaveland
"It is nothing short of a miracle that the modern methods of instruction
have
not yet entirely strangled the holy curiosity of inquiry." A. Einstein
zenmomma *
>>Ned responds:Ned, please, stop. Please.
>In an effort to end the flame fanning, I asked Sandra not to respond to my
>posts. She can't resist.>>
Many, many folks here including the moderator and list owner have asked you
(very politely I might add) to take this political propaganda elsewhere.
Please.
~Mary
_________________________________________________________________
Send and receive Hotmail on your mobile device: http://mobile.msn.com