[Vision2020] Idaho Public Schools 15-year Trends

[Donovan Arnold]

Visioneers,

Thinking that if we strip our schools of teachers won't effect the quality 
of the education a child is receiving is just fooling oneself so they can 
sleep at night instead of realizing that they are screwing children out of 
an education that the generation before them worked and slaved over to give 
them when they were children in the public school system.

Would it not be great if people thought, "How can I selflessly help my 
community" Rather then "How can I come up a with a graph, chart, or 
statistic I can use to justify my lack of sacrificing for others and spend 
more time, energy, and wealth, on myself"

Donovan Arnold


>From: "Dale Courtney" <dale@courtneys.us>
>To: <vision2020@moscow.com>
>Subject: [Vision2020] Idaho Public Schools 15-year Trends
>Date: Wed, 7 May 2003 20:11:15 -0700
>
>Jessica Lipschultz wrote:
>
> > The Winter 2003 Idaho Reading Indicator test results reveal
> > that 29% of third-grade students in the Moscow School
> > District and 38% of third-grade students in the state read
> > below grade level.
>
>David, Jessica, Matt, and Natalie:
>I applaud your desire to better the state of reading for our children.
>
> > We are in the midst of a crisis. A concerned group of
> > students at the University of Idaho has decided to take
> > action. We refuse to stand by idly when children are lost
> > every day because our elected representatives have not made
> > education a priority.
>
>At this point, I was hoping that you all would say that you were going to
>volunteer your time in the classrooms; that you were going to "adopt" a
>child to help him/her read better; that you were going to become a 
>teacher's
>aid.
>
> > Over 600 students, staff, and faculty
> > have signed postcards to Governor Kempthorne, Representative
> > Trail, Representative Ringo, and Senator Schroeder. We are
> > tired of hearing empty promises. Please join your voice with
> > ours and demand that more funds be allocated for education.
>
>I would remind you that throwing money at the problem has done nothing to
>solve the problem. In fact, there is an inverse relationship between
>inflation-adjusted spending and test scores (see the chart below for the
>state of Idaho).  If you really think that increased funding is the driver,
>then logically you would call for decreased funding (since increasing the
>funding has only driven down test scores).
>
>Your solution to the problem is exacerbated in Moscow, where the number of
>children in school has been decreasing precipitously  (420 students in 7
>years; a 15.4% decrease in the number of students). In Moscow, the teacher
>to student ratio continues to climb; the funding continues to increase;  
>yet
>the test scores continue to decline.
>
>If you really care, and if you really want to help the children learn to
>read, then throwing money at the problem will not fix the problem. You need
>to think out of the box and try something completely different. Throwing
>money at a failed model will not fix the problem.
>
>Best,
>Dale Courtney
>Moscow, Idaho
>
>  Idaho Public Schools 15-Year Trends
><http://courtney.dns2go.com/msd/Trends_files/Roberts1_15189_image001.gif>

_________________________________________________________________
Help STOP SPAM with the new MSN 8 and get 2 months FREE*  
http://join.msn.com/?page=features/junkmail