[Vision2020] One Way to Save the State Lots and Lots of Money

Wayne Price bear at moscow.com
Wed Feb 17 17:52:36 PST 2010


While I understand the initial knee-jerk reaction is that this is bad,  
maybe it's not.
The high flyers in the 11th grade wouldn't be held back, and the less  
than sharp students would require
extra work, which will spawn jobs as tutors and "crammers" as utilized  
in the UK, creating a cottge
industry.

The over all tax payers will save money, and while there will be fewer  
students in our high schools,
they will be better students. The parents of those that are less than  
brilliant, will hire tutors for those
that the system leaves behind, and those students will make excellent  
students if they get accepted
into colleges.

And this way, while the "state" is providing a basic level of  
education, the parents and or students that
wish to take advantage of additional tutoring  will bear the cost  
rather than the public.









On Feb 17, 2010, at 4:15 PM, Glenn Schwaller wrote:

> I found it quite interesting the editorial in the MPDN addressing this
> issue ran juxtaposed to an op-ed article on how incoming freshmen are
> so poorly prepared for the rigors of a university education.  Imagine
> having to teach remedial math, English and reading to high school
> graduates under the current circumstances.  And someone wants to
> fast-track them!
>
> GS
>
> On Wed, Feb 17, 2010 at 3:05 PM, Tom Hansen <thansen at moscow.com>  
> wrote:
>> Oh, yeah.  This'll work.
>>
>> Courtesy of Associated Content at:
>>
>> http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/2708945/utah_senator_proposes_eliminating_12th.html
>>
>> ------------------------------------------------------------------
>>
>> Utah Senator Proposes Eliminating 12th Grade
>> Get Rid of 12th Grade in Utah to Save Money, Says Senator
>> By McCarvel
>>
>> Utah State Sen. Chris Buttars on February 1st appeared before the  
>> Public
>> Education Appropriations Subcommittee and suggested that Utah schools
>> eliminate the twelfth grade and get rid of busing for high school  
>> students
>> to save $60 million. He said this grade was a waste of time for most
>> students and that many squander away this year, which costs the state
>> millions of dollars.
>>
>> However, concerned educators said this idea would wreak havoc on  
>> college
>> admissions and will create substandard education. Strenuous  
>> objections
>> from parents and teachers caused Buttars to back off somewhat and  
>> change
>> his proposal to making the senior year optional.
>>
>> My child is in the 10th grade at a High School in St. George, Utah.  
>> My
>> three other children have already graduated. As a parent, I believe  
>> kids
>> are not fully matured at 17 years old and need the senior year to  
>> allow
>> them more life experience. I want them to have the wonderful  
>> experiences
>> of "senior year." It is a noble goal for them to achieve.
>>
>> Without senior year, many would be left to do nothing. The job  
>> market in
>> southern Utah is in a desperate situation and certainly adding  
>> thousands
>> of 17 years olds would not help the quality of life here for either  
>> the
>> child or the community. What does a 17 year old do without school  
>> or a
>> job? Frankly, many kids are not academically prepared well at  
>> junior year
>> and that would negatively affect the colleges in Utah.
>>
>> According to the Salt Lake Tribune (www.sltrib.com), Utah has a $700
>> million budget shortfall, so $60 million is a significant cut.  
>> However,
>> most parents will agree with teachers who say this grade is  
>> important to
>> the development of the student. We are preparing them to enter the  
>> world
>> in this grade. I have seen my own children sense that they are  
>> reaching a
>> major goal in their life when completing the 12th grade and  
>> graduating
>> from high school. Just because the state of Utah faces a budget  
>> crisis in
>> education which every state has for the last 30 years, it is no  
>> reason to
>> create an unemployment crisis and make Utah kids miss out on crucial
>> instruction that they need for college admission. According to the  
>> Utah
>> Board of Education (www.usoe.k12.ut.us) it makes no sense to make  
>> students
>> less prepared for college than they are already. Sen. Buttars  
>> proposal has
>> caused a firestorm of attention from parents, teachers and students  
>> almost
>> all of whom are against his plan. It would appear that the media  
>> frenzy
>> over his suggestion would indicate it is not likely to get much  
>> support
>> from those involved with this issue.
>>
>> ------------------------------------------------------------------
>>
>> Seeya round town, Moscow.
>>
>> Tom Hansen
>> Moscow, Idaho
>>
>> "The Pessimist complains about the wind, the Optimist expects it to  
>> change
>> and the Realist adjusts his sails."
>>
>> - Unknown
>>
>>
>>
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