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From: campbell@maynard.UUCP (Larry Campbell)
Newsgroups: talk.politics.misc,net.kids
Subject: Re: Taxing Schools Etc. (paranoid educational establishment)
Message-ID: <345@maynard.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 12-Sep-86 18:27:47 EDT
Article-I.D.: maynard.345
Posted: Fri Sep 12 18:27:47 1986
Date-Received: Fri, 12-Sep-86 22:44:25 EDT
References: <3107@umcp-cs.UUCP> <2655@burdvax.UUCP> <3526@ism780c.UUCP>
Reply-To: campbell@maynard.UUCP (Larry Campbell)
Organization: The Boston Software Works Inc., Maynard, MA
Lines: 51
Xref: mnetor talk.politics.misc:57 net.kids:2782

In article <3526@ism780c.UUCP> geoff@ism780c.UUCP (Geoff Kimbrough) writes:

[starts with comments with which I agree, so they're not reproduced here]

>>                                       In New Jersey, Governor Kean has
>>said that a degree from a teacher's college is no longer needed to teach in
>>the state.  All one needs to show is a proficiency in the subject area and
>>an ability to communicate with young people and you can teach in NJ
>>schools.  ...

>	It sounds to me like Gov Kean is just lowering standards to
>	attract more teachers, instead of raising salaries or improving
>	working conditions.

Oh come on.  Education degrees are nearly worthless.  The school I went
to (UMass) is one of the better state universities.  All Education
courses were stricly pass/fail, and hardly anyone ever failed.
Education as a major was regarded as a four-year vacation.  Sure, some
bright people took Education because they *really wanted to teach*,
and some of them even survived the asinine course material.  But it's
crazy to deny intelligent, articulate people the opportunity to teach
simply because they didn't sit through four years of crap (three
years, after you subtract student teaching).  Interestingly, private
schools benefit from this stupidity because they're not constrained to
hiring certified mediocrities -- they're allowed to hire non-certified
but competent teachers.

This doesn't mean I oppose higher salaries.  I say raise salaries,
reduce political and union-induced obstacles to firing deadwood, and
eliminate this STUPID credentialism that needlessly excludes some of
the best teachers.

>>heads that they work for the parents and not for themselves nor the
>>teacher's unions.
>	No they don't!  They work for the students.  ...

Well, this is a nice thought, but naive.  Allow me to cynically point
out that the purpose of public schooling is not education, but
indoctrination.  Not that I agree with this.  I wish the purpose WERE
education.  But public schooling appeared in this country largely as a
means of insuring that the children of immigrants (1) spoke English,
and (2) were able to be employed in factories and other workplaces.

Sorry to pick on these points, because I agree with the rest of the
Geoff's article.  What we need is higher salaries, more administrative
autonomy, more teacher accountability, more reading and discipline at
home, and less TV.
-- 
Larry Campbell                             The Boston Software Works, Inc.
ARPA: campbell%maynard.uucp@harvard.ARPA   120 Fulton Street, Boston MA 02109
UUCP: {alliant,wjh12}!maynard!campbell     (617) 367-6846