Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!ncrlnk!ncr-sd!hp-sdd!hplabs!hpl-opus!hpccc!hp-ses!hpcuhb!hpda!hpcuhc!kenny
From: kenny@hpcuhc.HP.COM (Kenneth Lee)
Newsgroups: comp.edu
Subject: Re: RE: Are Americans Intellectually Inferior?
Message-ID: <1280001@hpcuhc.HP.COM>
Date: 18 Jan 89 02:05:15 GMT
References: <14.UUL1.3#913@acw.UUCP>
Organization: Hewlett Packard, Cupertino
Lines: 22

/ hpcuhc:comp.edu / johnm@uts.amdahl.com (John Murray) /  7:00 pm  Jan 16, 1989 /
In article <14.UUL1.3#913@acw.UUCP>, scott@acw.UUCP (Scott Guthery) writes:
> Bret Jolly wonders if Americans are intellectually inferior.  The
> answer is a resounding "Really!" ... translation: Yes.  This
> is first and foremost a result of being subjected to a public
> education system that is run solely for the benefit of the unions
> that control it.

If unions and public schools are to blame, then how come kids in other
countries seem to be smarter? The US isn't the only nation with public
schools and teachers' unions. Indeed, in some countries, private schools
tend to turn out lesser quality students than the public system; they're
regarded as academies for rich thick kids. Why blame teachers and unions
for a system which allows kids to leave school without sitting some
standard national or state-wide exams? If every local school district gets
to set its own curriculum and rules, then of course some kids are going
to be short-changed. No school or teacher wants to seem incompetent, and
hance they'll "grade on a curve", so to speak. Centralize the curriculum,
exams, grading, and so on, and then see who's good and bad.

- John Murray (My own opinions, etc.)
----------