Public Education Standards

Federal Involvement In Education Since 1953 Under Threat Of Termination!

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The United States federal government never came around to realizing the significance of a federal engagement in promotion of education to all of our children and adults alike, until the administration of Dwight D. Eisenhower (1953-1961).

The creation of the Department and cabinet post of Health, Education, and Welfare took place in the first year of the Eisenhower Presidency, even with a Republican controlled Congress.

Long overdue in all three areas of the cabinet position, after 26 years, it was recognized that the HEW Department was much too massive, so in 1979 under President Jimmy Carter, the HEW Department was divided into Health and Human Services (HHS) and Education.

Almost from that event, many Republicans and conservatives declared war on the Education Department, arguing for a return to state control of all Education initiatives, despite the reality that many states, particularly in the South and Great Plains were clearly inferior in their commitment to education.

Unable to bring about the demise of the Education Department, even with Republican contenders for the Republican Presidential nomination over many election cycles advocating its destruction, the new gambit was to promote “”Charter Schools” and “Home Schooling’.

This was designed to take away funding from public schools, and then along came Donald Trump, and his “war’ on public education, starting in his first term, and now actively working with Elon Musk and Project 2025 activists to destroy completely the Department of Education by closing down its offices, and limiting its funding, deapite it being funded by Congress.

So now there is a full scale destruction in process, but to get rid of the Department of Education, a cabinet agency, would require action of Congress, not the outrageous, and unconstitutional removal of funds and staff by Trump, Musk, and other right wing extremists who wish to destroy an essential agency.

So the question is whether the survival of the Department of Education can be accomplished in the present disastrous situation!

Religion Does Not Belong In Public Education!

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The Louisiana legislature recently enacted a law requiring display of the Ten Commandments in all public schools from nursery schools through public universities.

This is unconstitutional, and promotes a narrow Christian view of religion, when there are many other religions that are not considered in enacting such legislation.

The law is against the Bill of Rights, specifically the First Amendment, which makes clear total separation of church and state as a major principle of the Founding Fathers.

The American Civil Liberties Union and other groups have brought suit to prevent the enforcement of this attempt at promoting theocracy in public education.

The only way that religion is, rightfully, in public education is to teach about the various religious beliefs in an objective, and elective, high school and or college course, but not as theocracy, but as part of world history or Philosophy!

Six Months To Midterm Elections: Time To Emphasize The Danger Of Republican Extremists!

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In six months, the Midterm Congressional and Gubernatorial Elections of 2022 will occur.

Polls indicate disillusionment with Joe Biden and the Democratic Party, due to inflation and its effects, and the fact that there is stalemate with the evenly divided Senate and the small Democratic edge in the House of Representatives.

There is concern felt about the danger of Republican extremism in the states and on the Congressional level.

The party has allowed itself to promote policies that victimize women, people of color, immigrants, gays and transgender individuals.

They are promoting censorship and declaring war on public education and libraries in the name of advocacy of Christian values in a nation based on separation of church and state.

There is a strong strain of pro Russian, pro Vladimir Putin, support and a growing isolationist spirit, which endangers the alliances of the United States in international relations, most notably the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

The cancer of Donald Trump still infuses the party rhetoric and obsequious support of a man who still contends that the election was stolen, and attempts are being pursued to insure limitations on voting and on control of election machinery for the upcoming Presidential Election of 2024.

American democracy and basic common decency, humanity, empathy and compassion are under attack, and the Democrats must pursue an aggressive counter reaction to the evils represented by an opposition party which is authoritarian oriented, and Fascist in nature!

The whole future of the American nation is at stake, if the Republican Party, as now constituted, wins control of state and national governments, as likely it will be a point of no return!

So Joe Biden and all Democrats must go on the offensive and make clear the dangers of Republican extremism!

It’s About Time: National Standards For Public Education Proposed!

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In what is an extremely important move, a committee of educators empaneled by the state governors of America and school superintendents has proposed a uniform set of academic standards in English and Math, year by year, so that all of the nation’s public school students would have the same standards and expectations.

This is far preferable to the hodgepodge of state and local standards which has undermined public education and led to mediocre education, particularly in many Southern states and poorer states elsewhere.

Every child is entitled to learn what needs to be learned to succeed in life, and to promote higher education after finishing K-12. With these proposed national standards, the way teachers are trained would change, and textbooks would have to be revamped to reflect the new expectations.

Of course, conservatives predictably do not like the national standards idea, as they seem to think state standards, already proven inferior, are better. There is no way that these ideologues can be won over, and as it is, the states of Alaska and Texas have refused to participate, which is sad since both rank very low in their performances educationally.

But when one considers the lightweight governor of Texas, Rick Perry, and the lightweight former governor of Alaska, Sarah Palin, should it be any wonder that these two states should be the ones to continue to promote inferiority, and not concern themselves with the high failure rate and poverty levels they both have?

It is indeed tragic when “know nothings” are governors and give not a whit about those who most need nurturing: the children of their states! 🙁