Mr. Obama Promises Big Reform of Public Education

Yesterday it was stem cells. Quick, before the mob gathers, let's change the subject.

Today it's education.

No wonder Mr. Obama is reported to be tired. He sure is taking on an awfully heavy workload of causes.

In his talk before the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce ... (a brief A.D.D. moment: is this different from the regular U.S. Chamber of Commerce, cause it's awfully hard to tell sometimes. Just sayin' ) ... the president claimed to be taking on the teachers' unions with his call for merit pay and improving teacher performance. Let's examine some of his remarks:

"Despite resources that are unmatched anywhere in the world, we have let our grades slip, our schools crumble, our teacher quality fall short, and other nations outpace us," Obama said. "The relative decline of American education is untenable for our economy, unsustainable for our democracy, and unacceptable for our children. We cannot afford to let it continue. What is at stake is nothing less than the American dream."

Uh, that's the same thing he said about solving the mortgage crisis. "Nothing less than the American dream."

Among the principles Obama laid out were:

-- Challenging states to adopt world-class standards rather than a specific standard.

Shouldn't those world class standards be specific, and don't we have an obligation to discuss them first?

-- Improved pre-kindergarten programs, including $5 billion in the stimulus plan to grow Head Start, expand child care access and do more for children with special needs. He also said he would offer 55,000 first-time parents regular visits from trained nurses and said that states that develop cutting-edge plans to raise the quality of early learning programs would get an Early Learning Challenge Grant, if Congress approves the new program.

There are a lot of us who think that younger pre-school kids would be better off spending time with their mothers rather than spend time in government-funded institutions. And the idea of trained nurse visits to first-time parents is spooky.

-- Reducing student dropout rates. To students, Obama said: "Don't even think about dropping out of school." But he said that reducing the dropout rates also requires turning around the worst schools, something he asked lawmakers, parents and teachers to make "our collective responsibility as Americans."

Drop-outs are a problem, but rather than federalize the solution, shouldn't the focus be directed back to the local community. Isn't that true federalism, allowing state and local communities to work out their own solutions (subsidiarity)? Does Washington, D.C., really have a one-size-fits-all answer for this problem? (Or any problem?)

-- Repeating his call for everyone to commit to at least one year or more of higher education or career training, with the goal of highest proportion of college graduates in the world by the year 2020.

If an adult wants a year or more of college, or career ed, fine. But either this bullet point is pure fluff, because it sounds good, or it is the voluntary prelude to "you will enrol in a trade school or else" when ugly reality slaps beautiful fairy tale up the side of the head.

"We need to make sure our students have the teacher they need to be successful. That means states and school districts taking steps to move bad teachers out of the classroom. Let me be clear: if a teacher is given a chance but still does not improve, there is no excuse for that person to continue teaching."

Can we assume that bad teachers will not only be moved out of the classroom but off the payroll? Or is that too much to ask?

The president acknowledged that a rethinking of the traditional American school day may not be welcome — "not in my family, and probably not in yours" — but is critical.

"The challenges of a new century demand more time in the classroom," Obama said. "If they can do that in South Korea, we can do it right here in the United States of America."

Expanding the school day is a nice idea, but unworkable unless you change the culture within the classroom and in the school at large. Political correctness must end, especially as it concerns discipline. Without effective discipline you cannot get students to effectively learn now, let alone in a longer school day. Do I think Mr. Obama's federal education plan will do anything to change this? No. He would, indeed, be in trouble with his fellow travelers in the unions, and I doubt that he has any intention of that happening.

My advice to first-time parents? Keep your children away from socialized education as long as possible. Stay plugged in to your child's progress past elementary and middle school. Let them know you expect excellence and will not accept excuses for poor work, including having fun or laziness. Establish a system of rewards and punishments based on academic achievement. You will find your child's baseline and, whether they are geniuses or learning challenged, your involvement will help them learn more. Motivated students can learn in just about any school system, regardless of how poor it is.

If the public schools are mediocre or worse in your area, consider home schooling them. You will amaze yourself at what they will learn, and the talents you have within yourself to develop as an educator.

This is the revolution within education that we need.