from the book: Shadow Dancing on the Grave of Hope:
This chapter can end with a quote from Andrew J. Coulson (no relation) on productivity and education. "Far from being an engine of wealth creation, the education system is bleeding the economy to death. The U.S. spends 2.3 times as much per pupil in real, inflation-adjusted dollars as it spent in 1970, but the return on this ballooning investment has been less than nothing."
Student achievement at the end of high school has been flat for nearly 40 years, according to a recent study by the Education Department, while the graduation rate fell over the same period, according to a report by James Heckman, a Nobel laureate economist.
If the efficiency of U.S. public schooling had merely remained at its 1970 level, the country would enjoy the equivalent of an annual $300 billion tax cut.
The productivity collapse in education is more than staggering; it’s unparalleled. Can you name any other service or product that has gotten worse and less affordable over the past two generations? The reason you can’t is that no other field is organized as a state-run monopoly."
To sum up public education in North America: 1) It is expensive, 2) It is much less important for social and individual reasons than the hysterical propaganda maintains, 3) It is done very poorly, 4) The notions of "social justice" and "environmental concerns" are misguided in the extreme.
Coulson, Andrew J. (2009) Time To End The Monopoly In Education, http://www.ednews.org/blogs/time-to-end-the-monopoly-in-education.html. Retrieved July 22, 2009.
Cheerio and ttfn,
Grant Coulson
November 17, 2009 at 12:44 pm |
Thank you for sharing your thoughts! I have learned a lot and will continue to look back on your posts to consolidate my thinking. I’ve already rethought the way I’m teaching my kids, and I’m certain I’ll be more effective.
November 17, 2009 at 2:11 pm |
You’re most welcome. I’ll look at any questions you, or anyone, may have. I’ll be continuing with other areas such as drug and alcohol rehabilitation, psychotherapy and criminal rehabilitation, but returning to education frequently.
Cheers,
Grant Coulson