RE: How The American School System Has Destroyed The Value Of A High School Diploma
I am in agreement with your arguments that the education system is lacking. I question your statement that the system needs to be profitable. To my knowledge the funding comes (or is suppose to come) from taxes and in some states from the lottery. I know this is not working. I don't know where the money is being squandered by I have an idea. You would probably have more knowledge about the financial mishandling than I.
In regards to your idea of ALE, why not resurrect the trade schools. When I was growing up there were trade school where students that did not want to pursue a college career had the option to enter into a trade school. I believe that most public schools also had several courses in the trades. Also I believe the trade union offer a path to obtain a journeyman certification.
One thing I think you overlooked is the continued certification of the teacher and the abuse of 'tenure'. Not being educator, I'm probably not qualified on addressing how teachers are guided to keep abreast of new ways to teach. I do feel that some teachers are under qualified but that is only my opinion, it is not meant to criticize.
Overall I think your post is very accurate. Thank you for your post.
It's not so much that schools have to turn a profit; just that there are so many rules about how money can be spent and where it can come from. For example, let's say that a school district has received $15,000 (from tax money) for technology. That money is earmarked, so it can't be spent on anything that is not technology. Furthermore, if it doesn't get spent, it is lost, and they probably will not receive as much money next year. So, what are they going to do if there's money left over? Buy a bunch of crap that they don't really need!
In addition, a lot of school funding is based on student population and attendance. So, schools are incentivized to keep kids in the system even if they would be better accommodated elsewhere.
I understand when money is 'earmarked' but for when my kids were in grade school I'd hear the teachers speak of how the had to pay to buy school supplies, such as kleenex or incidentals for their class. They said they paid out of their own pockets. Or they would as the parents to donate these incidentals to the class. My question, are schools running on such a tight budget that they can't provide for incidentals. They must have some inkling on how much is need for thing needed such as chalk, pencils, paper etc. Would you not consider these items as essential to make the school functional. If they can't afford these, my question would be where is the money going? I assume the school system has a department that can audit the operations. Does this make any sense to you. Even if you consider the school system as a non-profit entity, non-profit should not run at a deficit. If they ran at a profit, the profit should be used to reduce the amount their are allocated for the next budget period. I have an idea on how government agencies operate. As you noted, if they don't spend all their budget money, they will get a budget cut for the next period. I also realize the money allocated hinges on the size of the student body and attendance.
When my kids were in school, I learned that some of the teachers were paid about 40 to 50K and the principal was making over 100K. Why does the administrator command that high a salary. I not actually looking solely at the amount but the ratio to the teacher. Perhaps the salaries of the administrator should be lessen to allocate more for the incidentals. Since I am not privy to the details of the internal business structure of the school system, I am lacking on all the facts and it is not my aim to criticize. I'm only stating my opinion based on what I have observed.
Lastly, it is stated that if the salaries were lower the 'quality people' would leave. Consider if the pay rate was lowered system wide, where would they flee to. I can appreciate some would leave for a different career but 1) in our current situation, they're are no jobs there and 2) they have a 'specialized' field so their transition to another field may be difficult. I attempted to cover all the main issues but I know my response is lacking. And again, I am responding in all due respect, I am not criticizing.