As long as the public schools continue to stress that ALL students must be academia bound, as well as to continue to take away consortium-bound opportunities, we will have parents looking elsewhere. In my district, we have only four electives. All of the shop classes, home ec, auto, beauty, etc, have all been axed. Charters in San Diego are flourishing because they have hooked up with Corporations who have the students become apprentice(s) in the working field that they have chosen. Why have four years of classes that are worthless to the job that they are or will be qualified to to do once they get out of high school? One final example: Matt, a 16 year-old at a Michigan High school, was told he had to drop out due to failing grades. He was told he wasn't "fit" for college, like other kids. He went on and won 1st place in DECA for welding in the nation from his charter school...and now owns his own welding company and has expanded into 3 other states..so much for public education......
I felt like getting my violin after read the Rep.'s Planned Parenthood article. I worked for 4 years in the pro-life movement in a blue state over 10 years ago. I'd be happy to exchange "attack" stories from the other side 8 days a week. I still get grief in not so subtle ways over 10 years after I left. Yet I've never killed human life in my life.
Renewable fuels is a good idea. They should just limit renewable products to crops that can't be used for foods and can't be used to displace food crops. More research needs to be done on bio originated fuels that can be produced in land/soils that are not good enough for food production.
First off, there are not that many parents who have much of an idea of how an actual education should be... the schools are hamstrung by ridiculous programs and tests that even most parents would fail. The teachers are not doing much "educating" they are coaching kids how to answer the questions on the mandatory state tests. These tests are not about education either, they are about producing good little corporate drones who will spit out the proper lines when told to. Take a look around... even kids from privatized schools can't form a proper sentence, can't figure out change, and have only cursory reading comprehension.
You are very quick to vilify teachers unions, but those unions are NOT the ones who make up the curriculum... that is up to the state (your "elected officials") and the school board. (another political group that has no real interest in education but rather in power and authority)...
How about this for a novel concept... let's teach the children how to think, how to step through a problem to arrive at an answer... let's teach them to question and explore and build... that is what has developed the greatest minds throughout history... that is where some of the greatest inventions originated. Not from drone privatization and rubber stamp "No Child Left Behind" rhetoric... Put up or shut up... to use a phrase that seems popular about now... those public schools are "too big to fail". There is a place for "private schools"... for special kids that can't learn and get along with the rest, for those who learn differently or those that are seeking education above and beyond the normal curriculum... but it is just that.. PRIVATE... and that means those that attend are the ones who pay for it... you want a "voucher" how about those that do private schooling get a break on those taxes for public education.
Renewable fuels is a good idea. They should just limit renewable products to crops that can't be used for foods and can't be used to displace food crops. More research needs to be done on bio originated fuels that can be produced in land/soils that are not good enough for food production.
The gulf deadzone is because of spills and drilling for RAW product!!!
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