Education in America

[Orlando Buffalo]

8 hours ago, The Frankish Reich said:

Thanks for clarifying.

 

But still: So taking into account the facts that Mississippi has one of the largest black populations on a percentage basis and that it is one of the poorest states, it's students aren't doing as poorly as it appears they are.

 

Faint praise ...

I just looked it up and it is technically " gender, age, race, free lunch, special education, and English Learner" So where I said legal status, I was off, it is simply ELL. 

[Andy1]

This is such a complicated topic. To me it seems to be a failure of parenting, education system and society. American society glamorizes athletes and entertainers but ignores or belittles academic achievement. Glitz and glam sells so that is what our culture is about. Parents and kids are brainwashed by Tiktok, etc. Tech companies impose their algorithms on us, shaping our society, with no regulation by the government. People now have the attention span of a flea. If information can’t be presented in 10 seconds, brains shut down. We need public service announcements on parenting like the no smoking campaign of old. 

[Albwan]

10 hours ago, Big Blitz said:

 

Leftists, marxists, democrats: Mission accomplished!

[Big Blitz]

 

 

 

[Big Blitz]

 

[Orlando Buffalo]

I can't confirm the multiple steps here but confirmation of address is something that good schools have to do to ensure they have the correct amount of teachers and staff to support students. I had to do some of this when I first enrolled my daughter despite my son being in the school at that time and knowing the people verifying us personally. This current school year at my school some kids were asked to leave because they had moved to another county but wanted to remain in our school. 

 

[B-Man]

 

Free speech - right,

Blocking 'certain' students from attending classes - illegal

 

 

[Orlando Buffalo]

This is what education has become where an economic professor promotes dishonesty. The "everyone does it" excuse is used by my students who actually can't do math but just cheat their way through class. 

 

[JDHillFan]

“Progressive” governance for the win! This should really pay dividends. 🤦🏻‍♂️🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻

[K D]

If you are smart it's some sort of white supremacy inequity (even though Asians are far and away the smartest demographic). If you are dumb it's because everyone is racist!

 

Or maybe it's because Asian and white households have both parents in the home and put a higher value on education? Hmmm nah that makes too much sense. It must be racism!!! Let's give all of the failing grades a passing grade and then make it super easy for them to get into college even though they can't read or write or do basic math. That should fix things 😂 

Edited May 28, 2025 by K D

[All_Pro_Bills]

35 minutes ago, K D said:

If you are smart it's some sort of white supremacy inequity (even though Asians are far and away the smartest demographic). If you are dumb it's because everyone is racist!

 

Or maybe it's because Asian and white households have both parents in the home and put a higher value on education? Hmmm nah that makes too much sense. It must be racism!!! Let's give all of the failing grades a passing grade and then make it super easy for them to get into college. That should fix things 😂 

Somebody told me a while back that you can tell a lot about a person's situation by how much time and effort they spend thinking about the future. Generally, people well off or wealthy spend a lot of time worrying about the future vs. focusing on the present. The poor on the other hand, do not.

 

A lot of the education problem has to do with the culture of poverty. People that value education are people that think a lot about the future. If you've got a decent job and a stable home life you're in a good position to do that kind of thinking. Those White and Asian households that you mention where education is deemed important provide that environment. A lot of black and hispanic households provide this kind of environment too. These are homes that produce the most proficient students and learners. These people learn that putting in the work in the present produces gratification and results in the future. The ability to defer gratification and rewards is a trait almost every single successful person in any field of work share.

 

But if you're working poor or live at or below the poverty level, no matter your race and national origin, its hard to focus on the future when the present is a struggle for survival. In those circumstances, putting a lot of time and effort focusing on the future is not only a waste of time but can hinder the ability to survive under the present circumstances. You can't defer gratification and results or worry too much about the future, you need results and money now to survive. That these people need results now, not later, should be obvious because there may not be a later for them.

 

 

 

 

Edited May 28, 2025 by All_Pro_Bills

[Joe Ferguson forever]

the problem was solved in "Idiocracy".  Stupid people have lots of kids.  Smart people have few or none.  Genetics gonna happen.

 

fits right in with All Pro's thesis.

[JFKjr]

On 4/28/2025 at 10:50 PM, The Frankish Reich said:

I hate to admit it, but he's right.

Colorado, my state, take a big bow ... you are the nation's leader in 8th grade reading proficiency.

35% of our 8th graders score proficient or better. Wow. Only 65% of our kids are failing at the most basic skill. Give us a medal or something.

Or move to Mississippi and crow about your 22% rate.

It all sucks.

 

I guess the question I'd ask is how many of those students have English as a second language. That would be a big impediment to educational achievement. Obviously the younger you are when you learn English the better you'll do, but a lot of this might just be reflective of the reality of a language barrier.

 

The rest of the kids may be doing fine, although teachers have their hands full dealing with those with limited English skills AND a lot of mainstreamed kids who have behavioral issues.

 

I don't envy the teachers their job challenges! It's also why I don't think they should be rewarded based on the test scores of their students. A lot of that is out of their control. They should be well compensated for doing a difficult job.

[K D]

32 minutes ago, All_Pro_Bills said:

Somebody told me a while back that you can tell a lot about a person's situation by how much time and effort they spend thinking about the future. Generally, people well off or wealthy spend a lot of time worrying about the future vs. focusing on the present. The poor on the other hand, do not.

 

A lot of the education problem has to do with the culture of poverty. People that value education are people that think a lot about the future. If you've got a decent job and a stable home life you're in a good position to do that kind of thinking. Those White and Asian households that you mention where education is deemed important provide that environment. A lot of black and hispanic households provide this kind of environment too. These are homes that produce the most proficient students and learners. These people learn that putting in the work in the present produces gratification and results in the future. The ability to defer gratification and rewards is a trait almost every single successful person in any field of work share.

 

But if you're working poor or live at or below the poverty level, no matter your race and national origin, its hard to focus on the future when the present is a struggle for survival. In those circumstances, putting a lot of time and effort focusing on the future is not only a waste of time but can hinder the ability to survive under the present circumstances. You can't defer gratification and results or worry too much about the future, you need results and money now to survive. That these people need results now, not later, should be obvious because there may not be a later for them.

 

Who makes more money? A family with both parents or a single parent household? There, we just solved the entire reason why black America is an endless loop of failure. Now what are we going to do about? Oh nothing, cool. You can't even talk about it because it's racist to even mention this.

 

But it's not just poverty, it's culture. Asian Americans put a huge emphasis on education. My family members were poor farmers and came to America and were dirt poor here too but it opened up more opportunities which I was able to take advantage of. I was the first in my family to graduate college etc etc. Each generation you push your kids to do better than you had it. Black families have been in America for longer so what's their excuse? Culture

Edited May 28, 2025 by K D

[Doc]

1 minute ago, JFKjr said:

I guess the question I'd ask is how many of those students have English as a second language. That would be a big impediment to educational achievement. Obviously the younger you are when you learn English the better you'll do, but a lot of this might just be reflective of the reality of a language barrier.

 

The rest of the kids may be doing fine, although teachers have their hands full dealing with those with limited English skills AND a lot of mainstreamed kids who have behavioral issues.

 

I don't envy the teachers their job challenges! It's also why I don't think they should be rewarded based on the test scores of their students. A lot of that is out of their control. They should be well compensated for doing a difficult job.

 

That's what I've been saying about people not assimilating when they come here.  They stay in their enclaves and don't bother entering the melting pot.  I once had a Spanish-only speaking patient and I can get by pretty well, but she said something I didn't understand and actually had the balls to ask me "why don't you know Spanish?"

 

2 minutes ago, K D said:

Who makes more money? A family with both parents or a single parent household? There, we just solved the entire reason why black America is an endless loop of failure. Now what are we going to do about? Oh nothing, cool. You can't even talk about it because it's racist to even mention this.

 

But it's not just poverty, it's culture. Asian Americans put a huge emphasis on education. My family members were poor farmers and came to America and were dirt poor here too but it opened up more opportunities which I was able to take advantage of. I was the first in my family to graduate college etc etc. Black families have been in America for longer so what's their excuse? Culture

 

When 3 out of every 4 black children are born to a single mother, you have a gigantic problem.  And as you said, no one's addressing it because it's considered racist since "that's their culture"...that came about in just the last 40 years.

[K D]

8 minutes ago, JFKjr said:

 

I guess the question I'd ask is how many of those students have English as a second language. That would be a big impediment to educational achievement. Obviously the younger you are when you learn English the better you'll do, but a lot of this might just be reflective of the reality of a language barrier.

 

The rest of the kids may be doing fine, although teachers have their hands full dealing with those with limited English skills AND a lot of mainstreamed kids who have behavioral issues.

 

I don't envy the teachers their job challenges! It's also why I don't think they should be rewarded based on the test scores of their students. A lot of that is out of their control. They should be well compensated for doing a difficult job.

You are acting like this has never happened in the history of this country. Pretty much everyone here is an immigrant. My grandparents came here speaking zero English. You assimilate and learn the language. It's part of the deal. Which is why we need to close the border to those that have no interest in becoming American. I get upset when I see commercials on TV in Spanish. If they want to speak Spanish there are plenty of other countries they can migrate to. Let them go there.

[Big Blitz]

Gavin Newsom's California is planning to implement a new "Grading for Equity" program at @SFUnified schools. This program will:

 

-Eliminate homework
-Eliminate weekly tests
-Allow for late assignment hand-ins
-Allow students to skip class without affecting grade
-Make getting an "80" an "A"
-Allow students to pass with as grade as low as "21"

 

 

[Orlando Buffalo]

I have not been able to confirm this so take it with a big grain of salt- but if this is true this is disgusting, literally he has not accomplished anything but gets a diploma. Truly how does one not get a diploma? My question is whether that is just his quarter grades because I have kids who failed the 4th quarter badly who passed because the lowest grade on the report card allowed is a 50% per quarter, so one 80% quarter makes it so you can't fail 

 

[Doc]

14 minutes ago, Orlando Buffalo said:

I have not been able to confirm this so take it with a big grain of salt- but if this is true this is disgusting, literally he has not accomplished anything but gets a diploma. Truly how does one not get a diploma? My question is whether that is just his quarter grades because I have kids who failed the 4th quarter badly who passed because the lowest grade on the report card allowed is a 50% per quarter, so one 80% quarter makes it so you can't fail

 

They're probably looking at it like it's worth graduating students like this just to get them out of the system.  More schooling isn't going to suddenly make them proficient in anything.

Edited June 1, 2025 by Doc

[Orlando Buffalo]

8 minutes ago, Doc said:

 

They're probably looking at it like it's worth graduating students like this just to get them out of the system.  More schooling isn't going to suddenly make them proficient in anything.

That does certainly happen but usually requires a way to get a kid a D not an F. I will state that if what he is saying is straight up truth then the level it takes to "graduate" is much lower than FL, and I thought ours was too low.