(Community Matters) Not a huge fan of Blow’s NYT opinion piece, Starving the Future [of US education] – too much reliance on projections of what the Chinese and Indians say they are gonna do and no acknowledgement of substantive improvements in US education over the last decade.
Admittedly the top level messages are correct – we under invest in education and the competition for jobs is becoming more acute.
I’m not in the camp that thinks cuts to education budgets have been all bad. The public sector doesn’t innovate very well*, though when it does seems in response to financial crisis. Combined with Race to the Top innovation grants, this hasn’t been a completely horrible three years for improvements in public education. And, I agree here, I’m not sure we can withstand more cuts.
We’ve got to spur more innovation, ferret out more waste, reward performance, and deploy better technology to educate kids (& in some instances their parents). I do like Blow’s call for attention to this matter. If we strengthen and prove up the value proposition, I think we can win back public support for this investment. It’s not so much win back as polls I’ve seen show support – it’s just not intense, I believe because of questions about the ROI.
The biggest threats come from some of the Grover Nordquist camps who would like to completely dismantle public education systems.
*this isn’t a dig to the public sector. As I’ve observed in the nonprofit sector, the feedback, rewards and penalties we’ve structured work against risk taking and innovation.
Community Matters 
Didn’t that Nation at Risk report come out 30 years ago?
Let me say as a citizen who has never worked in education: I am feeling like the villagers in the story about The Boy Who Cried Wolf.
The constant drumbeat about how schools are inadequate and failing our nation. Politicians of all stripes. Conservatives who think better schools will lead to more productive workers (so businesses don’t have to do their own training) and an instill in the population the belief that rewards come from work. Liberals who imagine education will diminish inequality and put an end to the boorish behavior and attitudes of the working class.
High school principals have changed their goal from preparing students for life (a difficult goal), and are now aiming much lower and preparing them for college. (And if there is anything real life is NOT like, it’s college.)
Self-styled business leaders who want to swoop in and advocate managing the education system like a corporation (you’ve got to align incentives!), but who don’t get into the nitty gritty.
The Gates Foundation’s efforts to get every single high school student take and pass two years of algebra. (Hey, Bill Gates is rich; he must know what he is talking about!) Confusing length of schooling for quality (everyone should go to college!)
I’m thinking education is like the hot weather in Texas during the summer: (1) everyone complains about it, (2) it’s not really as bad as everyone says, (3) we wish it were cooler, but we somehow muddle through.