Re: [Biofuel] 34.6 cents per kilowatt hour. PG

[robert and benita rabello]

Michael Redler wrote: I read all the responses initiated by the Illich quote. (IMO) Kirk is one of the few who really gets it.     If you're coming into this with the preconceived notion that "public schools are bad", then no amount of reason will dissuade you.   Claims of “the problem” being social or a result of religious dogma has merit. However, when considering that public schools follow policies set by the same government that have also embraced a policy of manufacturing consent all the way back to the Wilson administration (formal doctrines), it’s wise to ask yourself where one would go for access to the masses and implement such a policy.     Sometimes "social engineering" is a necessary function of government.  I remember the widespread racism and sexism of American society when I was growing up, and also recall the HUGE backlash against desegregation when black children began appearing in suburban schools, like the one I attended.  Yet, the fact that I attended school with black children helped me see them as human beings, in contrast to the very racist attitude my mother maintains to this day against people whose skin is darker than her own.  (And her skin is darker than mine!)  I recall the days when career options for women were basically restricted to teacher, nurse, secretary or homemaker.  Many positive changes that promote more equal treatment of our fellow citizens were first enacted as governments responded to the righteous outcry against societal inequities, and many of those changes BEGAN in the public schools.      This is not always a benevolent process, nor is it always right.  However, dismissing the valuable function of public schools because the classroom teacher is forced to deal with sex education (because parents won't), or explain that homosexuals aren't necessarily pedophiles (because the parents won't), that all of us are supposed to be equal as citizens (because the parents are outright racist or classist), or with great patience, explain for the five millionth time that the theory of evolution does NOT promote the concept that humans came from monkeys; but rather, that we share a common ancestor with them--and thus swimming against the overwhelming flood of Fundamentalism so prevalent in our culture that simply shuts its collective mind to the vast repository of evidence in support of this idea.  (And yes, I'm a Christian.  Not all of us are so enamored with biblical literalism!)     Is that social engineering?  Perhaps it is.  While you may not personally agree with those concepts, you remain free to teach your own child as you wish.     I hold teaching credentials in California, Washington State and British Columbia, though I have my own education business and do not work in the schools.  I've been involved in education since 1992, but I've NEVER read a scope and sequence from ANY governing body in North America that promotes the concept of shutting down children's minds and encourging them NOT to think.  I've NEVER read a curriculum outline that espouses the idea of producing "good consumers" who can't evaluate evidence in support of their own personal interest.  I daresay you wouldn't be able to produce such a document either.   Other comments about where one learned reading, writing, math, history and science provoke an argument of its own, since our system is not competitive with much of the World.     Be careful of what you're comparing, and take a very close look at the evidence before you make such judgments.  The United States is the fourth most populous nation on earth, and its citizenry is VERY diverse.  There is little homogeny in the US, when compared to societies such as Japan, Korea and some of the European nations.  (This is changing, however.)  The socio-economic disparities that exist between American school districts is often decried as a plea for more money, but should you ever walk into the overcrowded barrio schools in East Los Angeles and examine the quality of the facilities and materials available to the students, the contrast with the schools in nearby Glendale (where I grew up, less than 15 minutes away) is astonishing.  There is a direct correlation between the overall performance of a school district and the socio-economic status of its surrounding area.  That suggests the difficulties with performance have more to do with class and money than policies set at the state level.     Could we be doing better?  Yes!  Is it going to cost money?  Absolutely!  Are the American people willing to pay the price?  Not likely.     If I were allowed to do so, I could go into a school and charge $4 000 for 80 hours of 1:1 reading instruction that would result in rapid, measureable gains in reading ability.  (This is the going rate for the kind of remediation I do.)  This sounds like a lot of money, but when you consider that roughly one third of all students in a typical school district NEED this type of instruction, yet never get it, the questions that arise about allocation of resources SHOULD be asked, but aren't.  The usual response to a low-performing school district involves cutting its budget.  How does that solve anything?     We face BIG problems in elementary, middle and high schools in North America.  A huge part of that challenge has to do with the overall breakdown in traditional institutions in the social milieu.  More and more of the "social engineering" you and Kirk are complaining about is being thrust upon classroom teachers because there is no one LEFT to do the job.  There are only so many minutes in a school day, so if the state forces a teacher to instruct students on socialization and behavior, something has to give. In terms of it’s relation to Illich, it misses the point completely. Absorbing and regurgitating knowledge in the subjects listed above do not address the conditioning in which public schools have been so effective.     That's a LOADED statement.  What have I "regurgitated" to you?  I'm a product of North American education, yet I can think on my own.  How can you say that "conditioning" is so effective when I can be so critical of our society, its consumerism and waste?  How can you claim that I'm "conditioned" when I speak out against the social inequities that are rampant in this culture?  How can you say I'm "conditioned" when I'm rather vocal in opposition against our leadership and its brutal policies?     I think you and Kirk are too quick to throw in the towel and dismiss the entire system.  Parents need to work with their own children.  Grandparents need to work with their children's children.  Let's roll up our sleeves and get some work done, rather than engaging in this futile, unproductive railing against public education.  All children, including those in poor, underperforming areas, deserve the best we can give them. robert luis rabello "The Edge of Justice" Adventure for Your Mind http://www.newadventure.ca Ranger Supercharger Project Page http://www.members.shaw.ca/rabello/

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