Education, and Some Thoughts Thereon

Before I begin this article: I am not an educator, nor are my spouse or our children. I do have nuclear family that works, and has worked, in many aspects of education, for which I am grateful. 

Education, more specifically public education, is in the news almost daily. Loud voices shouting to be heard in a public square trying to be the dominate role in spending public money and educating the vast majority of America's youth. I've some thoughts I'd like to share with you; I hope this provokes thought on your part, and discussion between you, your families, neighbors, school boards, and politicians. And please, don't leave your children out of the discussion! 

A free, public education is an idea that was new and untried when this country was founded. The balance of the civilized world saw no need for the masses to know any more than was necessary for their daily lives and employments or servitudes. It took a long time, and a great deal of protesting, fighting, court action, governmental decrees and just plain old fashioned hard work for our educational system to reach the point it is at today. Now, don't stop reading at this point. Take a deep breath and continue with me. In no small part, America's experiment with an educated populace has lead to some of the greatest changes in education worldwide; it is now the norm for children to go to public schools in most developed, and many developing,  countries. (We could pause here to pat ourselves on the back for leading the world in this regard, but, we have other items on the agenda.)

It has become a revolting national pastime to fault public schools, and the teachers therein, for all of societies evils and ills; to accuse them with charges of malfeasance and dereliction of duty, improper education, grooming, etc., ad nauseam. Politicians, pundits,  TV personalities, podcasters, and commentators who should in fact have a better grip on reality jump on these perceived iniquities to rack up click points, ratings, and cash, spreading these and other perverse embellished fabrications to forward their own political, financial or social agendas.

Regarding the above, I can hear my Grandmother (who was, by the way, a teacher herself) saying "They are lying to you, Robert. Just lying to you."

It is abhorrent, to any rational mind, for school board meetings to be destroyed by a dullard with a microphone proclaiming without evidence or fact that K-12 educators are teaching Critical Race Theory. The idea, spread by nefarious individuals with an axe to grind and no wood that need splitting, that the educators of our youth are grooming them to some perceived homosexual agenda is disgusting beyond words. (I wrote about litter boxes in classrooms in a previous article.) Demanding that certain books be removed from classrooms on the basis of a sentence, paragraph, or character taken out of context displays not a high moral stance or great intellectual prowess; instead ignorance, fear of new or strange ideas, and lack of cognitive reasoning skills are showcased for the world to see. Clamoring for history, both world and American, to be taught as it was in 1950, is to ignore reality and places our youth at a great disadvantage relative to interaction with the peoples of other countries in our shared world. To declare that The United States of America is and always has been perfect in every detail, and that education should develop around that thought, is to deny the very first sentence in the Preamble to the Constitution of the United States:". . . in Order to form a more perfect Union. . . ".

At times, the people screaming the loudest at school board meetings about these perceived faults do not even have students in the schools controlled by that particular school board. They are simply following some item of interest from social media. (In Utah, our legislature just tried banning children under the age of 13 from using social media. Perhaps we should ban the parents from the same.) The inability of the protestors to show proof of the nonsensical claims they make evidently does not embarrass them in the least; it seems to be a badge of honor to say, "just do the research and you will find I'm right." Reality finds in most cases they are not right. It doesn't appear they have an agenda to correct the imagined faults (other than to fire teachers and school board members), they are just interested in causing confusion and disruption. Some, however, do have an agenda; they want education, and in fact the country, turned back to what they grew up with in the 1950's or early 60's. 

Our country, and the world around us, is changing at lightning speed. The internet, cell phones, satellite technology, even the pandemic cause structural and interpersonal changes unprecedented in our history. The factual changes in the demographics of our country, the increase of business and employment opportunities around the world, and the immediacy of today's news reporting, has laid open what is to some an unthinkable and unbearable reality; we are a more diverse nation than previously understood, and we are not a perfect nation by any standard of civilization. Education, more exactly public education is one tool we have as a country to help us keep up with the changes, innovations and discoveries rapidly affecting our lives. Rather than destroy the educational system that is addressing and teaching about these innovations, changes, discoveries and actualities, rather than strip educators of the tools and resources they need to prepare our youth to enter college, adulthood, employment and the challenges they will face in the near future, we need to enhance our children's educational opportunities, and support our public schools, the teachers, staff, and administrators therein, and push back against those who would, out of fear and ignorance, deprive our youth of the same opportunities we had growing up and being educated in public schools. Our parents, and the leaders of this country in the past, tried to provide us with the best education possible at the time. It is our responsibility to do the same for the youth of today; it is our duty to give all of our youth every opportunity possible to enjoy the Great American Dream.  

And before I leave you, dear reader, here are some FACTs for you to digest. Regardless of all the talk about how our schools are failing, how our children are not getting the same education we ourselves received, the facts tell a different story. 

The average SAT scores for high school students in 1972 were: Math, 509; Critical reading, 530. The average SAT scores for 2021 (the last year available) were: Math, 528; Critical reading, 533. The lowest average score for Math was 492, in 1981; for Critical reading 494 in 2016. The highest average scores for both were in 2021. 

I do have a response I use when someone tells me about the CRT education, the Great White Replacement Theory, the grooming of our children, etc. I simply and quietly ask for the source material they are sharing.  

Thank you for reading, I do appreciate your taking the time to hear me out, particularly on this divisive and challenging subject. I also appreciate any comments you would like to leave, just click on the word "comments" in the white box below. 

R. M. "Bob" Hartman

Edit: The SAT scores shown above are national averages, I have added the word average where appropriate. Thank  you PJA 02/05/2023 RMH

          

     

HB 215- The Utah Legislature's Hand Empties Your Wallet Program.

 It's all over but the crying, and the lawsuits. Governor Spencer "the Spineless" Cox has signed HB215 into law. Now we go to the courts, and Utah will spend an uncountable amount of money trying to defend a bill that never should have been written. 

It's a monetary tragedy write large on the backs of Utah taxpayers. A "law" that sends twice as much money to a private religious school as to a public school, with little to no regard as to the qualifications of the private school. In this piece of legislation, and yes I have read it, if there are less than 150 paid employees in the private school, there is no requirement for teaching credentials or for passing a background check. 

My grandchildren's public school receives $4,038.00 for each and every child enrolled. Move the children to a local charter or private school, or "Qualified Provider" and that entity will receive $8,000.00 per student enrolled. Why? Because the legislature can do it and they can't be held accountable.  

So, does $8,000.00 pay for a years education at Judge Memorial Catholic High School in Salt Lake City? Nope. Here, from the school's web page, is the tuition and fee structure. 

Tuition, $13,950.00; Registration Fee $600.00; Enrollment Fee $100.00 the first year, $75.00 each year thereafter; Graduation Fee $150.00. Do the math, for a first-year student, the total is $14,650.00, the senior year, $14,775.00. All athletic fees, AP classes, busing, etc., are add-ons. Uniforms are not included. In total fairness to Judge Memorial, on the website it explains that scholarships and financial aid are available. So, will  the Utah Fits All Scholarship Program move a large number of new students to Judge Memorial? Probably not, there is still a big gap between the tuition/fees and the money provided by the program, a gap of $6,650.00. I don't think, for most families, the $8,000 from the UFASP will make the difference. What it does mean is the families of students already attending Judge Memorial, and every other private/charter/qualified provider educational provider have just been given an $8,000.00 gift from the Utah state taxpayers-that is, from you and I. 

What do the students have to do to receive this gift? Simply apply. The "qualifications" for this scholarship are basically non-existent. If you are a student in the great state of Utah, you qualify. The majority of  other states that offer vouchers tie the voucher to income limits; and/or limit the amount of the voucher to the amount of the Weighted Pupil Unit (WPU) for that year. Utah, in its constant effort to be special, is the only state I could find that does not take either  of those factors into account. Many of  voucher programs in other states are tax credit programs, as opposed Utah's payment program.

Utah now joins 16 states and the District of Columbia in providing school choice vouchers; although some, like Utah, call them  scholarships, The name doesn't matter, it's all the same shell game. Take taxpayer education money and give it to private schools. 

The Utah Fits All Scholarship Program? It should be called The Utah Legislature's Hand Empties Your Wallet Program. 

I'm pretty sure some lawsuits will be filed, if I find out about them, I will post an article. 

Thanks for reading, your comments are always welcome. Just click on the word "comment" in the white box below. 

R. M. "Bob" Hartman

Source: Education Commission of the States.

Senator Wayne Harper's Response

 In my last post "Your Public Education money at Work-For Private Business" I ended by stating I had emailed State Senator Wayne Harper a copy of the post, and would post his response. Here, verbatim, is his response; it is posted with his permission: 

Yes Bob, I do read all my emails, not my intern nor a machine.  I appreciate your email and your concerns.  Feelings are intense from all positions on this bill.  The substitute bill that passed the House did make significant improvements, especially in accountability, testing, auditing and qualifications.  Likewise, for anyone whose child receives a scholarship, the local property taxes stay with the local school and school district as does about 20% of the WPU allocation for the student.  The other 80% is portable.  The 2022 bill failed because it had flaws. I continue to listen to each call and read each email to acquire more information and positions.

I thank Senator Harper for responding, and for is permission to post his response. 

My best efforts, and your, notwithstanding, this unacceptable  bill has now passed the Senate and is headed to Governor Cox's desk for signature. 

Please join me in calling/emailing the Governor to oppose this bill, the phone number is 801-538-1000; to send a comment to the Governor, go here: https://cs.utah.gov/s/submit. I could not find a valid publicemail address for Governor Cox. 

Thank you for reading, please comment by clicking the word "comment" in the white box below. 

R. M. "Bob" Hartman

Your Public Education Money at Work-For Private Education

This blog belongs to me, but I promised myself (and my wife) that I would not stoop to foul language, etc., because my grandchildren might read one or more of these posts.  But right now, I would really like to dispose of that ban. 

But I will not do that. 

It's just that the Utah so-called Legislature has only been in session for 4 whole days and already I am so mad I can not type properly. Might need to check my blood pressure. 

Utah voters, citizens like you and I, rejected school vouchers in 2007 by forcing the issue to a referendum on the ballot. The voucher bill in 2022 failed to pass the state house of representatives as the governor had threatened to veto it. But Big Republican Government and its financial supporters like big business and private schooling wants vouchers, so Candace Pierucci (R-Riverton) is trying again. Oh, wait a minute, this is not a voucher bill; it is a pay raise for teachers! (With a "scholarship" fund for charter, home school, or private education.)  That's right, a pay raise for teachers! The initial proposal is for a $6,000.00 raise for teachers, a raise that is well past due and still not enough, in my humble opinion. BUT, the raise is tied to final approval and signature from the governor to allow an "Utah Fits All Scholarship" payment of $8,000 to parents for use as payment of private school tuition fees, or other uses, such as home schooling.

Eight Thousand Dollars! $8,000.00 per student in scholarship funds from public tax money going to send children to private schools. Should the student need to go back to public school for any reason, the $8,000.00 does not follow the student to the public school, but goes back to the scholarship fund; and, as the student was initially enrolled in private schools, there is no weighted pupil unit for his education at the public school. 

To understand one part of the multitude of mistakes in HB 215, here's a quick brief on the Weighted Pupil Unit in Utah education. WPU is the amount of money each public school is allowed for each student. Currently in our great state, that WPU is $4175.00. That is all the Utah State Tax Money that is provided to public schools by the Utah legislature.

One more time: The State of Utah, a state that prides itself on family values, etc., etc., only provides $4175.00 per year to educate each and every child. BUT state representative Pierucci, a Republican from Herriman, wants the state to send $8,000 of YOUR TAX MONEY to any charter school or private school, or private educational service provider, so little John Smith or Sally Young do not have to go to public schools. 

As of today, Jan 22, 2023, this bill has passed the house and is on its way to the State Senate, where passage is deemed very likely. 

Rep. Pierucci is playing a high stakes game of chicken here, and the teachers and education in Utah will lose no matter what. In 2022, Utah Governor Spencer Cox stated "When teachers are making $60,000 a year to start, I will fully support vouchers. I'm all in on vouchers. But we have a long way to go before we get there." (February 2022 PBS monthly press conference.) Currently, the starting wage for teachers in Utah is $45,000 annually. So, Pierucci is betting the Governor will not veto this bill as it does raise teacher salaries about $6,000 per year. If the bill fails to pass the state senate, or if Governor Cox vetoes the bill, the teacher raise will only be $3,000. Sadly, Governor Cox is not known for his steadfast approach to government, so he might just sign away some of your tax dollars.

Right now, this bill has not been acted upon in the Utah State Senate; so you still have an opportunity to let your state senator know how you feel about this important issue. To locate your senator, go to le.utah.gov/GIS/findDistrict.jsp. 

There are other issues in this bill that are also worth examination, but this is the major battleground. To read about the other impacts, go here: https://myuea.org/wp-content/uploads/HB215-Issue-Brief-FINAL.pdf

Thank you for reading; if this issue is as important to you as I hope it is, please let your state senator know how you feel. 

Your comments are always welcome, please click the word "comments'  in the white box below and write away! 

R. M. "Bob" Hartman

A follow up- I received a form e-mail from my State Senator, Wayne Harper, asking what I thought about this issue. I emailed him a copy of this article. I'll let you know if he responds. 

Lies Verses Issues

 "If you tell a lie big enough, and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it." Joseph Goebbels, Reichsminister of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda, March 14, 1933 to April 30, 1945.

In Germany, before and during WWII, the Reichsministery of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda controlled all print, radio, television, and movie content. It was nearly impossible, and in fact illegal, to listen to news from any other country. The Nazi party gave away free radios to anyone who needed one; they were designed to only receive one station, which was the state-owned media.

One would reasonably believe that in this day, with the internet and 24 hour 7 day news cycle, it would be difficult if not impossible for anyone to pull a major scam over on the citizens of the United States of America.

Like this one: In December 2021, the Midland Public Schools school board heard testimony that litter boxes had been installed in bathroom stalls for children who identified as cats. The school board replied that this statement was totally false. That should have been the end of the story.

But wait, there's more, as they like to say on the television commercials. This outright fabrication was picked up and repeated by the co-chair of the Michigan Republican Party, and then posted on the Twitter account "Libs of Tik Tok", a right-leaning account owned by Chaya Raichik, who has several hundred thousand followers.

Well, the cat is out of the bag, so to speak. This outright lie has been repeated by no less than 35 politicians either in office, or running for office; the offices include senators and representatives to Congress, state and local elected officials, and school board member in 29 states. Podcaster Joe Rogan and Christian talk show host Bill Cunningham both promoted the falsehood on their shows.

So, why does this matter? It matters for a few reasons; the first is a little something called truth. This cat poop has been fact-checked, and found to be false, repeatedly. In every instance where a school, or a school district, has been named it has been found to be an outright lie. When a politician, podcaster, or talk show host repeats this big lie, it gives one more veneer of respectability to the falsehood; and if Goebbels was correct, more people will believe it. (Sadly, Goebbels has been proven to be correct in this statement.) As is usually the case, truth is not as exciting to talk about as fiction. No one gets excited about not putting litter boxes in schools, in fact, no one talks about it.

Second, rumors like this cast a cloud of uncertainty around the operation of our schools, both public and private. As schools, the curriculum they teach, and the costs associated with schools fall under more and more scrutiny, cat poop like this wastes valuable time and resources; time and resources that could be spent solving the true crisis's in our schools, which include a lack of qualified teachers and contentious issues regarding actual curriculum.

Have our politicians become so slothful they would rather lie about litterboxes than present an actual policy or position on the many issues facing our country? We need discussions on women's rights, racial equality, the economy, trade issues, firearm regulation, and the threat Russia is presenting to the world.

Real issues. No cat poop.

Thanks for reading, as always your thoughts and comments are appreciated.

R.M. "Bob" Hartman