No matter how much money any government - federal, state or local - puts into public education, it's never enough in some people's eyes.
A July 1 "NBC Nightly News" segment detailed a new use of tax payer dollars in one of the worst performing, financially struggling school systems in the country - the Washington, D.C. public school system. They are paying school children with taxpayer funds, part of a social experiment to improve school participation at the middle school level.
"Keeping the exuberant sixth graders of Shaw Middle School at Garnet-Patterson in line on a sunny Friday is a challenge for principal Brian Betts," former "Nightly News" anchor-turned-correspondent Tom Brokaw explained. "But this is not an assembly, it's payday. It's called Capital Gains - paying students for good grades, behavior and attendance, part of the massive restructuring of the D.C. schools by a 38-year-old Korean-American woman, who as chancellor, wants to transform what is by many measures the worst-performing public school system in the U.S."
Brokaw credited Washington, D.C. Public School Chancellor Michelle Rhee for being instrumental in making this program a reality. He explained the Capital Gains program was the invention of a Harvard think tank that came with a $1.35-million price tag for taxpayers.
"In less than two years, Rhee has replaced nearly one in three of the principals and dozens of teachers, closed 23 failing schools and proposed six-figure salaries in exchange for tenure for teachers," Brokaw said. "And she has put selected D.C. middle schools on the Capital Gains payroll run by a Harvard think tank. The cost of that program $2.7 million, half from D.C. taxpayers, half from a private grant. Through Capital Gains, kids can earn as much as $100 every two weeks, and many of them directly deposit it in a savings account."
Alfie Kohn, author of "Punished By Rewards," criticized the program on a philosophical level because it distorted the meaning of learning in schools for success on standardized tests.
"This program is a bad method consisting of dangling goodies in front of kids rather than treating them respectfully as partners in the learning, married to a bad objective, higher scores on bad standardized tests," Kohn said.
And Brokaw's segment ignored the financial woes that have been facing the D.C. schools. Recently, Rhee went to head-to-head with the D.C. Council on enrollment figures, which would determine budget funding system for the system. According to the June 3 Washington Examiner, the council and Rhee bickered over several million dollars in funding based on enrollment figures. Rhee threatened the council with mass layoffs before a compromised was eventually reached that left $3.3 million on the table pending the outcome of an enrollment audit.
Editor at Large
Comments Policy
I can see it all now:
July 2, 2009 - 10:18 ET by mattm"Wow, Pedro, 2 plus 2 equals Cinco! Que bueno! Very creative! It shows you are a very imaginative thinker! You should be very proud! Here's 25 Obamabucks which you can spend at the DNC gift shop! Congrats!"
That's the problem with government
July 3, 2009 - 08:22 ET by Lajawschools. They are here to make sure you conform to the system. Without them, we would still be enjoying untold liberties and freedoms.
I think this idea has some
July 2, 2009 - 10:28 ET by GlidedonI think this idea has some merit. The money should go to the parents of theses kids, this would promote the parents to become involved in the education process. Just make sure the Unions are not involved in anyway!
It may work
July 2, 2009 - 10:42 ET by GalvanicRhee has been making some controversial but generally positive reforms in the dreadful DC school system to undo the damage done by years under crack-head Mayor Marion Barry. And she's had to stand up to the traditional stagnation promoters on the City Council -- which includes the Eighth Ward's Councilman Marion Barry.
This just might work, but I'd be wary of two things:
1. Grade inflation -- teachers who don't like the idea and think all the students should get cash. If rewards are tied to scores on standardized tests, the program has promise.
2. ACLU Action -- since this involves tax dollars, the ACLU will challenge the Constituionality of rewarding some children and not others, regardless of the criteria.
And don't think it can't happen. The Democratic Congress has already terminated the very successful DC school voucher program in order to please the teachers' union. The children who participated in the school voucher program were, on the average, two full grades ahead of their age peers in terms of learning progress.
Just as the teachers' union is against merit pay for teachers, it will fight against monetary awards for learning performance, and get support from the ACLU and the NCAAP.
Perhaps
July 2, 2009 - 10:51 ET by BlondeAs you said, the idea may have some merit....with the caveats attached.
My nephew participated in a program that was not exactly payment for attendance, rather the kids had a (school-board funded) summer reading contest, with a cash prize.
I think he came in second place, with well over a hundred books or somesuch. Something along those lines would work well too, and could actually be expanded so the kids could participate by subject area. The key being, real reward for real effort, not the liberal equal outcomes for trying.
I hope he fails, too.
(deleted duplicate)
July 3, 2009 - 19:12 ET by Galvanic(deleted)
School vouchers
July 2, 2009 - 10:38 ET by upcountrywaterOhh hell no
Reagan VS Liberalism
Earn to Learn?
July 2, 2009 - 10:42 ET by CobraManThat foolish "Capital Gains" idea was tried here in Minneapolis. Guess what, it didn't work. Attendance still kept falling, as well as graduation rates and accumulative test scores. But it did succeed in costing us a lot of money for no apparent gains, so the Liberals all loved it.
The Citizens of each State shall be entitled to all Privileges and Immunities of Citizens in the several States.
The US Constitution
Unless you're a fetus.
The US Supreme Court
When I was young, I was told
July 2, 2009 - 12:14 ET by FranksamWhen I was young, I was told that I had to 'learn to earn'. Isn't this backwards? Of course, a lot of s*** is backwards now in my book.
So, now we are going to pay children to abuse them...
July 2, 2009 - 10:44 ET by R D Helm...by sending them to government school. How sad.
Government "education" is a colossal failure, and far more of a danger to the future of our nation than a hundred plane-loads of 7th-Century, turban-sporting camel-washers will ever be.
-Dave
"Obama's health care 'reform' plan is to blow up the building in order to fix a leak in the roof." - Herman Cain
Ayn Rand covers this subject and more
July 2, 2009 - 10:52 ET by lareeIT CAME FROM THE 60S, THE SEEDS OF CAP & TRADE.
The New Left we call them Progressives Today the movement was born in the 60s and 70s it included the failure of the school system to teach children an intentional movement. I highly recommed everyone read "The Return of The Primitive" previously titled the New Left, the Anti Industrialist. The Green Movement wants to drag us all kicking and screaming back into the Dark Ages.
http://youhavetobethistalltogoonthisride.blogspot.com/2009/07/new-left-seeds-of-cap-trade.html
Ayn Rand, covers this subject and more
July 2, 2009 - 17:28 ET by lareeThe chapter on the comprachinos will take you for a psychological tour
of what makes a man develope as a thinking individual, or not, from the
time of birth through adolescence. Rand takes you on a virtual tour of
a childs life, showing you which points are critical to the
developement of individuality: the ability to percieve objectively. If
you are concerned about what, if any, detrimental effects day care
centers may have on the development of your child, you can find
guidance here with Rand's writings.
The shin bones, connected to the knee bone, the knee bones connected to the thigh bone.....
The dumbing down of American Children is not random chance. It takes a Village remember?
http://youhavetobethistalltogoonthisride.blogspot.com/2009/07/new-left-seeds-of-cap-trade.html
What a load of BS...
July 2, 2009 - 11:06 ET by PrairieSkyPaying kids as an incentive to do well in school? This is just too much...
Silly me...My folks raised me to believe that good grades and pride in my work were my "rewards" for working hard and doing well in school. As for a more material reward, I remember McDonald's would reward every "A" grade on your report card with a free cheeseburger, which was a real incentive and treat! I remember when I was in second grade, my Dad was in VietNam, and my Mom would take me to McDonald's, with my report card proudly in hand for those hard earned cheeseburgers!
I guess good grades, pride in a job well done, and even cheeseburgers, aren't good enough today...
"The problem is not that people are taxed too little...the problem is that government spends too much." ~President Ronald Reagan
Yeah, I remember being told
July 2, 2009 - 11:24 ET by FranksamYeah, I remember being told that a 'B' wasn't good enough. I went to school in Okiehoma in the sixties, and when I got into a fight (in math class, no less!) I was sent to the Principal's office. The subject of corporal punishment came up, and the man asked if he shouldn't call my dad at work to make sure that paddling was okay. I assured him that call would not be necessary and took my licks, along with my adversary. Of course we became good friends after that.
My how things have changed.
Franksam...
July 2, 2009 - 11:54 ET by PrairieSkyI wasn't told that "B's" weren't good enough, but I was told that I should always do my best.
I also grew up in the South where paddling was commonplace, and to my knowledge, none of the kids that I knew that got sent to the office for a paddling, were ever asked if their parents would object. Corporal punishment was school policy, and everyone knew it. It's amazing how many kids grew up during this time, many who were likely paddled at some point, and all managed to grow up just fine and haven't become serial murderers, which is what the media would have everyone believe.
"The problem is not that people are taxed too little...the problem is that government spends too much." ~President Ronald Reagan
Thanks
July 2, 2009 - 12:26 ET by FranksamYeah, I think the question about calling my dad was rhetorical, and the principal didn't bother with the phone. In elementery school, we still had 'cloak rooms' and the teachers had pointers for more than pointing. I was a bad boy, and I saw the cloak room more than once, because I was a smart-assed comedian. It was worth it.
I have not become a serial murderer yet, but I don't want to rule anything out, given the current state of affairs.
Franksam...
July 2, 2009 - 13:04 ET by PrairieSkyYou still are a comedian! " ...I was a bad boy, and I saw the cloak room more than once, because I was a smart-assed comedian. It was worth it." LOL!
I am glad to hear that you're not a serial murderer yet, but given the state of the country, the world, and the idiots we have that are running things, I'm not sure I'd blame you! ;)
(Just kidding!)
"The problem is not that people are taxed too little...the problem is that government spends too much." ~President Ronald Reagan
PS, I was a smart-ass student, too.
July 2, 2009 - 20:13 ET by R D HelmLOL-Yeah, I know. Who would have guessed?
I spent 90% of my scholastic career in non-government schools.
No joke, there were paddles owned by these institutions that had my initials carved into them.
Hell, I think at least one of them was actually bronzed after I left. :-)
-Dave
"Obama's health care 'reform' plan is to blow up the building in order to fix a leak in the roof." - Herman Cain
RD...LOL!
July 2, 2009 - 23:12 ET by PrairieSkySeriously though, there are obviously, by the posts concerning this topic, A LOT of opinions, some very emotional, on this subject. As for me, I was a "good kid" and managed to escape the paddle, but I knew many who didn't, and in my experience, they all came through unscathed.
I love what you said about one of the paddles with your initials being bronzed...Funny!
"The problem is not that people are taxed too little...the problem is that government spends too much." ~President Ronald Reagan
The last thing teachers need are paddles
July 2, 2009 - 20:00 ET by UnsaneCorporal punishment was school policy, and everyone knew it. It's amazing how many kids grew up during this time, many who were likely paddled at some point, and all managed to grow up just fine and haven't become serial murderers, which is what the media would have everyone believe. I disagree. You want paddling? If you are the parent, buy a paddle for your kid.
If I have kids, and I find out they have been paddled, the principal and the teacher had better call the cops when I enter the door. If they do it then, the cops won't have to investigate homicide, just simple assault.
You may have blind faith in the teachers, but I don't. Back when I went to school I had a principal who I truly believe got some sort of sick, evil sexual satisfaction from paddling students. He would repeatedly do it without parental notification, and it was ALL he would talk about. For some odd reason he got bounced from that school soon after I left - rumor being that parents were complaining left and right about his fetish for the paddle.
The problem with teachers, and Power Trippers, as a general rule, is that both LOVE authority and power, and wish to hoard as much of it as possible, and then relentlessly abuse it. Hence we don't need to be giving paddles to teachers. Besides, at least as children, I can't imagine such an ephemeral character as a teacher (who nine times out of ten are incompetent at their primary role anyway) being made out to be some sort of authority figure. (But then, the teachers need never do anything in my case anyway - there was always the old man's belt to contemplate.)
"CONSUMED DEMOCRACY RETURNS A SOCIALIST REGIME" - Slayer, "Fictional Reality", from Divine Intervention (1994)
Unsane,
July 2, 2009 - 20:11 ET by Radical1979The problem with teachers, and Power Trippers, as a general rule, is that both LOVE authority and power
I have to say, I've taught elementary school, and I have two children, one out of school, the other almost finished. Teachers today have very little power. I agree they shouldn't be allowed to use corporal punishment, but I'd like parents to stand behind them on things like denying kids recess or just making sure kids do homework.
It's very frustrating to hear my daughter tell me her teachers are cursed at using very vulgar language (not by her) and the student is sent to the principal, then right back to class. Teachers are authority figures who have to make kids do what they don't like. Does anyone really like to diagram a sentence? No, but it's in the curriculum so the teacher must teach it and have the authority to do so. For this parents must be supportive.
I know there are lousy teachers out there, my kids have had them, but maybe it's because of what they've gone through with students and parents.
Response
July 2, 2009 - 20:38 ET by UnsaneI have to say, I've taught elementary school, and I have two children, one out of school, the other almost finished. Teachers today have very little power. I think the key word is "today". Back in the 1980s when I did my time, they had a great deal of authority and the principals backed them in every way.
I agree they shouldn't be allowed to use corporal punishment, but I'd like parents to stand behind them on things like denying kids recess or just making sure kids do homework. It ALL boils down to the parents. You can be the greatest teacher in the world, but as long as your student heads back home to parents who don't give a s**t and think the whole child rearing thing is YOUR job, and that you have a magic wand that will turn the little dears into Einsteins...well, good luck to you!
I may be highly critical of teachers but I'm not an idiot...Everyone plays a role in the education of children, but NONE are as critical as the parents. And as long as the parents aren't active participants (as mine were), the teachers are just in for a frustrating ride.
"CONSUMED DEMOCRACY RETURNS A SOCIALIST REGIME" - Slayer, "Fictional Reality", from Divine Intervention (1994)
In the end, like
July 2, 2009 - 20:42 ET by Radical1979In the end, like everything, it comes down to personal responsibility, like parenting your kids and not being their friends all the time.
I guess I went to the right
July 2, 2009 - 20:12 ET by FranksamI guess I went to the right schools, without sadists in charge. I did get in trouble, and have noted so above. I can't say that I was ever on the receiving end without a reason, nor did the punishment exceed my transgressions. Of course, we're talking about teachers that retired many years ago, rather than the group running things now.
Schooling, discipline, the hellhole I attended
July 2, 2009 - 20:32 ET by UnsaneIn my mind if the parent isn't involved at some level - in discipline or in engaging their children on WHY the whole education thing is so important - all the teachers of the world cannot help you.
Maybe it's just my upbringing, I don't know - I never was down with the idea of a stranger like a teacher paddling students. With parents, it's different - that's family, after all. The teachers had no problems with me growing up - all they had to do was to call my old man who would knock some sense into me depending on the severity of the transgression.
Oh, and believe me, I would not wish the middle school I attended on my worst enemy. The kids who have gone there who are now adults can only go on and on and on about what a hellhole it was, and still is. It is the only school my sisters and I have in common and when we are talking about our school days, it typically is a slam-fest of that school.
"CONSUMED DEMOCRACY RETURNS A SOCIALIST REGIME" - Slayer, "Fictional Reality", from Divine Intervention (1994)
Same with me Frank
July 2, 2009 - 20:34 ET by general companyBut I also had concerns about my kids like Unsane. I did not allow my child to recieve CP. The schools here (before they repealed it some 10yrs ago) would send parents a form to fill out. I always wrote on the form, "My childs name, will not particapate in the CP program, but I will not tell her so you may use it as a threat. If you are forced use it as a threat, immeadeatly call me or her Mother"
I was blesses with good kids, never recieved a call.
I was a little sh!t when I was in school. But everyone survived.
My Gov. thinks I am dangerous, so be careful
"Television is a freak show" Bernie Goldberg
Unsane...First, calm down!!!
July 2, 2009 - 23:17 ET by PrairieSkyFrom your response, you'd think that my post was an advertisement for corporal punishment...It wasn't intended to be...I was just writing about what was done at a couple of my schools...I am not advocating or criticizing paddling in schools...I'm neutral on this subject. If you feel otherwise, that is your prerogative and your opinion.
Do I think that some teachers/principals can get carried away with it? Sure. And to set you straight, I certainly do not have a blind faith in teachers...Not even close, based on an experience or two of my own, and a few that have come from being the parent of a child in school. But based on the number of people that I either grew up with or have met as an adult who were punished at one time or the other by paddling, they all seemed to turn out undamaged, physically or emotionally.
It sounds as though you had a real sicko of a principal in school and I'm sorry...That SOB should never have been teaching, let alone put in charge of disciplining anyone in any way...
Just understand that I was not advocating corporal punishment in my post...Just telling a bit about how it was handled at my schools, and my personal experiences concerning people I knew who had been punished that way. That's all...
Happy 4th of July!
(P.S. My husband was stationed in Korea, too...)
"The problem is not that people are taxed too little...the problem is that government spends too much." ~President Ronald Reagan
No problem
July 3, 2009 - 22:18 ET by UnsaneHey, no problem, I am always about hearing how it was for some people. My old man, for instance, to this day tells me how much he feared the nuns of a Catholic school he would pass by on the streets of a major Midwestern city where he grew up...and he wasn't even a student there! Different times, different era...
At that particular school I reference, I have yet to meet a person who had a good experience there. That principal I spoke of was basically a tyrant. Even as a boy I knew of enough parents who were complaining about him for his obsessive devotion to the paddle and I suspect to this day it was why he was shoved out the door. (Fortunately he was counterbalanced by perhaps one of the best I ever knew.) Not only that, but corporal punishment was done away with altogether soon after. Coincidence? I don't think so.
That middle school was rough, in a neighborhood that was rough around the edges, but it was compounded by the nutjob principal and plenty of teachers whom I suspected absolutely hated the students they were teaching, by way of their behavior. I was fortunate to have one or two good ones, though.
Pardon my reflexive cringing at corporal punishment...I'd just rather have the parents do that, not a fleeting, passing individual like a teacher or principal. I'm not of the group that thinks it is horrible and traumatic...my issues with it are rooted in my personal experiences as noted, and some philosophical ideas. That's all.
Korea was awesome. I miss it. Happy Fourth! I'll be working all day...
"CONSUMED DEMOCRACY RETURNS A SOCIALIST REGIME" - Slayer, "Fictional Reality", from Divine Intervention (1994)
This is a terrible idea. As
July 2, 2009 - 11:16 ET by mandrakeThis is a terrible idea. As adults we are rewarded for good attendance and performance in the workplace. We should not be trying to ingrain these values in children until they first learn the value of individual responsiblity. The child and family, and they alone must be responsible for their education.
Why am I paying $18,000 for school?
July 2, 2009 - 11:31 ET by someloudthunderWhy am I paying $18,000 for school to become a teacher all I need to do is pay the damn kids cash to satisfy them? I don't need a degree for that.
With that said the only time I find this program acceptable is in disadvantaged school corps where they add the money to the child's scholarship fund. It actually promotes some to work harder than they usually do - but does the school system where I graduated need to do this? No.
Admission that the problem isn't with The System...
July 2, 2009 - 12:21 ET by krendler...but with the attitude of the kids themselves, along with apathy by, more than likely, single mothers.
Oprah said as much when asked why she was donating all the money for schools in Africa when there were kids right here in our inner cities who could benefit:
Winfrey, who devoted five years to creating the Oprah Winfrey
Leadership Academy for Girls outside Johannesburg, also said of the
assistance she has given at home, "I became so frustrated with visiting
inner-city schools that I just stopped going. The sense that you need
to learn just isn't there."
In America, she says, "If you ask the kids what they want or
need, they will say an iPod or some sneakers. In South Africa, they
don't ask for money or toys. They ask for uniforms so they can go to school."
All that's not PC, though (unless spoken by someone like Oprah). Obama and company will blame the problem on "8 years of George Bush neglecting our children", etc.
jessieH
July 2, 2009 - 12:46 ET by jessieHjessieH $100.00 every 2 weeks! Hey, govt., where is MY money? Let's see, 12 years at $100.00 every 2 weeks. Wow! I could buy a congressman for that much money!
'it's never enough'
July 2, 2009 - 12:48 ET by JDWHow many of these states are going broke?
A friend of mine wrote 'Unintended Consequences' and I have reflected upon the title many times lately.
What benefit has support for teachers unions provided these states? In the same light, how will these states benefit from funding these public school experiments?
JDW
DAILY WAVE
When people fear their government there is tyranny.
When government fears the people there is liberty.
In my eyes this is
July 2, 2009 - 12:53 ET by bigtimerIn my eyes this is terrible...paying kids to achieve good grades.
What happened to your own quest for knowledge, your own thirst to do your best, you developing your own sense of skill and pride.
Oh well...whatever works I guess.
Doubling down on stupid is not a particularly good idea. ~Andrew Breitbart
Innovation
July 2, 2009 - 13:30 ET by iveseenitallI don't like this program either. However, I am glad to see that the chancellor is trying some new ideas, such as eliminating tenure and firing poor teachers. It is going to take strong leaders who can face down the unions with guts and imagination to change the schools. I am preparing my thoughts and suggestions in a book that I am writing on the subject. If it gets published, I'll be in for it. Obama, I'm afraid, will go down the political path of least risistance. Sad.
NEVER,NEVER trust a "liberal"
The dems don't ...
July 2, 2009 - 13:05 ET by SentryDanThe dems don't want people that can think and reason things out, find solutions to problems. That would ruin their agenda. They want people they can program to do as they are told.
Remember folks, Freedom isn't Free. It was bought with the blood and sacrifice of the men and women who are serving and who have served in the U.S. Armed Forces.
For those who fought for it, Freedom has a flavor that the protected will never know.
Also remember folks, that the way to SUPPORT THE TROOPS is to support their mission. Anyone who says that they support the troops but don't support their mission is lying about supporting the troops. And if you want to know, yes I do have a dog in the fight, he is a United States Marine.
Another generation is now
July 2, 2009 - 13:20 ET by SnappyAnother generation is now being indoctrinated into the Government hand out programs. This truly is a cradle to grave program being implemented now. Kids now will know that they should be "paid" To do ANYTHING, and that dollar comes from the government. Gone will be the mentality of your own self worth or bettering yourself just for its own sake. Risk and reward will have no meaning....this is truly sad, the "good" that is being achieved by having these kids get better grades is more than undone by the mindset being learned.
The good old days
July 2, 2009 - 13:45 ET by teeaa01I went to school at a catholic school in NYC and the nuns were infamous for their cruelty, but I would take getting a ruler busted over my knuckles any day as opposed to what would happen when I got home! Funny thing though, my classes (and I have the class pictures to prove it) had no less than 50 kids. Oddly, there was rarely a discipline problem and we learned. I guess the whole point is we need to stop mollycoddling kids and start demanding parental involvement. Oh and throwing money at teachers, it doesn't work.
"If you are not free to choose wrongly and irresponsibly, you are not free at all" Jacob Hornberger
It definitely has merit
July 2, 2009 - 14:56 ET by trak65The problem is that for many, many kids in the DC school system there is insufficient motivation -- particularly at home -- to learn. The cash might be effective in providing this missing motivation. It's easy to wag fingers. But realistically if you're in Rhee's position and charged with turning around failing schools, you have few tools at your disposal force parents to suddenly get with the program. As to the cost, it is chump change compared to the hundreds of millions already being spent.
I say give it a chance.
DC Schools
July 2, 2009 - 20:06 ET by UnsaneNo matter how much money any government - federal, state or local - puts into public education, it's never enough in some people's eyes. So sad and so true. This is why I always vote against school district bond issues where I live. The schools need to learn to do with less, especially as they are committed to mediocrity.
By the way, for ALL of the money the DC schools, spend every year per student...they should be cranking out divisions worth of Salks, Shakespeares, Mozarts, Einsteins and Baarnards every single spring. But they don't. Why is that, I wonder? The money is NOT the issue...
Oh, and PAYING students for good grades? Dumb idea.
"CONSUMED DEMOCRACY RETURNS A SOCIALIST REGIME" - Slayer, "Fictional Reality", from Divine Intervention (1994)
"This program is a bad
July 2, 2009 - 20:18 ET by Radical1979"This program is a bad method consisting of dangling goodies in front of kids rather than treating them respectfully as partners in the learning
Who is this guy kidding? Treating them respectfully as partners in learning? They're kids, they want to run around, play, scream, and impress one another. Very few kids "love to learn for learning sake". I like that she's gotten rid of a lot of staff and is giving higher salaries and replacing tenure. Reward the teachers that produce and wave goodbye to the other ones!