Normally, press releases are yawn inducing, but one I received
last week made me want to scream. A former "Sex and the
City" actress, Cynthia Nixon, along with the City Council
speaker, Christine Quinn, the public advocate, and three borough
presidents held a press conference on the steps of City Hall.
Their urgent message was the targeting of six Republican senators
who are opposing the Campaign for Fiscal Equity for city schools.
The idea that our failing public school system needs more money
is infuriating.
If money were truly a problem, then I could understand the
concerns of those gathered to demand more funding for the
schools, but let's get real. According to the February 2006
financial status report, the total funds committed to the
Department of Education was more than $16 billion, yet Johnny
still can't read. The 2006 proposed budget for the entire state
of Rhode Island was only $3.15 billion. Before any more funding
goes to the schools, I'd like the Department of Education to
explain why the "fringe benefits" in its budget cost
$1,787,804,843.
Taxpayers are now expected to throw more money at this behemoth
before making any effort to stem its voracious appetite for
taxpayer money. Whether funds come from the state or the federal
government, in the end they come from the taxpayers, including
Ms. Nixon, et al. I think we deserve better bang for our buck,
and we need to have the Department of Education cut the lard from
the system before feeding it more.
Admittedly, I am not a product of the public school system nor
did I send my children through it. I was fortunate enough to
attend a parochial school when it was virtually free. Public
schools were actually superior to Catholic schools in the early
1950s until radical theorists substituted expensive social
engineering for traditional education.
I do, however, have many teacher friends who are as critical of
the system as I am. Recently I sat down with one of my favorites,
whom I'll call Teacher X to protect her from any reprisals from
the Department of Education or the teachers union.
She told me, "The BOE [Board of Education] decreed that
every classroom from kindergarten to Grade 5 had to have a rug.
Every real teacher would have told them it's a health hazard. Do
you know that kids vomit? Pee in their pants? Come to school with
head lice? Who's going to clean the rugs? I'll bet it's not in
the contract of the custodial staff. This excessive over
management, over things like how many staples are used on a
bulletin board, have completely moralized true and dedicated
teachers."
Our lunch together went by quickly as my recently retired friend
ticked off a litany of grievances that I imagine most committed
teachers are enduring but fear to mention publicly. "Another
bad move was giving the budget to the principals. It sounds good
on paper, but I know personally that older teachers are being
forced out because the principal can hire two new teachers for
the price of one earning top pay."
She also agreed with my argument that the system is top heavy
with administrators, who, she says, do nothing but harass
teachers and generate paper work. From my viewpoint, the teachers
union seems to be a major obstacle toward any reform of the
system. It objects to school choice, whether it's in the form of
vouchers or tax credits, yet all we hear are complaints about the
crowded schools.
My friend admits that some of her grievances may no longer be
valid since her retirement, but she saved her most vehement
protest for what she calls the latest outrage: teaching
kindergartners about AIDS, a state mandate of several years'
standing, but one that it is being increasingly implemented in
the classroom.
"They say they won't be mentioning the fact that needles and
'unusual' sex practices are primarily the cause, and that they'll
be discussing general hygienic practices, like washing one's
hands. Before long, these babies, who are not permitted any
innocence now, will be introduced to alternative lifestyles. God
help us!"
Too bad he's not allowed in the schools to do that.