National School Choice Week and Educational Innovation: "A Move in the Right Direction"

It's wonderful to live in a time when, if you can't "be there" physically, you can do the next best thing and view an event online. I'm referring to Washington DC's Think Tank Valley, groups of varied political/social persuasions that dot the city landscape. This morning it was The Heritage Foundation (http://www.heritage.org) (of which 'yours truly' is a new member), "Grading the States on School Choice" the topic, part of National School Choice Week (January 21-28).  Though Heritage is a conservative policy research institute, the school choice question cuts across party lines -- and for obvious reasons. ALL parents have a stake in this issue: just ask comedian Bill Cosby; Democratic strategist James Carville and Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal. Not to mention British actor Sacha Baron Cohen! (Now how does HE fit into the picture? I thought his home was England but you see, it's an issue that cuts across the pond, too.)

Senator Jim DeMint (R-South Carolina) opened the panel and made an excellent case for school choice. Having previously worked in advertising/marketing himself, he clearly understands the importance of consumers making the decision for the best product or service. "The model that made America an exception can work for education if we allow millions of Americans to make their own decisions re. education for their children...We shouldn't assume that public education should be government education!" Using the best practices model in business would also work for education, taking what's best from different sources.


After eight years of tracking (2003-11), it was a "bit disappointing to see how little the bar has moved....there have been no great changes in standardized test grades even with President Bush's 'No Child Left Behind' program," said Dave Myslinski, Education Task Force Director at the American Legislative Exchange Council. One good piece of news: Florida is now the 3rd best state for general education, low-income students. That's 3rd best; from 2003-09, Florida saw great gains. 

Dr. Matthew Ladner, Senior Advisor of Policy and Research - Foundation for Excellence in Education, believes that 2011 was a Banner Year for educational reform due to a growing bipartisan consensus for school rehabilitation. But what is the overall problem? Dr. Ladner believes the answer may lie with late economist Milton Friedman, University of Chicago School of Economic Theory. The market drives human and material progress with enormous progress made in most human activities and in the things we buy. With education it's very much the opposite trend! The spending goes up, the results go down. There is no powerful incentive to achieve results with an education monopoly. NEEDED: Incentives for Innovation in School Choice. "Education is too important to be divorced from the market," Dr. Ladner emphatically stated.  


The USA is generally behind the curve in matters of school choice (compared to Europe) and we need to catch up. Opening schools to the free market is critical; the "Flip Classroom Concept" of schooling is one path to pursue. "Flipping" is using the internet to provide pre-classroom lectures, with the classroom then used as a place to interpolate that knowledge through teacher guidance, discussion and group projects. It's an idea much in vogue at the moment, some examples being: 
[1] Salman Khan Academy: "With just a computer and a pen-tablet-mouse, one can educate the world!" - http://www.khanacademy.org/
[2] Florida Virtual School: an online school for grades K-12 - http://www.flvs.net/
[3] Carpe Diem Schools: a tuition-free, Arizona public school system - http://www.carpediemschools.com/

From 1994 through 2009, my husband and I managed to put our three daughters through parochial schools. We received tuition assistance from the school committees, largely due to our income and my own ongoing health issues. As generous as the assistance was - and it REALLY was, or else it never would have been possible - it nevertheless was a15-year financial challenge. We don't regret it, we'd definitely do it again! But I agree that it's high time we open our schools to market forces and examine options as carefully as we examine our car purchases. And aren't we fortunate to be living in a day and age when  -- finally -- we can do it without (as in the recent past) breaking our bank account?


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www.heritage.org/events/2012/
www.khanacademy.org/
www.flvs.net/
www.carpediemschools.com/

The Problem with China Envy - Jonah Goldberg - National Review Online

The Problem with China Envy - Jonah Goldberg - National Review Online

The Cycle Continues in California - By Victor Davis Hanson - The Corner - National Review Online

The Cycle Continues in California - By Victor Davis Hanson - The Corner - National Review Online

A Christmas Made in China

http://www.zazzle.com/a_christmas_made_in_china:

Yes, I'm tooting my horn here! The above is my OWN design - 
how 'bout that? But Zazzle has loads of other amazing items
for EVERY occasion! At last count, 17,000,000+ people were
selling their creations on the site! Perhaps (a sign of the
economic times) many are returning to the cottage industry?
Much of the merchandise might be considered "extraneous"
stuff - BUT - it's a start in, perhaps, a better direction. Isn't it
time we re-thought our place in the market economy - i.e.
the world of work? If Steve Jobs*, Bill Gates*, Rush Limbaugh*,
and Woody Allen* could chase their dreams, why can't we?

*The above gentlemen did not complete, or did not participate,
in the standard 4-year college career.  

So let's go! Let's see if more of us can carve out a niche outside
of the traditional workplace, no matter what career/profession
we're in. And Good Luck to all!

Time for a WORTHY KRISPY KREME Break!

http://www.qsrmagazine.com/news/wake-and-smell-coffee-krispy-kreme

Living in the G0-Go Silicon (Santa Clara) Valley, California, in the '90's and 2000's was an experience.  Lots of everything there, except there was  a dearth of doughnut shops, the kind I grew up loving in the east.  One of the more memorable moments was when Krispy Kreme finally opened their store on Leghorn Street just off the Central Expressway in Mountain View, in the heart of Silicon Valley.  Forget Google! Forget eBay! Forget Intel!  Krispy Kreme made Silicon Valley a more humane place.  It was fun doing car pools, collecting the kids from school and dropping by Krispy Kreme for wonderful coffee and doughnuts! I'll always have fond memories of those days. Thank you, Krispy Kreme.  And may you go from strength to strength!