Wednesday, January 28, 2009

20/20 Special - Stupid in America: How we are Cheating Our Children

I was almost physically sick after watching this 20/20 segment, and felt compelled to share it. Beware: It is shocking and scary, and will likely make you angry. Unfortunately, the interviews speak for themselves as it relates to our educational system.

While I am certainly the first to say that there are numerous hard working teachers, principals and administrators, the traditional SYSTEM has not changed with the times and is broken in terms of unions and seniority; we need to give good (effective) teachers bonuses and fire those who do poorly (gee, just like in the real world...). I could care less if you've been a teacher for 2 years or 20.

I was especially frustrated with the part where the NY Schools superintendent said it took 6 years to get rid of an admitted sex offender. I think he said their state spends $40 million PER YEAR for a "Rubber Room" -- an office building where they send teachers (who just read magazines all day) who are no longer fit for teaching in the classroom, but they must continue to employ and pay due to the union rules. Give me a break!

Watch this video and let me know what you think!

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