The foundations of the future WE have discussed, in these essays,  Campaign Reform, Health Care, and Justice Reform.  Pale in comparison to the importance of OUR next subject - educational reform. But; make no mistake.  While reform of the Nation's educational standards and methods is a highly contentious issue.  It is, potentially, more important than any other topic that we may discuss.  As it relates, directly, to the future well being of this nation.  As always, I will be exposing what I consider to be critical failures in the system, as practiced.  Some, derived from the failed ideologies of the past that have led directly to the failures of the present.  Specifically; the unwillingness of this nations leadership to design and implement the appropriate philosophies of today.  That will prepare this nations children for the challenge of building the technologies and economies of tomorrow.  In my critique of our educational system I'll follow the same progression through the school system that the children follow. From kindergarten, through elementary grades, high school, and ending with the collegiate and post graduate systems. Promoting, as usual and as necessary, those changes to curriculum, procedures, or equipment, which would benefit from alteration, standardization or improvement.

    Our introduction to the needs of the country's educational system should begin with a short history lesson.  Prior to the end of the civil war; public access to an education was, for all intents and purposes, non-existent.  The first line of education was in the home, if either parent could read they taught their children.  Often using the family bible to teach reading and sums by firelight.  And while some townships understood that their economic well being was linked with the education of its citizenry.  The quality of this education was often limited to the simplest understanding of reading, writing, and  'rithmetic.  Anyone who desired their children "classically" educated (a Greco-Roman centric philosophy) had to be willing to pay for it, with either private school tuition or private tutoring.  The only place in America where all of a towns children had access to a basic education was in the small towns of the moderately tamed western territories.  After the civil war; the education of colored communities in the south became the overriding concern for many northern abolitionist and church charities.  This explosive growth in the literacy of  "Freedmen"  was reflected in the increase of coloreds serving in local, state, and federal offices before the turn of the twentieth century.  This sudden loss of influence; unsettled long established local politicians, their avenues of graft dependent on the unquestioned control afforded them by an uneducated white constituency.  In the south, a constituency previously dependent on the plantation system, suddenly deprived of their livelihood and less employable than their charges of a few years earlier.  The resulting conflict, between white and colored communities, properly publicized by inflammatory articles in local newspapers.  Would lay the ground work for future "Jim Crow" legislation.  While the exclusion of coloreds, in subsequent elections,  restored the "im-balance" of power to the racial organizations and political machines prevalent in American elections.

    In 1868, when a reconstructed Congress, approved reconstruction expenditures.  Part of that spending created  The Department of Education.  Unfortunately; Congress failed to provide the Department with any of the tools required to fulfill its mission.  With no definition of what its mission was, no authority to enforce compliance to legislative changes, and no funds to provide compliance assistance.  The newly formed Department did nothing for forty plus years, except guarantee the incomes of a few party favorites.  While reinforcing the belief that education was a luxury the masses should not possess.  And, in keeping with the philosophy of State's Rights (the real cause of the civil war), none of its concern.   This practice persisted until the early nineteen-teens, as international concerns acquired a decade earlier with victories over Spain, first placed us on the modern world stage.  The international ranking of our nation's military (14th), as the European militaries industrialized, was indicative of our lack of influence with foreign powers.  Foreign strategists justifying this assessment by America's unwillingness to maintain a large standing army.  A budget item subject to constitutional limits at the time.  Their opinion being further confirmed by our inability to quickly quell the Philippine independence uprisings.  When confronting the difficulty in training inductees, who could neither read nor write, to operate and maintain the cutting edge technologies developing in airpower as well as naval and shore artilleries.  Military budgets had to absorb these shortcomings and increase the training time of new recruits to provide this basic education to their forces.  Protesting to Congress;  military leaders reasoned, rightly, that the moneys spent on educating inductees was depriving the nation's defense organizations of funds needed for modernization.  Congress responded with legislation that shifted the responsibility for public education; to the States.  Aiding compliance was a federally funded, and properly padded, school building program.  As many of the nation's older school buildings date to this period.  States responded by passing legislation mirroring these new federal regulations - promoting their apparent compliance. Themselves including language that once again shifted responsibility down to the county or city level.   Here the historic practice of an education being purchased, affected the design for public education.  Since it's public education, they reasoned, let the public pay for it.  Initially prompting property taxes to take the brunt of a local governments sudden need for educational funding.  Adding sales taxes later, to help provide this benefit of basic residency.  In shifting responsibility for meeting compliance standards to the lowest taxing body.  State Legislatures hoped to defer the costs; thus leaving State Budgets unaffected.  Where inadvertently or with a false sense of budgetary reasoning.  They began the deficit spending practices that created the funding crises in our nation's schools that persists to this day.  Positioning district funding, from program inception, into a burden on property owners to maintain even a modest district budget.  And especially in those districts where local economic growth has not kept pace with necessary  "minimum property values".   These typically being in the more densely populated urban areas where enrollment, thus need, can be greatest, but property values can be lowest.  Or in rural areas where property valuations can be depressed by a lack of economic opportunity.  Making hardship districts, seeking equalizing compensatory grants from their state government, appear as beggars.  To protect their already stretched funding, the districts themselves committed the next error.  Using summer vacation.  An established custom, originally scheduled, as an aid to the family farms annual cycle.  When all available labor was needed just to maintain familial subsistence.  Limiting their employment contracts to a school "term" of nine months. Districts lowered their costs by eliminating one fourth of its annual wages budget.  Depriving these employees of full time status.  Denying them, as full time employees, of union job protections, automatic cost of living raises, and the access to other health and comfort benefits available to state employees.  Reducing school district employees to the bureaucratic equivalent of a day laborer.   

    The next error was our fault.  Voters, office holders, candidates, parents, property owners, whatever special interest group we think we belong to.  However; a complete discussion of the inconsistencies, inconstancy, and idiosyncrasies of National, State, or local taxes isn't possible here.  WE must limit our understanding to that portion of it which directly affects the subject of this treatise - public education.  To begin let me ask everyone some questions.  First; How much are you willing to pay in taxes ?  Seriously; what to you seems fair ?  Next; how much in the way of government services do you expect ?  Should someone always respond when you dial "911", or redirect you when you inquire about non-emergency concerns ?  How well do you want your children educated ?  Should the basic education provided make them all college capable, if not college bound ?   Now the big question; taking into account the obligations previously mentioned.  Will the amount your willing to pay support the level of services you expect ?  And that; my fellow Americans, is the core of the problem.  No "politician" wants to state the obvious due to the "electioneering" fallout after the tax break lie is proven.  Any inherent inequalities in taxes levied charts our course towards fiscal insolvency.  When taxes don't at least keep pace with inflation - neither do budgets.  And trading our votes for promises of tax dollars back in our pockets.  Without a clear understanding of the long-term costs associated with such short -term savings.  Slowly, yet inexorably, weakens our system.  By forcing every state, county, and city budget into that deficit spending pattern.  Where non-critical services (like school districts) can suffer severe budget cuts or shortfalls to guarantee emergency services.  Now; do WE believe the politicians responsible for these tax cuts fully understand the consequences of their frivolous political posturing.  I think not.  To my interpretation such knowledge would border on negligent, if not criminal, financial mis-management.   At the very least it amounts to a promise of poor fiscal planning as a candidates management policy.  Understand; these funding problems won't be solved by more voter controls over disbursement of district funds.  Although those too are needed.   Such as voter approval for politically promised reductions to affect district funding, or to redirect funds earmarked for district operation or supplies.  Candidates tend to promise tax cuts across the board when only general funding is truly within an administrations purview; established expenses are not.  No different than making bond payments from their special fund rather than using cuts in services to meet these commercial financial obligations.  The next step in solving this funding crises is by removing the item of greatest expense to district budgets - its people.  I'm not suggesting putting them in the unemployment line.  But; redistributing the burden of their employment, to income and sales taxes, at the state level.  Promoting remuneration equitable to the standards set by current state employees.  Something that will never be possible off the sweat of property owners who, unbeknownst and unconsidered, may just be making their mortgage.  Of course then the State's Dept of Education becomes responsible for; besides staff payroll - hiring, credentials verification, certification, background checks, and district assignments (per district requests).  Reducing district expenditures to facilities maintenance and annual supplies.  Truly giving property owners tax relief.

    While these recommendations for changes to district funding may sound extreme.  Plans for the classroom are anything but.  In fact that's the very purpose of changing district funding, to ensure that the classroom remains fundamentally the same.  So that every student, who desires, has access to curricula electives that promote class and community camaraderie.  By its very nature this must also include those artistic electives which, in the modern day as in ancient history, are the foundations of reasoning.  Archimedes could not have succeeded had he not been influenced to depicting his problem three dimensionally, with stencil in sand, like an artist on canvas.  The next subject should be the logic behind current international educational theory.  Usable statistical results require that all study subscribers are adhering to the same guidelines of instruction in those areas of most international interest - the sciences and mathematics.  Results must be suspect when the regimes of instruction can vary by, national guidelines, instructor interpretation, testing formats, even down to the very tests used for comparison.  The only usable constant from any study is the percentile scale (0-100) applied to determine competency of achievement.  And this is more likely an inheritance from ancient Greece.  Realize that for comparisons to be valid the curricula used to educate must be as similiar as the nation's instituting them are varied.  Consider kindergarten through the primary grades (U.S. K-4).  Any comparisons drawn by later testing, as well as the conclusions presented, are invalidated by the multitude of international differences during these critical years of mental and cognitive development.  From antiquity to the present the greatest determiner of class, patrician or plebeian (the haves and the have-nots respectively), is the ability to read.   Our modern elementary schools fail; by not concentrating on teaching reading.  The fundamental ability which, by necessity, must precede comprehension of the rest.  Any student is guaranteed to score poorly in tabulated results, at these later tested grades, when they have difficulty interpreting the questions.  By placing a greater emphasis on reading in kindergarten, such as ensuring every student can read Dr. Seuss without help and answer a short questionaire on the subject.  Helps introduce the children to future classroom routines and ettiquette. While analysis of these scores (though they should all get a gold star for completion) serves as a means for early diagnosis of learning disabilities.   Our next improvement should involve the theories and implementation of our own federal testing that begins in the middle grades (U.S. 5-8).  Altering the system to allow the students to fully complete the test, noting their progress at specific times.  Can help reduce test taking anxieties experienced in later grades when timing is factored into achievement.  Leading to better overall performance.  Included in these basic changes must be full disclosure, of student performance, to parents and district personnel.  As parents and concerned citizens, WE should ask ourselves why the results of our child's federal testing is not reported to us.  Local districts provide a report card aiding the assessment of our childs achievement by state standards. Why not these federal standings ? And since they're not.  How can these federal assessments be true or trusted ?

    Now we come to the area of education that requires the most sweeping changes - classroom resources.  But first we must answer the question asked earlier.  Do we desire all of the nation's children educated to college competency ?   With the understanding that college capable does not guarantee college bound.  Some, like myself, will be unsure of their interests to make such a long-term commitment so early in life.  Others interests may follow a more "hands-on" approach, choosing the family business, manufacturing, learning a trade skill, or simply a desire to become self sufficient for the first time as a societal rite of passage.   Still others may not be capable no matter how much we alter the system to aid them all.  And, please, realize that this is determined not by color, creed, or gender but by - income.  And not a families personal income.  Though generally the farther above poverty level, the better the student performs.  No.  The income that plays the greatest role is each local school districts budget.  Yet; the manner of their institution, as a local publicly funded entity, guarantees they will always be underfunded.  The only true constant between all the districts' tax base's is inequality.  A by-product of these fiscal responsibilities being passed down to the lowest level of civil liability.  Dooming a necessary national concern, the education of this nation's children, to a poorly conceived and poorly executed program.  Which has pre-cast a strata of inequality throughout our nation.  Thereby ensuring, with few exceptions, the continued separation between the cans and the can'ts.  Understand; providing equal access in every district, without concern for a family's income parity, is impossible.  As long as a district's taxable property is the primary measure by which its funding is determined.  And if we simply applied some incalculable equation to provide equalizing funds from state budgets. We would fail. If we pooled district monies, increasing disbursements to poorer districts. We'd promote protests by those who felt their schools were threatened with reductions in services or personnel. And we would still fail. With the likely effect to be an overall reduction in student performance.  Or with the unintended consequence of shifting forward, onto already strained mid-level incomes, more of the cost to maintain current standards. However;  before we can even consider methods to improve district equippage and access. We must first settle the question of funding.  Will we continue to tolerate the fits and starts of current political funding schemes.  Where; short term funding is virtually assured congressional approval to silence so called "agitators".  While long-term funding remains in a limbo of perpetual political deadlock by politicians who can't agree on what color the sky is.  Ensuring the subjects expected "electioneering" value.  A philosophy designed to work in conjunction with district shortages and deficit spending.  Promoting perpetual justification for tax increases.  After all only a politician with a death wish would say  "no don't raise taxes to provide better schools".  

    Or; does America desire solutions ?  Predicated, from inception, to serve and secure this nation for centuries.  If so; we must find consistent methods of program funding on a national level.  With the recognition that benefits of basic residency, like education, require funding in perpetuity.  Permanently removing them from any candidate's election cycle self-marketing schemes.  Which often threaten the access and quality of local operations.  So this theoretical programs' proposed funding should occur only once. Introducing the programs financial controls and defining it's accounting practices for the entire development, and installation period, the first one hundred years. With the following century of operation providing every district with cost only expenses. Achieving the operating cost of a classrooms' equipment, as assessed to district budgets, of pennies per student per year. And; after applying quality driven physical design, workmanship, and installation.  We could, hopefully, stretch these cost effective operations for another hundred years or more.  Imagine; an educational tool that provides the greatest classroom equality, nationwide, and costs districts, eventually, only the electricity to run it and the labor to maintain it, for at least a century.  Now; how else can we quantify the nations' savings from the benefits of the equipment we'll develop and install ?  After all; the cost of the infrastructural investments I propose, not just in education, will be an expensive undertaking.  Potentially risking the entire nation's wealth if repayment, to an established credit line, are deferred or defaulted on. Savings might be realized by ensuring that every student has the most current textbook in production, in every subject, every year, at less than one fifth of the current cost of textbook replacement.  Other savings, could be realized by automating many aspects of an instructors duties, providing them more time for direct student mentoring, monitoring, and managing. Giving them back their private lives, by allowing the system to perform the more mundane tasks that place the greatest claim on their paid and personal time.  And let's not forget the savings to our natural resources.  Consider the nation's forests when fewer trees are used to feed our ruled paper or textbook manufacturing needs.  Most of which is motivated by our educational system every August. Further savings to district budgets could be realized by altering current forms of student transportation to alternative fuels. Consider the benefit to student services if the "big Yellow School Bus" was electric ! With each distribution yard equipped with either solar or wind generated electricity. Recharging the buses batteries during times of non-use, typically nights and holidays. How much money could be put to better uses by removing the cost of fuel from these already stretched district monies. And these are just a few of the ways we can provide quantifiable savings to the public.

    By now everyone must realize what this wonder weapon against "illiteracy, ignorance, and insolvency" is - a fully integrated, computer enhanced, "interactive" educational environment. Empowering instructors throughout the nation.  Allowing them, in real-time, to write on the blackboard or monitor a student's work, as an indicator for assistance, all from the comfort of their desk.  Proving that equal access for every child is possible.  By equipping American classrooms with the hardware to provide the highest level of educational support.  Apart from the operating system, most of the needed component electronics can be acquired "off the shelf".  And with appropriate design protocols.  A class's processors, instructors and students, could fit into desks currently     owned or offered through school supply chains. 

    Combine this with docking for a portable device.  And you've provided more than just current digital textbooks. You've given registered students and their parents "secure non-public access" to campus maps, the annual schedule of holidays, special events, even the lunch menu. While an instructors' device would allow them to, prepare school or district reports, review submitted work, even design tests.  Applying these current technologies could automate many class procedures including attendance, assignments, even grading. But; can we count reduction of these distractions from teaching time as a quantifiable savings to America ?  And using these applications will require the highest degree of secure access, not just classroom to classroom, but grade to grade, district to district, even state to state. Mandating primary (K-8) classrooms everywhere in the nation are on the same, grade appropriate, lesson plan.  Eliminating discrepancies in grading conversion, that can be experienced by interstate transfers.  And replacing a current federal curricula standard that allows for fifty different interpretations. Few of which adequately address our future voters need for reading and math proficiency.  Restoring these national test averages to the average of our nation, not fifty nations.

    Now as the students progress to High School, interpreted as grades 9-12, so do WE.  While OUR initial hardware investment, at these grade levels, would be minimal.  At most a single room per campus. Earmarked for remedial or advanced classes.  A small percentage of the nation's total expected DOE investment. Would provide the "bridge" funding needed to overcome current shortages in STEM education. Shortages aided by dwindling resources and rising costs. Giving students a "hands on field trip" intro-duction to scientific method. With an eye to the real world benefits of this community based monitoring of their environs. Local farmers (who agree to sampling), at no expense, could track pesticides or fertilizer levels in their runoff. Indicating when lower levels of application would be cost effective. Reducing the expenses of these procedures to the family farm. And; with voluntary testing, immunity from prosecution for non-willful discharges. Or supplying local zoning boards with crucial "footprint" information. Helping them target those businesses or industrys that would most balance economic with "green" growth. While initial results would, agreeably, be suspect.  Due to the  lack of curricula planning as well as staff and student unfamiliarity. Questionable or abnormal results could be forwarded for collegiate level retesting. Then, when further action is warranted, to the appropriate State or Federal agencies. Potentially refining procedural errors or preventing catastrophic equipment failure. And the eventual compilation of a hundred year nationwide database. Would aid in localizing the origination of abnormal readings. Reducing the suspected area from hundreds of square miles to a county or less. Saving both local agencies and their oversight organizations considerable troubleshooting time and taxpayer money. As stated; the long term goal of any proposed alterations to OUR educational methods. Must be preparing this nation's future innovators for the future marketplace. While protecting  "homerule" curricula standards. That allow local communities to respond to their own projected workforce and budgetary needs.  While aiding those students whose interests or abilities reflect their own long term desires. Helping them fulfill the course studies which promote their academic scholarship eligibility. While any funds disbursed by the DOE during this educational reorganization. Would act only as compensatory equalizing funding until installation of the entire K-12 system is completed. Helping to avert those economic limitations. That can become most magnified in some circumstances during these pre-adult times. Ensuring that no child is left behind.

    Our final subject; the funding of student loans for advanced college degrees.  Takes on a greater sense of urgency when we are confronted by the imminent vote on the cancellation of over six billion dollars of student debt.  Potentially jeopardizing the future recertification of these assistance programs.  Certainly none of these graduates intended to default on their loans.  So what went wrong ?  How did FAFSA, the organization responsible for determining eligibility and oversight of these programs, fail them and the nation ?  Assessing the loan amounts associated with advanced degrees versus the repayment expectations (i.e crunching the numbers). The question becomes - How could FAFSA not fail ?  Any cursory review of FAFSA protocols shows its standards were not adopted to benefit the nations students.  With the  assessment of interest rates which increase the more advanced the degree desired.  Graduates can expect to pay more in interest charges than they borrowed for their education.  Coupled with repayment terms that often require up to 30 percent of a graduates expected monthly income. At a time when their earning power, having just entered the workforce, is at its lowest. Predisposes the graduates and FAFSA to failure. Further; requiring parental income or IRA information, as a condition of application, is discriminatory. Jeopardizing the nation's retirement philosophy and undermining the PUBLIC nature of this financing. While I find no indication of parental repayment obligations.  It presupposes that parents, financially capable of providing for their children's education, would choose not to. Which, again, I find discriminatory. The nation should presume that parents, of students attending locally, would continue to provide for their childs welfare. And base eligibility on that alone. With the itemization of these fundamental errors of FAFSA's guidelines the question becomes - Is it correctable ? And; if so, how ? Obviously; our first concern must be the reconciliation of the appalling interest rate being charged to graduates seeking a masters or medical degree. And the egregious profit expected from loans of this value. If the taxpayers are not considered the owners of any patents or processes derived from publicly funded research. And expected to benefit only from the taxes derived from local employment or purchases. Why is this publicly funded program expected to produce such a surplus of income for the government that it induces a hardship on recipients ? Halving the interest rate, applicable to these loans, at all levels is the first step in reducing any potential hardship. The other half of this equation is providing a grace period on interest accrual. "Ninety days same as cash" is a common commercial term used to negate any interest being applied to totals due. And the same could be applied to student loans. Although the term would naturally be greater than ninety days.  Applying any payments to principal for up to twenty years, depending on the nature of the degree obtained, then beginning to accrue interest on the remaining debt. Would inspire early payment to the greatest degree without sacrificing the comfort of the graduate and provide some leeway in case of unexpected expenses. Prior to the initiation of these types of public programs. Assisting those students whose family lack the finances to provide for a childs advanced educational needs. Historically; the first child to attend college aided their younger siblings. This tradition advancing through the family until all had attended. And this is the attitude missing from modern ideas of funding advanced learning. Congressional leaders trying to serve their own electioneering needs rather than the needs of our extended American family.  

    The alterations of this nations educational philosophy. That I have proposed. Are only a starting point for improvements to OUR leaderships way of conducting the nation's business. In my lifetime, under their guidance (or lack thereof), WE are in a state of perpetual catch-up. WE must have gridlock before they expand highways. WE must experience industrial tragedy before they mandate safety measures available years before. All these circumstances are avoidable. And under competent leadership. They would be. Improving the methods practiced in the classroom now. Is the means by which we ensure a technological advantage in the future international marketplace. A lead which WE, currently, questionably barely maintain. Fostering a vision commensurate with the 21st century now. Could guarantee our position as the leader of the free world beyond the 22nd. Realizing that better educating the children today. Will create more competent workers tomorrow. Employees that can embrace the high standards and stringent tolerances necessary for advanced manufacturing. Remembering that equal educational opportunity translates to equal occupational opportunity. And; if an equal opportunity education, across all strata of our society, is what we desire. WE must demand our leaders deliver just that. The exploration and commercial utilization of space, inner or outer, will require the greatest measure of innovation and ingenuity. Neither of which will be possible. If all WE have educated is a nation full of "coolie" ditch diggers.