Obama Details Plan for Overhauling Education

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Thanks god that finally someone stands for the US kids, it was never ok that I pay tax and W.BUSH spend it on IRAQ, AFGANISTAN, and BAKISTAN people, While in the same time I have to pay 500 $ per month for my kid to grantee that he get a good but not even excellent quality of education.
It is never Okay that in Japan their kids are more intelligent than US Kids because of the solid education system and ethics.
It is never Okay that UAE kids enjoy the best of the best US teachers and US developed curriculum.
It is never Okay that our kids ranked as 21-25 over the world ????
It is never okay that 2000 public schools are graduating student with less than 40%
It is never okay that 1200000 student every year will not graduated from the high school diploma?????
And again I am not okay with the “ tax payer “money to be spent on police dept and security to protect us from those 1200000 unemployed generation ????
Is that the American dream ?
Know how to fix the US education system? Is the key, but it is not the obstacle it is doable since all the world employ and hair Americans to set the curriculum and develop education I believe American can do the same thing for their own kids to grantee that they are the best and I don’t believe it never to late to stand for our kids “ No . 1” American dream.
We don’t need to spend 50 % of what we paid for war to achieve educate our KIDS.
Thank you for your stand Mr. President

Dalia Al tom of NY 4:00AM September 27, 2010

I'm a straight A senior in highschool with honors and A.P. (Advanced Placement..aka college level) classes and for the most part, I agree with Obama's plan. I most definitely agree that the teachers that deserve the pay should get it. I see many teachers who are wonderful and put so much effort and time into their work but don't get anything for it. I also agree with the idea of getting better trained teachers in the classroom, because frankly, when I walk in a class where the teacher is no good what-so-ever, I don't learn anything and the class itself becomes useless and boring to me.
However, I do NOT agree with the idea of longer school days and years, especially for the older kids in high school and college. Even as a straight A student, it's nice when breaks come up through out the year, the school day finally ends, and the year is finally to an end. My mind gets a chance to recooperate when I'm off school, and longer school days will be hard to work through, especially meaning there will be less time to work on homework in the afternoon and evening and also less time to do anything else socially, whether it be sports, exercise, or extracurricular, that is necessary to being a teenager and human. Longer years is the same issue. Being able to go out with friends to a movie, or get a summer job, or go on vacation is vital to growing socially and expanding ourselves in who we are and what we do, and continuing to help us not burn out in high school. If we burn out in high school, how are we to continue to work in college and in a career? Give us the breaks we need.

Cara Owen of NM 7:45PM November 16, 2009

I am a middle school math teacher and I must say that a longer school year sounds fine to me. I'm not wild about the longer days, but summer vacation is not necessary anymore.
My biggest concern is the merit pay proposal. Obama says he wants to "attract the best and brightest into the profession". This makes me laugh because unless you pay the best and the brightest, you're not going to attract them. At this point, teacher morale is so low that many don't care about anything but punching in and punching out.

Melanie Bacca of FL 12:30PM October 01, 2009

+1

soundtracks of AL 6:18AM July 17, 2009

eNjWso comment2 ,

Jpliskda of AR 6:16PM June 22, 2009

For me, the issue with the education system was never a need for more school hours or even getting better instructors. Rather, I feel the issue has always been mismanagement and general misuse of the hours and the instructors that we do have.
Think back on your high school experience. 50 minute classes. The first 10-15 wasted on conversation and role-call. The last 10 wasted on similar conversation and readying for the next class. You're left with 35 minutes of "real" classroom time... 20 minutes of that are spent on review of homework from the previous night and questions people had from it... 10 minutes of new lessons and 5 minutes getting assigned and complaining about homework. Aside from that, how much time was wasted shuttling between classes or in a study hall or when you had a non-instructing substitute teacher for 3 or 4 months for your math class?
You are left reviewing the same work for days / weeks / months on end and re-enforcing bad habits from partially learned lessons with homework because the lesson was too brief and didn't give the teacher ample time to go over issues students were having. It's wasteful and inefficient.
When it comes down to it, why don't high schools take a more collegiate approach.
Lectures, Labs, homework (after completing the lessons and with tutors available) and Testing Days. Open Review with Tutors would be available at all times if needed.
Department chairs should work with the instructors in their department to develop a curriculum for the department and the instructors should work together to ensure all students are receiving e similar educational experience. You aren't in Bob Smiths class. You're attending a history lecture with Mr. Smith from 9-12 on Monday and a different History lecture with Mary McGovern on Wednesday. Some of your buddies will be attending the same lecture with Mr. Smith on Tuesday and Marys' lecture on Monday. Your buddy misses a lecture because he/she was sick. It's okay. They can attend another one later in the week or attend a tutoring session if that isn't possible.
Tests would be departmentalized, so someone doesn't float by because Mr. Danielsons' tests are so easy compared to Professor Smiths.
Tutoring hours would be available with members of the department before and after classes.
I think the key is really using available hours and available teachers more efficiently. Not getting more of them.

Annon of RI 3:37PM June 09, 2009

So far, my greatest concern with overhauling publc schools is the idea of "merit pay". How this could possibly be determined is beyond me. The idea sounds simple-the teachers whose students 'achieve'. Other than standardized tests, how can that be assessed?
I have more questions regarding this idea than alternate suggestions: How will the gym teachers, music, art, special education,librarians, and ESL teachers be evaluated? How do you determine 'growth' in a student with disabilities? How do you determine growth in an already high-achieving, middle-class suburb vs. growth in an lower socio-ecnomic urban school? Why are English Language Learners assessed for "growth" by the same standards as their English-speaking counterparts? Wouldn't it be conceivable that teachers would not share their ideas with one another, so they would "look better" than a colleague? Wouldn't this subtly encourage teachers to "cheat" when giving standardized tests to their students' scores are artificially inflated?
This is a very bad idea, and should be scrapped! Spend the time and money providing services, books and technology to the schools who need it!

Rosalyn Riley of PA 6:12PM April 02, 2009

In the small Tn town I live in, the teachers union makes sure no teacher is ever fired, unless they are actually mentally ill and/or criminal and someone lets it slip. It took our school district over 3 yrs to get rid of a teacher who is obssessed w/teenage girls and will most likely be added to the state's sex offender registry this year. They constantly tell us we'll have to cut back and we need more of your money (as if they don't get our money already) but they tried to make it so this freak could continue in the school with students. It may have worked if he had had a full-time psychiatrist, 24 hr security, and all phones removed from his house, work area, and person and take down any pay phones in the county. Cut your losses! Save money! Stop the useless 'inservices!' How many of us have been to more than 1 or 2 meetings in our lifetimes that couldn't have been a memo? And that excuse about we're required to have so many meetings per year? How much money do we have to spend to get rid of that? I thought Pres. Obama was going to get rid of things that don't work? How about the Fed. Dept. of Ed? Thank God it didn't get up and running until just after I got out of school. The last of the unscathed! Thank God I don't have to be forced to read, can understand complex situations, and have common sense. By the way, MD's, RN's, teachers, healthcare workers and probably many more professionals - you don't always work just 8 hrs a day and if you do, your work is probably not the best it can be!

Wendy in Tn of TN 12:14PM March 22, 2009

I do not agree with President Obama regarding a lot of his social agenda, but feel he is on the right track regarding public education. Also, agree with him that parents need to be involved, but merely 'saying it' will not get it done. We now learn that 40% of the kids born last year were from unwed mothers. At some point, these 'parents' are going to have to be held accountable for their behavior and conduct. They either raise the child, or if they want society to do their duty, then LET THEM PAY THROUGH TAXES! Where do you think these gangs are coming from?
As President Obama suggests, teacher quality has slipped in the public schools over the psst two decades. We cannot rely on the current crop to instill discipline, values and character into kids. It is way too much to ask that they teach match, science and English -- as evidenced by public school scores. Thus, parents need to be held to account.
Some would say that a tax for a child's truancy or academic failure would be a 'punitive tax', but what would you call the incarceration of the child at 16 or 17?
Without a carrot and stick approach, Obama's plan will be merely "WORDS">

GrannyCares of GA 12:59PM March 21, 2009

Obama has all these ideas about putting money into creating new charter schools, or boosting the Headstart program. These ideas are not bad, but shouldn't that money go to the schools and programs that are in existence now? How can we add to something that is currently broken. It needs to be fixed first before we pile more on. Schools are worn thin with the resources they have now, how would they support longer days in their current state? He wants more students to go to college but how is that going to happen if students are failed by the system every day? Also, college costs are rising and the amount of debt acquired to obtain a college degree is often too much for someone to pay off. How does that help the economy? there are too many issues with our education system starting from kindergarten all the way through college. I wonder how many more students would go to college if they got the proper guidance in high school? Fix what we have now, and then maybe all of his ideas would make sense. For any high school student with questions about college visit this forum: http://www.financialaidforum.com. You can potentially get college guidance there that you can't get at your school.

Lee Anne H. of MA 3:16PM March 17, 2009