A Number that's Hard to Believe! (orig. 5/21/2011)

Quick quiz: California spends an average of $7,000 per year for each student. How much do they spend per year for each prisoner? The answer is contained below.

Brian Williams, the anchor of the NBC Nightly News, was in Los Angeles this past week to moderate a panel discussion as part of NBC's "Education Nation" effort. Here's a link to the story, which contains a link to the complete 84-minute video of the panel discussion:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/05/20/education-nation-in-los-a_n_864542.html?ir=Education

Some highlights of the discussion:

1) "Why is it during a period of budget downturn," NBC Nightly News anchor Brian Williams asked, "why does education -- you'll forgive the phrase -- take it in the shorts?"

"Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent John Deasy responded: "I think there is a general belief that anybody can teach... teaching is complex a highly skilled, highly nuanced task. It actually is rocket science to teach a third grader to read on grade level."

2) Holding up a study called, "Life In The 21st Century Workforce," Williams said most employers are looking for three traits in a new hire: the ability to learn new skills, critical thinking/problem solving and team work. Panelist Lynda Resnick, who heads POM Wonderful, Teleflora, Paramount Farms and FIJI Water, said Californian students -- and American students in general -- just aren't competitive when it comes to the job market. When she surveyed her companies' presidents on the subject, Resnick said they all agreed on one thing: "We go offshore not because we want to save money. We can't hire qualified people" in the United States."

3) "Michael Milken also addressed international competition, saying "there is not one country in Asia that has turned over the sole education of their children to the government." He decried the fact that middle class Americans spend about 50 percent of their income on a house and car to the detriment of extracurricular study for their kids, noting that even the average working class Korean family spends about $5,000 a year on extra tutoring. "No one in Korea finds it prestigious to show you their house," Milken said. "They find it prestigious to show you the education of their child." He was challenged by a member in the audience, who said Americans move to the suburbs because of the better schools for their children and not the square footage of the houses."

4) "Superintendent Deasy put forth some unsettling facts about California's disinvestment in education over the decades, saying the state currently spends $58,000 a year per prison inmate but only $7,000 per student."

Sometimes the comments of readers can be interesting. Here are some from this article:

a) "Every time the media wants to discuss education, they bring in businessmen. Why, when the media wants to discuss business, don't they question a panel of teachers?"

b) "Make the kids think that teachers are responsible and that they don't have to do anything at all."

c) "Unless and until we start holding students accountable for doing their part, schools will be stymied. A good teacher, the best teacher, cannot force anyone to learn..."

"On the other hand, a student who does the best that student can, will learn even from a bad teacher. The truth is, most teachers are, by definition, average: kind, caring, competent and hard-working. Most are not charismatic, rock stars, or Bolivian hand-ball champions, and what is more, they should not have to be."

The "Education Nation" website can be found at

www.educationnation.com