Fixing Public Schools

The first thing we have to do is to get the Federal government out of the education business. It has turned into a politically correct indoctrination camp.  It will cost Georgia $2 billion to get rid of federal control over Georgia public schools and we will save money by not taking their $2 billion. They should have absolutely no control over education.  This means the end of Common Core and every other federal program.

The next thing to do is to cut this $2 billion from the budget.  I have a few suggestions.

We should exempt our public schools from frivolous lawsuits from special interests like atheists, NGOs, Muslims, Illegals, LGBTs and others. If that makes Coke leave Atlanta, we have lots of soft drinks to choose from.

We should exempt our public schools from being a tool to help the Governor attract businesses to Georgia. The graduation rate is irrelevant to businesses. Specific skills are critical.  So, if those skills are abundant and high performing schools are functioning, employers will come.

Public schools should be focused on basic skills like reading, writing, math, real history, real science and how things work in the US.  I suggest classical subjects and lots of extracurricular activities.

We need to make students responsible for their own education. They need to become proficient in common basic skills. They are each unique and have unique skills and intrinsic interests. They need to prepare themselves to select occupations that they will love.

We should focus on neighborhood schools and go back to K-8 and stop spending most of our education funds on new school buildings. The private school buildings I was educated in were over 100 years old and my education was excellent.

100 years ago, our population was very literate. The read the Bible every day. Most students learned what they needed to learn by 8^th grade.  Still, there were students who were slow in mastering academic skills.  They were not the ones who went off to college to become teachers, lawyers or doctors. In farm families, these were the ones who remained on the farm and ended up being very prosperous, smart farmers.  They eventually learned what they needed to learn. Today, we call them “school drop outs”. 

The best education occurs when the student really needs to or wants to know how to do things.

My grandfather was born in 1883.  He homeschooled and worked on the family farm.  At age 11 he got a job in a factory to earn money to pay a science tutor. At age 16, he entered Barnes Medical College.  He graduated with an MD at age 19 and was appointed Professor of Internal Medicine. He completed his surgical residency at age 21. 

Norb Leahy, Dunwoody GA Tea Party Leaders