Thursday, May 25, 2006
U.S. Math and science scores continue downward spiral...
Achievement among high school students continues a precipitous decline. This is generally the time in which I lambaste the GOP crony responsible for the disaster du jour, in this case Education Secretary Margaret Spellings. Spellings is a unique case though in that she has not as yet proven to be inept at anything but fawning over W. Considering the performance of her fellow masters of the universe--which include such notable administrators of failure as Donald Rumsfeld, Doc Rice, Michael "Heckuva Job" Brown, Michael Chertoff, David Safavian, and Claude Allen. Among this rogues gallery the fact that Spellings hasn't been indicted, investigated, or literally killed hundreds due to negligence of emergency planning qualifies her as above average in this Cabinet.
The most genuine criticism I can make of Spellings is that she eagerly participates in an administration that is heavily dependent on spreading propaganda and passing off faith as science. Which isn't exactly the stuff of educational excellence. It is, of course, understandable as to why the Administration is so anti-education. It's a lot easier to overcome a horrific record and get past any irritating skepticism, if your electorate can be taught to accept the initial premise that facts don't matter, or lacks the critical thinking skills to discover reality for themselves. With a President who proudly proclaims he doesn't read the paper, and is the "decider" based on his gut; is it any wonder that the base of the GOP is happy to declare their ignorance of current issues. Of course it's easier to be proud of the idea of "intelligent design" and "global warming doesn't exist" if you're sure no one else knows any science either, and that my friends is what the department of education is for.
The most genuine criticism I can make of Spellings is that she eagerly participates in an administration that is heavily dependent on spreading propaganda and passing off faith as science. Which isn't exactly the stuff of educational excellence. It is, of course, understandable as to why the Administration is so anti-education. It's a lot easier to overcome a horrific record and get past any irritating skepticism, if your electorate can be taught to accept the initial premise that facts don't matter, or lacks the critical thinking skills to discover reality for themselves. With a President who proudly proclaims he doesn't read the paper, and is the "decider" based on his gut; is it any wonder that the base of the GOP is happy to declare their ignorance of current issues. Of course it's easier to be proud of the idea of "intelligent design" and "global warming doesn't exist" if you're sure no one else knows any science either, and that my friends is what the department of education is for.
