I enjoyed the show segment this morning about Charter Schools, Abdul. You did a great job getting both sides and letting the listener decide. I decided that reign of IPS as educator of Indy’s kids needs to end.

It is especially sad, Melyssa, that underneath all the arguments over turf, tens of thousands of kids are under-served.

One of Abdul’s guests today summed it up very well: there is a debate brewing,and it may not be solved in this special session: one of money following the child, and the other involves funding education as a whole. Both approaches have merit. And each has flaws.

To answer the questions:

1. I love to see right-wingers arguing for a two-year budget. It forces them to roll the dice longer. I’d favor a one-year budget, in these tough tie,s and hope to God the economy improves.

2. Not nearly damned soon enough.

3. I don’t honestly know. But it’s time for a rigorous debate, which won’t happen in a Special.

4. Ibid No. 2

5. I hope so.

6. Re-read No. 2 and 4.

7. Looks like it’s going to get kinda fixed, and then it will self-implode with a forced smaller budget and staff.

8. You know.

9. It could be fun, but they can’t tackle a major issue like this in a general session.

10. No.

Carry on.

Here’s the problem facing real education reform in Indiana: the House Democrats are obstinate and the Senate Republicans are insincere.

If House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Bill Crawford, D-Indianapolis, “wins” in capping charter schools, I will do everything in my power to unseat him. It is time, as my earlier post points out, for democrats to really stand up for quality and engaged and real education.

Why are the Dems playing games in this short session? Pass the budget and move on. When I worked for the State, we couldn’t wait for the legislative sessions to end because NOTHING was safe until the ink dried and the morons had left town.
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Education money should follow the kid including a voucher, if necessary, should the parents pull them from their local school and place them in an accredited school. The funding formula is based upon the number of kids in the school system IIRC, so let it follow the kid should they leave that school system.

If Jacob thinks that he can unseat Rep. Crawford, he is truly naive. He needs to study voting patterns in that district and will very soon realize that is not going to happen.

I agree with JW. Except there is no good, efficient way to track students during the year, so the money will have to lag at least a semester.

Gaming in Indy. YES.

Everybody reaizes that when they say they are increasing the education budgets they are usually talking about money for yet another overpriced, palatial building, not money for books, teaching materials or actual teachers. Nation’s worst state legislature and one of the worst education systems.

Geez gang we got a state pie this session what else do you want…..lol

There you go again, Think Again. Thanks for the inflammatory “right-wingers” remark. How about referring to them as Republicans? And I won’t call the Democrats the party of Pat Bauer.

What is a ‘quality’ education? Is there a generally-accepted definition of this term?
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Does ‘quality’ mean teaching kids 2+2=4 on a blackboard, or a computer monitor — one monitor per child.
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Does ‘quality’ mean teaching “see spot run” with the teacher reading, or text-to-speech software reading to the kids?
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Just as “separation of church and state” does not exist in our federal constitution, “quality education” does not exist in our Indiana Constitution.
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“Knowledge and learning, generally diffused throughout a community, being essential to the preservation of a free government; it shall be the duty of the General Assembly to encourage, by all suitable means, moral, intellectual, scientific, and agricultural improvement; and to provide, by law, for a general and uniform system of Common Schools, wherein tuition shall be without charge, and equally open to all.”
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So, the General Assembly has a mandate “to encourage, by all suitable means, moral, intellectual, scientific, and agricultural improvement”. To ENCOURAGE. What does that mean?
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“To give courage to; to give or increase confidence of success; to inspire with courage, spirit, or strength of mind; to embolden; to animate; to incite; to inspirit.” — Websters 1828 Dictionary.
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I don’t see ANYTHING authorizing compulsory education. I don’t see ANYTHING stating we MUST provide a QUALITY education, whatever that means. Our G.A. cannot simply ‘make stuff up’. Well, they’re not supposed to.
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How much money are we continually dumping into something that is NOT REQUIRED, per our Constitution?

“…every politically controlled educational system will inculcate the doctrine of state supremacy sooner or later, whether as the divine right of kings, or the ‘will of the people’ in ‘democracy.’ Once that doctrine has been accepted, it becomes an almost superhuman task to break the stranglehold of the political power over the life of the citizen. It has had his body, property, and mind in its clutches from infancy. An octopus would sooner release its prey. A tax supported, compulsory educational system is the complete model of the totalitarian state.” — Isabel Paterson, one of the three founding mothers of American Libertarianism.

The term “common school” had a precise meaning back in the day. Everything added to that has been added by the legislatures in contravention of the Indiana constitution. We have a 150 member school board in Indiana few of whom you would ever want around instructing your kids. All of the ills of Indiana government schools belong to these 150 people, lock, stock and barrel. Their lies have been endless. Their successes have been nil.

http://www.ogdenonpolitics.com/ This fellow seems to get a lot of stuff correct. Can a legislator really be bought and paid for by ISTA for just $180,000 when ISTA was resisting government oversight of it’s financial problems?

Robert,
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Are you arguing that because the Constitution does not include “quality education,” we should strive to provide it (assuming we can reach a agreeable definition)?

Hello Jacob,
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I'm saying that since the Constitution does NOT mandate a “quality education” — whatever that means — then we need to get away from government and their cronies constantly harping on THAT phrase, and using THAT phrase to justify more property taxation, more school buildings, more renovation, etc…..all in the name of 'quality education'.
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Let's get real! How many ways can you teach 2+2=4 ?? Why do kids need palaces to learn this? Or, is it so that teachers and admins can point to their pretty new building and say, “My, look at the nice place I worK!”
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This topic revolves around the language of Section 1. May I ask what you think of the school funding methods contained within Section 2? Should government follow ALL of the Constitution, or simply the portions they like. And, in 'following' the Constitution, stop adding words, phrases and meanings that were NOT intended by the Delegates nor the voters who ratified the document?
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Shouldn't government follow the clear mandate contained at Article 8 Section 2 concerning school funding?
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Robert-NW Side

Thanks for clarifying. We do not need fancy palaces, but we do need clean and safe and appropriate (working AC and water, for example) in our buildings.

I think it is unfair to group teachers and admins in the decisions over buildings. They (we) really have no say in what is built or why. That would be the school board, the elected officials.

The problem is education has taken a back seat to other issues, when in reality, education is the primary issue from which everything else (health, prisons, environment, infrastructure, taxes) stems. If we invested wisely and prudently in education, we would see a net return within 1-year, 5-year, 20-years.

Hello Jacob,
-
I'm saying that since the Constitution does NOT mandate a “quality education” — whatever that means — then we need to get away from government and their cronies constantly harping on THAT phrase, and using THAT phrase to justify more property taxation, more school buildings, more renovation, etc…..all in the name of 'quality education'.
-
Let's get real! How many ways can you teach 2+2=4 ?? Why do kids need palaces to learn this? Or, is it so that teachers and admins can point to their pretty new building and say, “My, look at the nice place I worK!”
-
This topic revolves around the language of Section 1. May I ask what you think of the school funding methods contained within Section 2? Should government follow ALL of the Constitution, or simply the portions they like. And, in 'following' the Constitution, stop adding words, phrases and meanings that were NOT intended by the Delegates nor the voters who ratified the document?
-
Shouldn't government follow the clear mandate contained at Article 8 Section 2 concerning school funding?
-
Robert-NW Side

Thanks for clarifying. We do not need fancy palaces, but we do need clean and safe and appropriate (working AC and water, for example) in our buildings.

I think it is unfair to group teachers and admins in the decisions over buildings. They (we) really have no say in what is built or why. That would be the school board, the elected officials.

The problem is education has taken a back seat to other issues, when in reality, education is the primary issue from which everything else (health, prisons, environment, infrastructure, taxes) stems. If we invested wisely and prudently in education, we would see a net return within 1-year, 5-year, 20-years.