Fixing the Chicago public schools

AmericanThinker ^

[DIRTYSECRET]

Chicago has one of the most expensive education systems in the world-per capita student expenditures approaching $30,000 per year. Only 18 percent of students are proficient in math, with reading scores not much better.

The only hope is to eliminate the Chicago Public Schools entirely and go to an all–private school system. We would eliminate the property tax as a school financing vehicle. Currently, 15–30 percent of rents in Chicago go directly to fund public sector schools. Chicago renters will welcome a huge rent reduction.

I recommend limits be placed at 10 percent of family income for one student, 16.6 percent for two students, and 20 percent for three or more. Support would come directly from the state and would still be less than the state pays to Chicago Public Schools currently.

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TOPICS: Chit/Chat
KEYWORDS:

[DIRTYSECRET]

The more I read this the more sense it makes. I could never happen without 100% school choice nationally to prime the pump. Parents would be the key to these changes starting with the stable 2-parent homes which are now extinct. Has the frog boiled?

[Democrat = party of treason]

Shitcago is a joke in any number of ways, typical democrap/union run City, and State for that matter. NOTHING will solve its decline, ever.

[Palmettojones]

Reading Used to be Fundamental. https://torrancestephensphd.substack.com/p/reading-used-to-be-fundamental

[MinorityRepublican]

stable 2-parent homes which are now extinct.

The incentives are no longer there to have the father in a typical American home.

[Leaning Right]

> The only hope is to eliminate the Chicago Public Schools entirely and go to an all–private school system. <

Retired urban public school teacher here. And I agree with the above. Big city school districts are beyond being saved. Way beyond.

Unfortunately, I don’t think they’ll ever be eliminated. Too many special interest groups are involved. The unions are just one of them. Another are the local politicians. They hate to give up any power.

But private schools have their problems, too. How would they handle a disruptive student? Public schools must educate every student (or at least try). Could a private school just boot the kid out? If so, where does the kid go?

Plus private schools tend to attract like-minded folks. So we could end up with Muslim private schools being funded by tax dollars.

[PGR88]

Chicago has one of the most expensive education systems in the world-per capita student expenditures approaching $30,000 per year. Only 18 percent of students are proficient in math, with reading scores not much better.

Parts of government, but particularly education in America, have actually achieved negative marginal utility - every dollar spent actually makes results WORSE.

the reason is clear - every extra dollar keeps alive a bloated, political and dysfunctional bureaucracy, which eliminates any other options.

[daifu]

The link did not work. this one does:
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2026/07/fixing-the-chicago-public-schools/

[Wuli]

The ideas are “it’s never going to happen” ideas. The Dims control the state and teachers unions and other public service unions are the donation and activist troops behind the dims.

Folks in Chicago who want a better education for their kids just need to move, that’s all.

[PGR88]

But private schools have their problems, too. How would they handle a disruptive student?

My private, Christian, boys high school had a simple solution - anyone not up to behavioral or effort standards got kicked out. Our class (of 222) had 4 boys weeded out in the first month of our freshman year. One was even the son of a family with long legacy and long-term support for our school (the boy was a bully who started fights).

Even as a 14 year-old, I was very proud of my school and its dean of students / principal for that.

That attitude created a school of elites.

[Dilbert San Diego]

Is there any saving of schools in Chicago or other big cities? Or is the best thing to do to blow it up? And start over?

So they’re saying that Chicago has some of the highest expenditures per capita in the country.And they get some of the worst results.

We’ve often heard liberal types lament how schools just don’t have enough resources to do the job, and they say that the lack of resources is the reason why schools have such problems.

And we all know there are things we’re not allowed to say about these problems. For example, we are not allowed to say anything about inner city ghetto culture, which derides students doing well in school as acting white.

So then we’re reduced to having debates about how much money or resources would be needed to adequately teach children. And we discuss how do you get quality teachers in troubled schools. And other side issues such as this can be discussed. But we cannot confront other core problems.

[eyeamok]

Schools where everyone is a failure, but nobody ever fails.

[Salman]

1) Execute every teacher who promoted child castration. Also school administrators, union officials, etc.

2) Hire all new teachers, but give them literacy tests before hiring them.
Previous teachers not allowed, even if they pass the tests.

But of course it cannot happen unless much else changes in the world in general.

[dznutz]

Never happen in Chicago as long as leftists are in control. The teachers union is powerful and the democratic party uses the teachers and students as boots on the ground for various protests.

[KSCITYBOY]

btt

[ealgeone]

Well, first you're going to need parents who are involved....emphasis on the plural...a man and a woman.

The complete elimination of the teacher's unions.

[Leaning Right]

> … anyone not up to behavioral or effort standards got kicked out. <

I taught for a few years at a private school. And that’s what happened there, too. It made for a pleasant place to teach, and to learn.

Expelled kids ended up at some public school somewhere. But where does such a kid go if there are no longer any public schools?

And here’s a related problem: A private school that takes tax dollars will find there are rules associated with that money. One of the rules might make it very difficult to expel a disruptive student. Due process, and all that.

An old saying that might apply:

“If you take the king’s coin, you are the king’s servant.”

[V_TWIN]

Step 1.......shitcan every democrat politician and public school teacher in the county.

Never happen you say?......that’s right, and that’s why it will never get fixed.

[Mean Daddy]

But private schools have their problems, too. How would they handle a disruptive student? Public schools must educate every student (or at least try). Could a private school just boot the kid out? If so, where does the kid go?

First of all, they're Democrat indoctrination camps, not schools. The trend to bring back the trades is a good start but addressing problem children, there should be no compulsory school attendance. Let them drop out and get their education in the real world.

[V_TWIN]

Sad to say but many parent(s) use public school as a place to dump their offspring for the day.

And yes, I agree, it ALL starts at home.

[DIRTYSECRET]

You got a point on the muzzie schools. Would we be able to keep them in check with a free market? The answer should be in immigration.

Harriet Tubman saved 1000 slaves and said she couda’ saved 2,000 if ‘they knew they were slaves’. The longest march starts with the first step and something tells me we’ll soon be past the talking about it point. Pour gasoline on the fire in Tea Party fashion when we get a ‘workable’ majority. In the wake of W’s 2004 victory he vowed to use his new political capital to work on fixing SSI-got him nowhere as the chickens are now coming home to roost. The 2005 senate had 55 republicans with Bill Frist as our leader. The difference next time will be who’s in the WH. The communists should help our side but they MAY NOT. Eternal vigilance my friends.