Posted on 08/04/2005 7:35:00 AM PDT by newgeezer
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) -- Gov. Tom Vilsack thinks students need to go to school longer each year and said he is formulating a plan for lawmakers to consider next year.
Many of the details are still being worked out, but he said the plan would be ambitious.
He said he would have little patience with those in the closely divided Legislature who claim election-year pressures in avoiding such a debate.
"Next year will not be an easy year," said Vilsack. "There's an election next year and a lot of people are running for things. That would be a convenient excuse."
Vilsack told a group of school administrators in Des Moines that it's time to begin the discussion.
"I don't have all the answers," he said. "The point of this was to put it on the table."
He said the potential of a longer school year would be part of an aggressive plan that would include increased sharing of programs between schools, more money for early childhood education and improved teacher pay and quality.
Vilsack said he's willing to consider options like longer school years because Iowa students don't spend enough time in school.
"I understand there's a cost involved in this. I think there's a heck of a cost in not doing the job or not having the time to do the job," he said.
Increases costs include higher pay for staff and installation of air conditioners in many buildings current without the equipment, a very costly upgrade.
"We ought to figure out exactly what the cost is both in terms of personnel and what we would have to do to our buildings, and as a state we ought to then be able to make the decision whether or not that's something we ought to embrace," Vilsack said.
He said the current 180-day school year was created in the 19th Century largely to allow children to help out with work on the farm. In the face of enormous competition from other countries, that simply makes no sense, Vilsack said.
"We are not in an agrarian economy anymore," he said. "We are not in an industrial economy anymore. We are in an economy that is global and competitive."
In countries from China to India, officials are focusing on improving education and are gaining on the U.S., Vilsack said.
"Those folks who are running faster behind us, by the time they reach 17, they will have spent somewhere between 15 and 18 more months in school," Vilsack said. "By my calculation that's almost two full school years."
While the governor called for a study of the issue, he said his mind was already made up.
"I think the conclusion will be of such a study that we do not have enough days in the school year," Vilsack said.
Doug Norman, of the School Administrators of Iowa, said education groups will have to redouble their efforts to push the aggressive agenda.
"We fell down last session," Norman said. "We can't afford to fall down next year."
AP-CS-08-04-05 0130EDT
He said he would have little patience with those in the closely divided Legislature who claim election-year pressures in avoiding such a debate.
Yet, when his Dem buddies block all debate on reinstituting the death penalty -- even for specific cases, such as when a murderous sex offender molests and kills a child -- that's just fine with Vilsack.
He said the potential of a longer school year would be part of an aggressive plan that would include ... improved teacher pay
There's the key right there. Vilsack -- a teacher himself, if memory serves -- is always looking for ways to return some favors to the teachers union. Turn their 9-month jobs into 12-month jobs, and we all know what happens next.
If we have fallen behind other parts of the world in education, it's at least in part because our schools are dumbed down. The last thing we should do is increase the time our children spend in the dumbed-down schools.
Peter Principle in action award.
He is incompetent. When is the discusion on the quality of education going to start instead of all this other crap. We have had way to many fads in education.
Precisely..
The Teachers union would fight for their vacation that was being "taken away", and their 3 months summer vacation would be negotiated in being spread out over the entire year, also creating more substitute positions.
This is all about the Teachers Union and NEA, not about our children.
Iowa ping.
Follow the public babysitting money.
Typical STUPID Iowan!
Uh, you forgot to at least qualify that seemingly-incendiary remark with the term, "Democrat".
Right. It's more important to increase the QUALITY of the time spent in school. It is going down. I think part of it is because they don't want the kids to be "traumatized", and of course routine, discipline and study are hard and can cause "psycological" problems. I bet in India and China schools are tougher. The level of schools here are pretty low in comparison with those in Europe (the good thing is that Europe is adopting the dumb american way too).
Exactly right, another grab by the feeders.
No school should be open between memorial day and labor day. The elimination of summer vacation is incremental. We are already shoving the poor little bastards into government indoctrination at 5 years old. Let them have their summer break, I say.
I'm not convinced that the kids will actually learn more if the school year is lengthened. Why not just cut out the self-esteem and consciousness-raising stuff and focus on the basics? I think the average eighth-grade graduate of 100 years ago (when most people didn't go to high school) knew basic reading, writing, and arithmetic better than the average high school student now.
Of course, 100 years ago, there was less science and history to learn (but the more interesting parts of U.S. history had already happened).
Yep. This idiot and the rest of our state and fed Governments have forgotten that agriculture is still big in the midwest. Our leaders need a new education - outsource them with new leaders. Vote!!!!!
Vile sack is an idiot, but if this makes the NEA squirm then I am happy anyway.
You should see what's happening in (allegedly) conservative Georgia. Many of the kids are sitting in public schools today. The others will be going back shortly. The school boards (registered Republicans, in most cases) are in the pockets of the teachers' unions. The state legislators who have spoken up against the trend get slapped down by the (Republican) state superintendent of schools.
True! But then Iowa has Much more dems than gop.
Vilsack is quite an interesting and well-spoken politician. I met him at a luncheon here in Chicago. He overall gave me the impression of being a moderate democrat. Anyway, there's no way on earth I would ever support him - just because he is a Democrat.
Oh? How much more is "Much more"? If it's as much as three percentage points, I'll be surprised.
You do realize that Iowa is a red state, yes? And, that four of our five representatives in the U.S. House are Republicans? And, that Republicans have controlled the Iowa House for a decade or more?
I am a Native Iowan(Boone). Boone Iowa is a Dem stronghold and Boone County Iowa and Iowa in General has been losing population for a LONG time! Old People tend to Vote sefishly for Dems as the Dems "give" them things and Money!
Don't fall for it. As he prepares for some sort of role on the national political stage, he'll try to look like a 'centrist.' (Just like Hillary.)
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