What is Digg?148 Comments
- blogger1947, on 10/12/2007, -2/+92...and that's just talking about the House of Representatives...
- NX910a, on 10/12/2007, -2/+42No wonder congressmen don't read the bills they pass
- 29Victor, on 10/12/2007, -9/+33ba-dum-bum
- andrewman327, on 10/12/2007, -0/+22DC has some of the worst schools in the country. Trust me, I live here, though I was lucky enough to have lived elsewhere for k-12. Simply throwing money at a problem does not make it better. Even with better schools the improvements are generational. Having the world's greatest schools does nothing for the 65+ set or even the 25+ set. The school system in DC has been horrible for so many years, however, that its population is having serious issues across the board. It is promising that the oldest are the farthest behind because this implies that something has been improving over the years.
- NymphoChik, on 10/12/2007, -5/+27Why is this?
D.C spends more money per pupil than any other district in the United States.
If anything D.C residents should be more intelligent than the rest of the U.S.
I wonder what schools are like there. - sergeantmudd, on 10/12/2007, -3/+24Immigrants and poor people?
You have to look at the geography of the area too. The district is tiny compared to the metropolitan area. You are looking at only the core. And the cores of big cities have a tendancy to have high crime, poor education, and poor people. The nicer outlying areas to average out the bad neighborhoods are in Virginia and Maryland and don't count in the study. Draw a circle the size of Chicago around DC, and redo the math, and you'll see signifcantly different numbers.
It's the same reason St. Louis has the highest crime rate in the country. - john570, on 10/12/2007, -3/+23DC is an incredibly screwed up city. Corruption abounds and city services are a joke. I was going to eventually buy a house here in DC but after seeing first hand how screwed up everything is and reading one article after another about corruption I moved into Maryland. Even the damn PTA had a scandal in DC. The PTA!
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+18You know, everybody is so willing to jump on the "let's attack the schools" bandwagon, but what about the homes? Firstly, learning to read should start well before school. Parents should be reading to their kids and such, teaching them the alphabet, things like that. Secondly, it doesn't matter what they teach in school if you don't give a damn in the first place. Education is not a one-way process. The students have to be willing to learn. Once again, in these same houses where kids aren't being taught the fundamentals, I highly doubt anyone in that household really gives a ***** about what that kid's doing in school. I'm willing to bet that there aren't too many in that 1/3 who would come out and say "I really wanted to get a good education, I wanted to learn how to read, but the schools failed me." More likely, it'll be "I didn't care about school, it was a waste of time."
The truth is, of course, that this all ties in to poverty. Not that I'm saying that people without money are fundamentally bad people or anything, but with poverty, you increase the chances that one parent isn't there and the other is too busy to care about the kid, or the kid was unwanted in the first place, or parents are drug-addicts, etc. At the very least, it's hard to learn when you're too busy worrying about where your next meal's coming from, or whether or not you'll come home to find out your family's been evicted, etc. - megyay, on 10/12/2007, -0/+17I am from DC, the schools are truly awful. Anyone who lives in the city with any money sends their kids to private school. I have taught DC public school kids at a free math, english, and art summer program and the stories I heard about their teachers and classes were appalling.
- brstilson, on 10/12/2007, -1/+17more money =/= better students. Quite the opposite in fact. It's the biggest lie perpetuated by the teachers union today. Some of the richest schools in the country have the poorest test scores. Of course I would half expect the students to be dumb when their parents think that adding an olympic swimming pool will help their children learn.
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+14Actually the African immigrants I've met are some of the hardest working people, and the most eager to learn. It's not a race thing, but it's a culture thing. Those who associate with the hip hop "culture" doom themselves into stupidity.
- Condottieri, on 10/12/2007, -0/+14Having lived in DC, I can tell you that the majority of the illiterate people probably live in the southeast portion of the city. As quoted by wikipedia:
"It is also plagued by a consistently high crime rate relative to the rest of the city."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington,_D.C._(southeast)
Southeast is a nasty place. If you ever travel to DC, I advise you to avoid that area. - Dundasbro, on 10/12/2007, -6/+19@capnboost
American education on the whole is embarrassing you twit. - spudnic, on 10/12/2007, -0/+10I'm a reasonably intelligent guy, and certainly literate; but even I have trouble with damn bus timetables, those things are unnecessarily complicated.
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -8/+18@DAGONthehauge: Maybe you need some better reading comprehension. We're talking about the city of Washington D.C. which has it's own schools, mayor, police, etc. THAT is what failed. And if you knew anything about the corruption in city politics of a city that VOTED IN A CRACK HEAD FOR MAYOR, twice, then you'd realize that this has nothing to do with NASA, or Ivy league schools, or the U.S. Government.
But no. It's a chance for you to bash America with your ignorance. - Jomwilli, on 10/12/2007, -0/+10
I live in Washington, D.C. in the Adams Morgan neighborhood and for 5 years I've volunteer tutored over in Anacostia, across the river where a large percentage of poverty is, but not exclusive.
Washington, D.C. has the highest percentage of college educated people in the country per capita. We spend more money on education than any other city in the country. Why our adults and children don't get the proper education and training is a BIG, BIG contentious debate. Misappropriation of funds, teachers unions, larger minority class, etc. You name it, we have an excuse for it. There is no right answer, and there is no wrong one either. Adrian Fenty, the new mayor has made changing this around one of his #1 priorities, so hopefully this will change soon. - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -1/+9Maybe Kanye West could stop having his $50,000 dinners and help out the kids. He could invite over Marion Barry to show them how "not" to smoke crack.
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -2/+10Washington DC has the best public schools Democrats can buy (with taxpayers' money;).
Clinton/Obama 2008! - spudnic, on 10/12/2007, -1/+9Don't be daft, Kanye West doesn't care about black people.
- ihaveplans, on 10/12/2007, -3/+10Nope.
- skwerlyshirley, on 10/12/2007, -3/+10This is shocking? This has been known for decades. We need a study to tell us that one third of the DC pop is illiterate? Go out on the street for crying out loud and try to talk to anyone--it's impossible. Reading is not important--it's not valued. What's important is getting high and getting laid. The way out is sold as basketball, drugs or crime. You don't need to read to do these things.Blame someone else for what ails you. Why take responsibilty when you can blame George Bush?
- Keddren, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7Anacostia? You're a brave soul..
- dmclone, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6It has been this way forever. How come immigrants can come to this country who don't speak a word of English and within 3-4 years are ahead of African Americans who have spent their whole life in the U.S?
I don't know the answer. Just asking the question.
Is it where they live?
Single parents?
Society?
The NBA?
Bush?
Crackers?
Slavery?
Hip Hop? - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6Nope, you are wrong. Try reading Freakonomics and maybe you will understand.
- btgoss, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6I am not surprised about this news from DC. Two things stick in my mind about DC, and the losing battle to educate and elevate it's poor people.
1. They actually thought renaming the basketball teams from the Bullets to the Wizards would have an effect on gun violence.
2. The people who live there elected a convicted criminal Mayor.
Can we really understand why this pattern of ignorance is still around when these are the types if issues that get the most interest? - hittnrun, on 10/12/2007, -3/+8This is about as shocking as finding out New Orleans was prone to flooding if a hurricane hit it.
I am in disbelief. - bubba1971, on 10/12/2007, -2/+7You would think that all of those politicians would want to make Washington D.C. a "model city." But these are also the same politicians who couldn't drive across town to visit wounded vets at Walter Reed hospital and see the substandard conditions there either. The best message Americans could send to congress is to vote ALL of them out. No more incumbents for this congress!
- Dundasbro, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6American map reading at it's finest - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QunVtAsP0LY
Wait until you get to them placing the stops on the map.
Also I don't think these idiots represent all Americans I just find this video hilarious. - cankillar, on 10/12/2007, -3/+8...you didn't read my comment did you?
- CurtHowland, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5What you see is the inevitable result of central planning. DC is a _planned_ city, and just like every other planned city it's a disaster.
Building a newer, flashier "planned" city in Iowa won't make any difference, it will still be a disaster.
Here's a nice text on the root of the problem:
http://www.mises.org/books/socialism/contents.aspx - KuntaKinte, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5i doubt D.C. is the only problem, many school districts suffer from this, and it all starts with the parenting, parents set the example and it carries out into kids' studies
- caution, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6DCesque,
What DC are you talking about?
Except for a few pockets of white-guilt money and the national mall, this city I called home for several years is a total *****.
It's an example of the federal government's ability to fund and run a city.
But again, the same democrats who've been running on education, affirmative action and "the children" will get elected to preside over their own mess.
Read your statement again. I love how you describe "DC will be city of young, transient, highly-educated wealthy yuppies living side by side with the poor and uneducated."
Side by side my ass. Are you trying to be hip, white and wealthy with the guilt-free pleasure of saying "I lives in da' hood too?"
Please. Stop it. - rlh1, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5When I graduated from high school in about 1970 I read an article written by a American black man that was in his late 60's.
He said that he loved learning when he was a young man which would be the 1930's time frame. He went on saying that when ever he excelled in school his black friends would belittle him and tell him he was trying to be white. He said that they eventually ridiculed him to the point that he gave up.
Just over the last few years I have read articles about how education and fitting in with the majority of society is discouraged among the black youth still.
When you set up a parallel culture that shuns all the elements that makes the rest of society successfully you can pretty much guarantee that there will not be much success coming from that parallel culture. - orichter, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5Actually, the really sad thing is that during the 50s and 60s of the last century the literacy rate (not Illiteracy rate) was 95% in the US (oh, and by the way that was for all people colored, poor, or not). That we can no longer teach to this level is a shame and a sign of only one thing: the coming Dark Ages. (The definition of a Dark Age is that the people can no longer remember how to do things that were considered common knowledge only a few years earlier.) Welcome to the coming Dark Ages as we become a third world country. Liberalism is consolation as the West commits suicide (heard elsewhere). (Funny anecdote: Emperor Marcus Aurelius wrote in the 190's about just such problems in the Roman Empire - we are doomed to repeat them since many no longer have any idea of history or even what the Constitution of the US is.)
In addition, this whole mess (DC) is controlled by our most exclusive club: "The U.S. Congress". All funding and city control rests ultimately with the Congress not with the DC government. Yes, I repeat, DC is a specific territory essentially owned and operated by the US Congress. They set policy and fund specific programs within their budget for DC. If Congress can't make it work in DC then what does this bode for the rest of the country?
Unless, the agenda is to create a populace that is uneducated and thereby easier to control or mold as one wants (just ask a Socialist, Communist, Fascist, Royalist, or Theocrat, but don't ask a US founding father). Oh, that's right, only 80% can read the the founding father's writings anyways. The founding father's thought and reasoning is no longer taught in many schools, a Socialist agenda is. So, mercifully, we will forget that there ever was such a time and thing as freedom...as we bow down to our new masters and go about our subsistence farming. We should make it back to 700 AD in no time. - CurtHowland, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Public school.
The congresscrawlers don't send their kids to the DC public schools, they send them to private schools.
The public school system is the most obvious example of elitism I've ever seen. The masses get a dumbed-down curriculum designed to create compliant laborers and soldiers, while the elites get an education in critical thinking and leadership.
This is not a Democrat or Republican issue. Neither face of the Party of State Power wants to do anything about the public schools, because they _created_ the public schools to be exactly what they are.
Want your children to have a decent education? Get them OUT of the public schools!
http://www.johntaylorgatto.com/ - orichter, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Solution you ask?
1. Merit pay based on teaching ability - and class outcome - yes, if most children cannot read by the end of 1st grade then the teacher/school is held responsible not the student. Funny, this seems to work in private schools.
2. Teaching credentials that recognize teaching ability in a specific field - they must be able to pass the college courses in the field they are teaching in - the subject matter - math, English, foreign language, science (various specific ones: biology for biology teachers, etc.) Teachers cannot be allowed to teach areas they have no competency in such as an English teacher teaching math or a foreign language or science or computers. A university educated person should be able to teach without special credentials if they have the requisite subject areas in their college curricula. Many education credentialed people cannot teach the basic materials in their basic classes. Yet many private schools hire retired college graduates and teach at the highest levels of achievement without the education degree. It tells us that something is wrong if one can get an education degree which is a required credential by the unions and school districts but be unable to teach basic math, English, or science.
3. Teach using proven methods - most of these are used by university professors today and do not require special educational theories. Just look at the materials MIT is publishing for most of their classes. The curricula is already there. If necessary use the curricula used in the 50s and 60s updated for today. It worked then why not today? 95% were proven literate to high school level in the entire US back then. 95% were proven literate to the 6th grade level before WWII even. Why can we not do this today?
4. Ability to fire or demote poor teachers or incompetent teachers.
5. Ability to promote based on merit, and raise pay commensurately. Yes, that means good teachers may actually be paid competitively with people outside the teaching profession. Whereas poor teachers will be paid less. (Incentive to leave or improve themselves.) That is the way it works in any viable business. Government, especially local government, often does not have the money to waste even thought they often do anyways.
6. Recognize that not all students can or have the reasoning ability or want to go to college, and provide them with alternatives in high school for skill based technologies - (computer repair, telephone and TV cable and computer networking, plumbing and metal working, automobile repair, carpentry/construction and wood working, Heating Ventilation and building repair/engineering, legal, restaurant operations, electrical wiring, etc., all those non-glamorous things we need done anyways.) Why? Because this encourages these people to become masters at their technology, of which we need many. Why import these people from Latin America, Asia, Africa when they can be trained here at home? Many who drop out of high school and thereby become the illiterate ones, would do very well in these type of classes and disciplines. This style of curricula worked very well in the 50s and 60s why not today? What happens today is that many drop out of high school (up to 30% in some areas), and then have to go to private (and very costly) training schools to get such an education. Or have to be trained by companies to do these occupations at great expense and time, typically 2 years anyways, (that means higher prices to you and me) to the companies hiring them. - smackhero, on 10/12/2007, -2/+6totally agree with ya. the failure of the education system is one that's interconnected with economic and cultural issues as well, which is true with most social problems. the core problem is the disparity in living standards between the rich and the poor. an increase in GDP does no good unless the income gap is also closed, otherwise all economic growth is meaningless. since there's no simple way to do this, we ought to at the very least socialize healthcare and education (beyond k-12). honestly, we're probably the most backward developed 1-st world nation in terms of social welfare. even if you don't care about fixing social inequities because of the moral imperative we have as a civilized society, you shoulds till care about it in terms of solving incidental social issues like drug abuse and crime--both of which are societal costs that affect us all. unfortunately, unless the upper and middle class of america decide to become less indifferent about the problem of poverty in america, no progress can be made to improve the situation.
- prowdtobebrown, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5while politicians seem bent on making democracy America's greatest export (more like violence and instability) perhaps more attention should be paid to ensuring that everyone at home in the world's richest country is capable of participating in its democratic process.
- kdor, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5It is an immigration thing and a school thing. Either way it's a disgrace. DC schools have nearly a 50% dropout rate - one of the worst in the country. Yet the per student spending is one of the highest. Horribly inefficient and distracted by every educational hokum that comes along. It's a lab for disfunctional social scientists. The buildings are all crumbling. Every year schools are delayed due to maintenance problems.
Illegal immigrants unprepared for life in this country are another matter. The poor who are encouraged to squat just to line the pockets of lobbyists, crook politicians, unscrupulous businesses and social do-gooders. On top of that disease rates are soaring from what they bring in unchecked. Not to much like the last century immigrants - except against the law.
DC, cradle of the free world. Hah. Cradle of the free world idiot. - vyhd, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Quoth andrewman327: "Simply throwing money at a problem does not make it better."
Especially not when it's a fundamentally flawed system. This honestly doesn't surprise me, if only because I'm in the system as we speak. There's far too much of a focus on rote learning without ever giving it meaning...memorising formulas you will still need to look up in the rare chance you actually use your math class information...memorising facts for a test, regurgitating, and then forgetting them. These are the people that are best rewarded and also least affected by the system.
The only way they will see improvement is if the national schooling system is overhauled, and no politician would go near that as long as there are easier things to change. - junaru, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4So that's the target audience of text to speech engines.
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -2/+6You do realize that the Federal government does not run Washington, D.C.?
Good thing ignorance doesn't count towards illiteracy! - arpad, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Yeah, it's immigrants from Africa, as well as da islands mon, that put the lie to the conclusions reached in the Bell Curve.
- thomasb227, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I think that stat is pretty common throughout the US. I am sure it's better in some places than others but is average on the whole. I have known that the functional illiteracy numbers were much higher than anyone would hope in this nation.
Our education system or the way we motivate our kids needs to be improved drastically. - dmclone, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4I know this will sound politically incorrect and racist to others but doesn't Washington DC have the highest % of blacks in the country? Oops I guess not. Here are he top 10. How do you think the education is in these 10 cities? Crime rate? Single mothers?
Gary, Ind.84.0%Detroit, Mich.81.6Birmingham, Ala.73.5Jackson, Miss.70.6New Orleans, La.67.3%Baltimore, Md.64.3Atlanta, Ga.61.4Memphis, Tenn.61.4Washington, DC60.0%Richmond, Va.57.2 - Psxtreme, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3This isn't news if you've ever been to DC...
- Leomarth, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I always ask people to picture their local doctors office ran by the DMV or the IRS.... usually gives them pause for a few seconds.
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -2/+5These kids aren't even getting to the "rote learning and memorizing"
If they're functionally illiterate, they're probably not even learning their ABC's. Let alone math formulas.
Of course they'll be able to read the lyrics of any rap CD. - mcnicks, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4The other three quarters cannot perform even basic arithmetic.
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