🏈 Stunning attack on Alabama’s academic record.

[TerryP]

Droppin' Chappelle at the end. Dayum.

 

[ElephantStomp]

Well...thats true to some extent.... but rural states always grade lower...the pinhead liberals that oversee "standards" see it from their ivory tower...
Federal momey is a big motivator to set achievable standards.....

Public schooling is lower in Repub states than it is in Dem states for the most part. The state where I live currently (Wyoming) is ran by Repubs and our public schooling is absolutely terrible

 

[It Takes Eleven]

You can take shots at me for being a stupid lib or anything else you want to but what I said is demonstrably true no matter how you try to spin it. Even ignoring that we quite literally rank dead last in public education in this country, I've seen it first hand. I'm in those schools every single week, not to mention my mom was a public school teacher for more than 40 years. It's not my "lib view of education" that caused her to have to buy school supplies and duct tape books together and bring her home computers to class because the schools either couldn't or wouldn't provide the tools necessary for those teachers that WANT to do the right things to be able to do it.

Alabama is certainly near the bottom, nothing to be proud of, but we are 44 to 47 by most measures in K-12. Higher education, on the whole, is middle of the pack. We have our best and brightest who are likely to leave our state (pre-pandemic speaking) to go where there is greater opportunity, and we have the impoverished who live in inner cities and areas of rural hopelessness who are going nowhere. As long as many of our best are skimmed off the top for other destinations we'll languish.

I have family members (wife, sister in-law and niece) and friends who teach/taught in GA (they rank in the low 30's by most measures) and they all spend money on classroom supplies. It's not limited to Alabama. My wife worked in the Cobb County school system (a good system in GA) for ten years (and at the time also made window treatments) and we bought fabric and she made window treatments, seat covers, you name it, to help young teachers decorate their rooms. My sister in-law's hearing-impaired classroom is a treasure trove of teaching and interactive supplies she's built up over the last 30+ years. She's started talking about transitioning to part time and seeing fewer students (letting another teacher use her room for part of the week) and the administrator's attention went immediately to "can they use your classroom items?".

As a state, we've made huge economic gains, and much of it has been due to the automotive industry. That has made Alabama a more cyclical state, prone to follow national expansions and contractions. However, with the shift toward EV, and the dramatic decline in the number of moving mechanical parts in them, means the state must compete to retain automotive jobs. The next ten years will not be pretty for the worker in that industry, including many secondary suppliers. If our current slate of politicians are not savvy, we'll have neighboring states pilfer our gains - a chilling thought. Also, it is going to be devastating internationally for those companies from Mexico to China making all of those replacement parts for IC autos. At some point, I'm seriously thinking of stocking up on extra brake pad/shoes, rotors/drums, water pump, alternator and such for my old mustang. Can't really do that as well with hoses/belts/wipers (and wires to a lesser degree) as they will deteriorate.

RTR,

Tim

 

[JoshB]

Alabama is certainly near the bottom, nothing to be proud of, but we are 44 to 47 by most measures in K-12. Higher education, on the whole, is middle of the pack. We have our best and brightest who are likely to leave our state (pre-pandemic speaking) to go where there is greater opportunity, and we have the impoverished who live in inner cities and areas of rural hopelessness who are going nowhere. As long as many of our best are skimmed off the top for other destinations we'll languish.

I have family members (wife, sister in-law and niece) and friends who teach/taught in GA (they rank in the low 30's by most measures) and they all spend money on classroom supplies. It's not limited to Alabama. My wife worked in the Cobb County school system (a good system in GA) for ten years (and at the time also made window treatments) and we bought fabric and she made window treatments, seat covers, you name it, to help young teachers decorate their rooms. My sister in-law's hearing-impaired classroom is a treasure trove of teaching and interactive supplies she's built up over the last 30+ years. She's started talking about transitioning to part time and seeing fewer students (letting another teacher use her room for part of the week) and the administrator's attention went immediately to "can they use your classroom items?".

As a state, we've made huge economic gains, and much of it has been due to the automotive industry. That has made Alabama a more cyclical state, prone to follow national expansions and contractions. However, with the shift toward EV, and the dramatic decline in the number of moving mechanical parts in them, means the state must compete to retain automotive jobs. The next ten years will not be pretty for the worker in that industry, including many secondary suppliers. If our current slate of politicians are not savvy, we'll have neighboring states pilfer our gains - a chilling thought. Also, it is going to be devastating internationally for those companies from Mexico to China making all of those replacement parts for IC autos. At some point, I'm seriously thinking of stocking up on extra brake pad/shoes, rotors/drums, water pump, alternator and such for my old mustang. Can't really do that as well with hoses/belts/wipers (and wires to a lesser degree) as they will deteriorate.

RTR,

Tim

I wasn't suggesting Alabama is the only state that's bad, for sure. I will never forget the year my mom couldn't get the school system to buy her something as simple as a divider so she could put it up when she had to change student's diapers (she was a special ed teacher and that was required with some of them, have I mentioned she was a saint?) despite her spending well over $1,000 on books, supplies and a changing table itself that year. I had never seen her more defeated, so my dad and I actually made her one to use. Stuff like that shouldn't be necessary.

We probably all have different things that we think should or could be done to fix some of the issues but regardless of where anyone falls in the political spectrum I think we can all agree we have long passed the point of SOMETHING needing to be done.

 

[mando]

We probably all have different things that we think should or could be done to fix some of the issues but regardless of where anyone falls in the political spectrum I think we can all agree we have long passed the point of SOMETHING needing to be done.

Do politicians actually solve problems? I thought they just talked about it. As you said this is not a problem with a particular party either from what I can see. I made a comment a few years back to some acquaintances that I do not look for the government to solve my problems and it was like that was a foreign concept to them. BTW I am not trying to imply this was meant at you or you political leanings just my view of politicians and what I think the role of government should be.

 

[rick4bama]

This is what Greg McElroy had to say.

Wow! How about former Bama star Greg McElroy?
Thousands of Bama fans, students and alumni are praising the former Crimson Tide quarterback after a he stood by his alma mater after an Oregon star football player indicated that The University of Alabama is not a premiere and well-respected university.
Oregon defensive end Kayvon Thibodeaux was asked on a podcast during the national championship game why he chose Oregon over Alabama.
Said Thibodeaux:
"I already hate the stigmatism (he meant to say ‘stigma’) of football players being dumb jocks. You know the stigmatism of Alabama education?
It ain’t the West Coast.
It ain’t Harvard.
If I would have gone to Alabama, I don't know if my degree would mean anything... I can say if I go to Alabama, I’m going to win national championships. But do I want to be a guy who’s known as a national championship winner or do I want to be a guy who’s known for being a part of the greatest organization in the world?
A brand like Nike?"
Greg McElroy defended the University Of Alabama on WJOX Radio:
"I just take real personal offense, man I genuinely do. I don't care. Don't come. If you think so little of us, don't come.
Fine by me, because I know the people that live in this state.
I chose Alabama because I love Alabama.
If you don't want to see Alabama for the greatness it can potentially provide you, it's on you. You're missing out.
"He says he doesn't like the stigma that athletes are dumb jocks, and yet, he sounds like a dumb jock.
What I don't understand is why he felt the need to cut down Alabama.
And as someone who has always taken his academic situation very seriously, I'll just come at him with this — if he'd like to take an IQ test, I'm available.
If he'd like to take the Wonderlic test, I'm available.
As a proud graduate with multiple degrees from Alabama, I will put my degree up against his any day of the week.
I'd like to show him the offers, because I would be willing to bet that Harvard didn't offer him.
I think they probably would have taken him, but Harvard did offer me, as did Yale, as did Princeton, as did almost every Ivy League school along with Duke, Stanford, Northwestern and Vanderbilt. And I chose Alabama, so put 'er there Kayvon Thibodeaux.
"Meet me at the Wonderlic Test.
Meet me there, Kayvon.
Come get some.
Match my 48 or 43, whichever one it was."
While Thibodeaux is a bright young man who is entitled to his opinion, many folks in this neck of the woods consider the McElroy rant a job well done, as he stood behind one of the many fine universities in the south that are at times disregarded by America's elite.
There's one thing for sure:
Dallas native and Rhodes finalist Greg McElroy, a young man who was offered by Harvard, Yale, Stanford, Princeton, Duke and others sure is glad that he chose the University Of Alabama.
And his career is working out just fine.

 

[Davestwin]

We spend more and more money every year on public schools yet test scores remain relatively flat. Throwing more and more money at a problem without any appreciable results is the norm with government bureaucracies … much more at the federal level, less at the state level and less than that at the local levels. The solution to improving our failing schools involves choice but the teacher’s unions and the Party they support won’t allow it. I don’t blame individual teachers at all … I do blame those who put politics above our children’s education though. We’ve been throwing more and more money at the problem every single year since the 60’s with very poor results. Let’s try something different … things that have been shown to work!

 

[50+yeartidefan]

We spend more and more money every year on public schools yet test scores remain relatively flat. Throwing more and more money at a problem without any appreciable results is the norm with government bureaucracies … much more at the federal level, less at the state level and less than that at the local levels. The solution to improving our failing schools involves choice but the teacher’s unions and the Party they support won’t allow it. I don’t blame individual teachers at all … I do blame those who put politics above our children’s education though. We’ve been throwing more and more money at the problem every single year since the 60’s with very poor results. Let’s try something different … things that have been shown to work!

Because they throw money at "a system" Pinheads deciding what the problem is and how they can solve it.....

Ms50+ is a lomg term teacher and her friends....
Listened to them for hours...glad somebody did...so much frustration..
But they would still put theirstudents....( oneof most rural schools in Tennessee)..
Agaist any public school from chicago...or most elsewhere

What they got was more moonlight programs....lots of appropriations...
Little trickled down...



Flip the funnel over....then you will get results....
But dont hold ur breath....

 

[JoshB]

Do politicians actually solve problems? I thought they just talked about it. As you said this is not a problem with a particular party either from what I can see. I made a comment a few years back to some acquaintances that I do not look for the government to solve my problems and it was like that was a foreign concept to them. BTW I am not trying to imply this was meant at you or you political leanings just my view of politicians and what I think the role of government should be.

They could, they very much could. But they won't. We'll just keep handing money to private/charter schools and pretend that the problems in public schools don't exist.

This is MY opinion, so anyone that's gonna get bent out of shape it's my opinion, one thing that they could do as far as the funding goes is to spread it more evenly amongst all the schools. The fact is that the schools in the wealthiest areas get the most money (taxes). If that got spread more evenly (in terms of district, city, county especially but state too) amongst all the schools it will help these extremely rural schools and the schools in very poor inner cities. You want to be shocked, go walk into Lee in Montgomery one time. It's insane. Broken windows, HVACs that don't work, roofs leaking all over the place, 10-year old text books, computers sitting in the corner that haven't worked in years, libraries that are taping together books, etc.

 

[JoshB]

This is what Greg McElroy had to say.

Either Radio Greg is much different than TV Greg or he lost all his Fs to give, wow. He rarely goes in like that.

 

[BamaFan334]

Either Radio Greg is much different than TV Greg or he lost all his Fs to give, wow. He rarely goes in like that.

Agreed for sure. He's probably like a lot of us where he tries to remain even keel, but you start talking crap about something we love and a lot of us have a lot of time and effort into and it'll make them claws come out quick.

 

[mando]

They could, they very much could. But they won't. We'll just keep handing money to private/charter schools and pretend that the problems in public schools don't exist.

This is MY opinion, so anyone that's gonna get bent out of shape it's my opinion, one thing that they could do as far as the funding goes is to spread it more evenly amongst all the schools. The fact is that the schools in the wealthiest areas get the most money (taxes). If that got spread more evenly (in terms of district, city, county especially but state too) amongst all the schools it will help these extremely rural schools and the schools in very poor inner cities. You want to be shocked, go walk into Lee in Montgomery one time. It's insane. Broken windows, HVACs that don't work, roofs leaking all over the place, 10-year old text books, computers sitting in the corner that haven't worked in years, libraries that are taping together books, etc.

Where has throwing more money at it worked by itself? I think it is needed in cases you mention but the management and leadership in those areas also is needed including parental involvement. So more than just money problem in my view. Really not trying to start an argument. I ask questions to learn especially if the position does not align with mine. Always something to learn.

 

[JoshB]

Where has throwing more money at it worked by itself? I think it is needed in cases you mention but the management and leadership in those areas also is needed including parental involvement. So more than just money problem in my view. Really not trying to start an argument. I ask questions to learn especially if the position does not align with mine. Always something to learn.

I never said that alone would fix anything. It's one of the many glaring issues. I agree about leadership and parents but the money aspect also helps in drawing in better administrators/leaders, as well as convincing teachers not to leave the state to get decent pay. We also need outreach programs in every city as well as after-school programs. It blows my mind how many towns/cities have zero after-school programs. It doesn't have to be anything like STEM programs (though those are unbelievable), it can be something as simple as putting together reading programs after school, working on small projects, etc. That would do single-parent households and homes where parents work until after five wonders. There are a ton of problems in public education in MY opinion. So, I wasn't saying throwing money at it alone would fix anything. You have to have the leaders and visionaries there to also direct anything. We're too busy worrying about "CRT" or whatever other culture war BS that is the hot button of the day. I don't say that cause some big political argument here, it's just one of the many silly things that people and even school boards are obsessed with now. I sat through superintendent (for six hours mind you) at a school board lats year where the ONLY question one of the board members asked the candidates was about CRT. Literally the only thing on his mind.

 

[RollllTide!]

If technology continues improving I can see AI replacing the model schools have for teaching. Automated learning is going to come and IMO it will be better without politics.

 

[It Takes Eleven]

Either Radio Greg is much different than TV Greg or he lost all his Fs to give, wow. He rarely goes in like that.

He'll probably be Apologizing Greg at some point.

 

[Rolltide24]

Wife has taught in 3 states and 5 different school districts as we’ve moved around. One thing we’ve learned, it’s not necessarily how much money cities and states throw at the schools, it’s how much the parents give a rip and are involved. Seen many wealthy parents and many poor parent(s) show no involvement in their kid’s education and the results are usually predictable.

 

[mando]

Automated learning is going to come and IMO it will be better without politics.

Everything is better without politics.

 

[It Takes Eleven]

If technology continues improving I can see AI replacing the model schools have for teaching. Automated learning is going to come and IMO it will be better without politics.

Everything is better without politics.

Automated learning won't be free from politics. It will be tainted with ideology just as today's teaching can be, with the main exception that a single ideology will be able to be imposed consistently to far more students. More efficient? Yes. Potentially more damaging? Absolutely.

*Edit: And, let's say it is the best thing in the world, and everyone agrees. Can you imagine the democrats defending the teacher's unions?

 

[64Tide]

Uneducated people are easier to control. Teacher’s unions are controlled by who?

 

[50+yeartidefan]

Unconfirmed...got it somewhere ....