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Money doesn’t create a better education

Published/Last Modified on Thursday, Dec 25, 2008 - 11:45:40 pm MST

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To the Editor:

Money alone does not an educational system make, at least not a successful one.

In April 1959, I was in the last six weeks of seventh grade in a small, poor school in east Tennessee in a class of 30 kids. My father had just decided to take a job in California. In 1959, adults didn’t allow 12-year-olds to make these decisions for them, so I was told we were moving.

My teacher was mortified because she knew that California had the best school system in the entire world and paid dearly for it. She said I would probably be put back at least one year and this would reflect poorly on her, our school, the state of Tennessee and the entire South in general. No pressure there.

We arrived in California days later and aside from the language barrier, it wasn’t that bad. As I stood in front of the door to my new classroom, I felt that on the other side of that door I would find 12-year-olds in white lab coats hunched over microscopes discovering cures for cancer.

Once inside, I found about two dozen kids, who, as participants of that fine, superior California school system, were learning things at the end of the seventh grade that we who attended that poor, little school that could barely provide coal for heat had learned at the beginning of the sixth grade. I spent the last six weeks of seventh grade working in the principal’s office learning life-shaping skills like running a mimeograph machine.

What was the difference in those systems if it wasn’t money or class size? It was a conspiracy, a vast, evil conspiracy that consisted not only of Southern parents and teachers, but all Southern adults who felt that children were to be taught and molded whether it made them happy or not. They were out to make childhood a miserable experience and at that point I thought they were doing an excellent job of it.

In Tennessee, the cure for the not yet diagnosed ADD (attention deficit disorder) was: “Jenny Lynn, sit down and shut up, no one cares that you don’t like math, you are going to learn it anyway.” I was not offered a mind-altering drug even once. My selfish parents didn’t sue the teacher or the school district. And the child protective services were strangely mute. As students and children, we had learned that our job was to be educated, the teachers’ job was to educate us and the parents job was to parent us. Apparently that is no longer understood by anyone and chaos reigns.

Those of us who do not wish to pay higher taxes for the same lackluster results really aren’t evil, we just want to see things excel, and unless we wake up tomorrow to find that it’s 1959 again, I don’t think we will.

Jenny Simpson

Sierra Vista

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brian wrote on Jan 12, 2009 10:20 AM:

" Hey Mark, you may want to go back an re-read the Constitution. The 14th Amendment was ratified July 9, 1868.

Focus the ciricculum on academic and not social topics is the only way to "improve" the government schools. but the government officials don't want academic improvement, they want social improvement. "

Upright wrote on Jan 9, 2009 6:28 PM:

" Mr. Baker: Thank you for the reality check. I hope that everyone pays close attention to what you have written, especially Ms. Simpson, who appears to be viewing her school days in Tennessee through rose-colored glasses. "

Brenda wrote on Jan 9, 2009 3:36 PM:

" Mark, I am sure your life was miserable in the 50's, but try not to live in the past. Blacks have so much going for them as a minority. I remember my mother taking us on a bus in the south, when she got on she didn't know whether we were supposed to sit in the back like the blacks since she is hispanic. We moved to the back and were told to move to the front. go figure. I know that I could have benefited from EEO but I chose to use my own merits. "

Mark Baker wrote on Jan 9, 2009 1:57 PM:

" Yes, thank you Mrs. Simpson! Thank you for the white perspective of 1959! I remember the 1950’s too. Of course being a minority (and with the 14th Amendment not being passed until 1964) things were quite a bit different for me. Even if I agree with the point I think you are trying to make about personal responsibility I get a bit tired of hearing people talk about the “good old days.”
The good old days were only good for some, not all. Before you put down how things are today and glorify life in the 1950s and 60’s you need to do a reality check. The perception your teacher had about California having the best school system around – was untrue. Likewise your perception that 1959 is better than 2009 is also untrue. Different, but not better – not by a long shot. "

DR wrote on Jan 9, 2009 1:14 PM:

" Maybe starting with a dress code, and turn off the cell phones, might just help kids pay attention! "

Upright wrote on Jan 9, 2009 12:42 PM:

" cont. I educated my kids elsewhere so I do not know whether the SVPS mismanaged funds or not. However, I do know that while money does not necessarily create a better education, inadequate funding all but prohibits it. "

Upright wrote on Jan 9, 2009 12:41 PM:

" I received a superlative education, during the era Ms. Simpson discusses, in a small, rural school district considered at that time to be the 2nd best district in Texas. The teachers were top-notch, the schools were clean, attractive, and safe, all campuses were equipped with state-of-the-art equipment, and the elective offerings were fabulous. What made all of this possible was money. People in our little community were looking forward, not backward, as Ms. Simpson does. They made education for children a priority and funded the schools accordingly. "

woody wrote on Jan 9, 2009 12:35 PM:

" To uninformed I believe "the waste" stated it best. One area of waste...THE ILLEGEALS. Please don't throw out the lame excuse of the NCLB law. Fact is the school districts want the State and Federal matching funds, which all taxpayers are funding. "

AMEN wrote on Jan 9, 2009 8:34 AM:

" Thank you, Mrs. Simpson! It was the same way for me in 1964 and again in 1968 when our family moved to different states and changed schools. Failure was not an option, and tutoring was available if necessary. We didn't have the AIMS test. We learned the hard way that if we didn't graduate from high school knowing the basics, we either took remedial courses to get into college or found work at less desirable jobs. That's real life! "

uninformed wrote on Jan 9, 2009 7:17 AM:

" Come on folks give me some meat & potatoes. With so many people out there with such strong opinions against the override I would think someone could supply me with facts. To Waste - the budget is available on line. What was wanted? One specifically delineating where override money would go vs the general budget? "

Brenda wrote on Jan 8, 2009 3:07 PM:

" To Uninformedf:
It is hard to specify waste when the people wasting the money don't even know it. As a wife and mother of four children. I know first hand that there is waste in my budget. There always has been and always will be. But when I am looking for ways to save money, believe me I can reel in the waste. I can come up with lots of money when needed. I just stop wasting it somewhere else. If you give someone $ and tell them to spend it, they are going to spend it. "

The waste... wrote on Jan 8, 2009 2:44 PM:

" My personal opinion is that it isn’t that the money was wasted, rather that the money given to the SV school district isn’t being budgeted properly. They were given an override before (that we are still paying on) and were unable to balance their budget. So they were asked by many in the community to provide a proposed budget for how another override would be used and they refused to do it. I am all for spending money on children’s education, but I am not all for throwing money blindly at problems. "

Uninformef wrote on Jan 8, 2009 12:14 PM:

" To Leonidas
What kind of answer was that? I am looking for specific details from anyone. I read accusations galore but no one is citing specific details of waste. The only fact written was on admin pay. Does anyone have well researched specifics as to where the waste was. That is the type of response I would like to see. Not comparisons to "when I was a kid", but real life, todays costs, livable pay, meeting the needs of todays kids. Anyone? "

Wasted Money wrote on Jan 8, 2009 10:23 AM:

" II know of a student who is paid by the governement to attend school. She is completely uneducable. The student I am talking about has to be re-taught on a daily basis what she learned the day before!! Does that student really need to be in a public school system? Her parents are looking for a free ride and free child care. If I had a child like that, I would want them in a special school learning how to dress and feed herself. School is for our educable children. "

SierraVistan wrote on Jan 8, 2009 8:10 AM:

" One thing is for certain: The majority of those complaining that the Sierra Vista School District is wasting their money have no kids in school and have never even set foot in the school district offices. They're simply out here sniping from the bushes and have no idea what they're talking about. Ask them for a fact and they can't come up with one. It's much easier to complain than it is to get your facts straight. Sad, really. "

Real1 wrote on Jan 8, 2009 6:43 AM:

" To "To what a loon":
I fail to see where "the opposing view just resorts to name calling" as you have suggested. I do find it telling that you offer that this is a "left/right" issue. Imagine! People on the left want a better education for their children, the nerve! Meanwhile, those on the "right" have called children "brats" and "spoiled undisciplined malcontents". Charming! It is a shame that the Herald allows "open comments" from so many whose opinions are formed from ignorance. Anyone who actually researched this issue would disagree with "Jenny". "

Real1 wrote on Jan 8, 2009 6:26 AM:

" To obviously:
You have stated a "logical fallacy".
It would be absurd to assume that "ALL students from well-funded schools would be well educated and ALL students from poor schools would be failures" in any practical sense, because MONEY IS NOT the ONLY VARIABLE, and there is no way that you could isolate it. The reality is that MOST kids from more affluent school districts end up MORE SUCCESSFUL than MOST kids from POORER districts. Does that tell you something? "

Real1 wrote on Jan 8, 2009 6:15 AM:

" Jenny,

What a wonderful oversimplification of a complex problem! I would guess by your age that you no longer have "school aged" children. I can't help but wonder if this was the same opinion you had when your children were attending school. The "present day" reality is that EVERY ASPECT of education costs more today then it did in 1959. I expect that even in 1959 Tennessee, your teachers were likely paid a "living wage" and your textbooks were kept "up to date".
Your argument seems based on "parents teaching values", which doesn't involve taxes. "

Leonidas wrote on Jan 7, 2009 6:49 PM:

" To uninformed:

The money is being wasted if it is assigned to school district for any expenditure. The government has no business in education and the perverse incentive is the same as every other large bureaucracy - protection of staff privilege, obedience to the government machine and all of its horrific statist canards and the continuing feminization and zombification of young people. All teachers should be fired and compelled to compete in the private sector. "

Uninformed wrote on Jan 7, 2009 2:49 AM:

" Still haven't had anyone tell me where the monies are being wasted or why so many feel that they have misused money and don't deserve more. I am truly trying to understand this argument. Could someone fill me in please. "

SierraVistaResident wrote on Jan 5, 2009 1:45 PM:

" Well said, Jenny Lynn! Your Tennessee teachers would be right proud of your observation. "

svmom wrote on Jan 5, 2009 10:54 AM:

" For 3 years I refused to medicate my ADHD child believing (hoping) that discipline and hard work alone would get him through school. It worked for awhile...but no longer, it is inhibiting his ability to learn. He is a well disciplined and respectful child with impeccable manners. An ADHD child is not the same as a Spoiled Brat...I really wish you "old school" people would recognize that. "

Mark C. wrote on Jan 5, 2009 10:39 AM:

" Teachers’ earning competitive salaries means we get teachers who had to compete for their position. It means the worst teachers will no longer be able to find employment teaching. Better teachers mean better schools and better educations for our children. "

azdave wrote on Jan 5, 2009 9:05 AM:

" Sorry, but this is just another silly attempt to mask an insecurity complex with a distorted generalization. I'm the same age as the author, had my three children in different schools, and managed hundreds of different people during my work career. School districts vary significantly from one to another even within the same state, but in general the better funded ones provide better opportunities for students. That doesn't mean any of them "enforce" an education better, but the opportunities usually are better. Check out where the top college students typically come from if you don't agree. "

To What a loon wrote on Jan 5, 2009 6:45 AM:

" I find it very telling that the opposing view just resorts to name calling. This is what I have come to expect out of the, "Tolerant" left. Test standards keep getting lowered and lowered and materials are having be written at a 6th grade reading level so High School graduates have a chance of understanding them. Never mind the simple fact that China and even india blow us away in education and spend far less, "just give us more money" is what we constantly hear, as if you were at all wise with what you've had. "

David wrote on Jan 5, 2009 6:01 AM:

" Thank you Jenny, sounds similar to my experiences only a bit later in time. Only disagreement is let's go back to '58 and work to prevent Jack Kennedy from getting in office. That would take care of a lot of the problems we are having today, since they would have never happened.. "

Just a Soldier wrote on Jan 5, 2009 2:18 AM:

" To What a loon:

I didn't see a thing in the letter suggesting that "in the old days we were stupid and liked it". What I saw was a well written statement that parents should be parents and not expect the schools or teachers to raise their children. There's nothing wrong or old fashioned about expecting teachers to teach and students to learn. Our responsibility lies with making sure they have the resources to do so, and with ensuring the elected school board uses those resources wisely. "

surprising conclusion wrote on Dec 31, 2008 1:40 PM:

" What school districts did you attend in Tennessee and California in 1959? Has the world changed in the last 50 years? For one thing, most of the unfunded mandates placed on public education didn’t exist in 1959. Without offering more insight in your letter, how could you assume to make an informed decision about funding education in Arizona today? Your conclusion reminds me of how silly it is to make important decisions without any real knowledge. Have you ever heard this little saying? “All Indians walk in single file, at least the only one I ever saw did.” "

To What a loon wrote on Dec 28, 2008 8:52 PM:

" And now the diagnosable cancers end is still death. "

To Grundoon wrote on Dec 28, 2008 2:39 PM:

" Our generation heralded in all that we have today too: Loose morals, anything goes media, pollution, more is better etc... This stuff did not just happen overnight. It started at the same time as the major technical innovations you boast about. "

SierraVistan wrote on Dec 28, 2008 10:39 AM:

" Jenny asks what was the difference between then and now? Then teachers were expected and allowed to teach. Now teachers are expected to turn spoiled undisciplined malcontents handed to them by parents who never taught their offspring to behave into properly indoctrinated, politically correct young adults who feel good about themselves even if they can't comprehend the words written on the diploma handed to them at graduation day. Not supporting the people who work hard to at their jobs of educating those who actually want to learn is not the solution. "

SierraVistan wrote on Dec 28, 2008 10:25 AM:

" We know how things were back then. Has nothing to do with what's going on now. Now parents spoil their kids rotten, refuse to discipline them on the advice of people like Dr. Spock, and then drop their 5 year old uncontrollable brats off at school expecting to get well educated, reasonably behaved teenagers to be handed back to them 12 years later. In the meantime these same parents fly into a rage when a school has the nerve to send the little tyke home because he or she spends 90% of his time creating havok. "

Grundoon wrote on Dec 28, 2008 2:09 AM:

" I'm 68. My generation and the one before me gave the world every major technical innovation it enjoys today. The transistor, space travel, penicillin, computers, transplant surgery, polio cure, irradicated chicken pox, mri, ct scans, SR-71, etc., etc., etc. We, who didn't grow up in a big city started our education in one and two room school houses taught be good teachers--because back then you could fire the bad ones. And you were surrounded by well behaved students whose parents had not yet been contaminated by the Great American Destroyer--Dr. Benjamin Spock. "

Uninformed wrote on Dec 27, 2008 7:49 PM:

" Could someone tell me where the current funds were wasted or misappropriated? I have heard that the extreme gas prices were not accounted for and affected the budget severely - can't blame the school system for that. But I hear a lot of "tough, deal with the money you have" but don't hear of where the misuse is and would really like to know more. I just see a crumbling education system and see a future nation riddled with ignorance when we continue to poorly educate our youth. (not meaning vs the teachers who try without resources) "

What a loon wrote on Dec 27, 2008 3:48 PM:

" In the 50s in Tennessee the cure for undiagnosable cancer was death. I guses that was good too?? I've heard this before. "In the old days we were stupid, and we LIKED IT". GIve me a break. This is not the old days and most of us are surely glad!!! "

Hey Jerry wrote on Dec 26, 2008 7:45 PM:

" From another midwesterner, not all immigrants have the home educational ideals, the Hispanics don't, the Asians do. "

back to the past wrote on Dec 26, 2008 1:59 PM:

" Nice story, but those who want more money as the answer will just say you want to livein the past. Hey, guess what, some things in the past weren't all bad, and I think your letter make that point. School boards feed off more money as it make them feel more powerful, as it does any politician. "

Jerry Brinegar wrote on Dec 26, 2008 12:46 PM:

" Thank you Jenny! You have put my thoughts into a concise letter that should have been on the front page of every newspaper in the country. Parents in this country have allowed, and required the teachers and educational system to take over the responsibility of rearing our children. Is this the reason that so many children of immigrants seem to excel in our educational system? Are they better parents and still rear their children in the "old fashioned" way? From a small town Iowa boy. "

Thank you wrote on Dec 26, 2008 9:38 AM:

" Thanks for writing so eloquently, Ms. Simpson. When I look at the size and power of the educational establishment from the national level down to the local level, I realize education is big business in a largely unregulated environment. Parents have their hands out, teachers and school administrators have their hands out, always asking for more. Politicians must bow to the power of the unions or not be supported for office. How does one question this monster? Certainly school boards don't question, nor does the general public. "It's for the kids" is the cry! "

obviously wrote on Dec 26, 2008 6:41 AM:

" That's true. If money made the difference, then all students from well-funded schools would be well educated and all students from poor schools would be failures. And that's just not the case. "

Well Said Jenny wrote on Dec 26, 2008 4:46 AM:

" I like the way you think and put those thoughts into words. It seems like the TN school system and community was similar to those I experienced growing up next to a cotton field in Arkansas. We were also expected to go to school as a job as well as perform the other chores that needed to be done after or before school. Time change things, but the basic educational values should have remained in place rather than thinking that more money will solve everything. "