Can a Governor Solve the Education Problem?

Over the past few decades we have had several "Education Governors" who have vowed to "improve education."

As we can see today these efforts to date have not been sufficient to "fix" the system. This state, as one educator put it, " Is in need of improvement."

In the early 1990's then Governor Gardner embarked upon "Education Reform" with the usual cast of dignitaries and founded the Commission on Student Learning.

The Commission had representatives from Superintendents, Vocational Instruction, Private Schools, Teachers, Business, Teacher's Union, Principals, Students and several other interested groups.

The Commission was chaired by Terry Bergeson, the current Superintendent of Public Instruction. The Commission was part of the law passed by the Legislature in 1993 to "reform" education.

This bill, HB 1209, has caused the taxpayers of this state to spend well in excess of $1 billion in behest of "reforming education!"

When I first took an interest in this, SLIG (student learning improvement grants) money was being doled out by SLIG Managers in every school in the state.

The purpose of this money was to allow innovative teachers to do "research" on how to improve learning.

There was to be a manual published upon the completion of this research, so others could benefit from any positive research findings. This manual was never published.

So we spent millions of dollars for "research?"

Perhaps this is an answer to the perpetual question. "Will money solve the problem?"

HB 1209 also established the WASL as a measurement of individual, and school learning with the goal of holding every student to certain levels of achievement prior to graduation.

In fact, the main purpose of HB 1209 was to insure that a high school diploma had some exact verification of a base of knowledge.

HB 1209 laid out responsibilities for educators, students, and parents.

Governor Gardner had a plan, at the behest of the employers and the Federal focus on improving education.

Since then we have had three Governors who have all "made education a priority."

Our current Governor convened "Washington Learns", again a "panel of experts" to improve the education of the children of Washington.

What have these panels learned and done that has an effect upon what happens in classrooms?" I can't identify anything!

The current Commission ducked the question of "adequate resources" completely. Perhaps this is the correct analysis, as we have yet to show what more money would do to improve education.

I believe that the problem is much more fundamental than one that money can resolve.

The Moynihan Report of 1963 made some prophetic predictions about our society based upon the trend towards the dissolution of the American Family. Unfortunately Moynihan's predictions have become facts!

We, the adults of this nation, have allowed much of what used to be called "norms" and even laws to become "optional."

In one of our local papers there was an article on an eight grader who had decided to drop out of school, and this was OK by his parents!

There are laws, and used to be norms, that would have prevented this in the past.

This state has laws which regulate driving of automobiles that are violated without regard by a substantial portion of our population. Why?

There isn't any meaningful consequence for a violation. Drunken driving, driving with no insurance, driving with a suspended license, driving without a license and auto theft are all "tolerated."

The same is true in education where the taxpayer pays for a group of kids, and their parents, who are either looking for a daycare service, a playground or a social hall.

Governors, and Legislators, seem to have little stomach for enacting any legislation that would "require" adherence to specific laws in such a way that most would change their habits to conform to the law.

In the west there was very little horse stealing as there were very few second offenders. Our "compassion" today has allowed for a tolerance of behaviors that makes education very problematic for many children as there is no "guidance" on the home front, and the media has made deviant behavior seem acceptable.

It would take a Governor with a very firm focus on true "change" to have the impact on education that a great school board could do in a few evenings!

Many have asked for "solutions" and I plan to offer some in coming columns.