Isn't it rather pathetic that a majority [56%] of 8th grade Hawaii students have "below basic" knowledge of Science.
Mathematics and Reading are only slightly better with more than 40% of Hawaii students in the "below basic" knowledge category in those subjects.
These are abysmal results, and one wonders who is at fault. Hawaii consistently ranks in the lowest 5 states in the nation for the quality of education. How can this be when the government [in 2002-2003] was spending $1,489,092,000 on education?[1] Where does this money come from? Why from the taxpayers of course! The National Education Association, or NEA, conducted a study of the individual states and found that with a 2% increase in government spending on education, the results of the increased consumption [or sales] tax would decrease the number of jobs in Hawaii by at least 500.
The NEA concluded that:
“The results of increasing consumption taxes on each
state’s level of employment appear in Table 3. At this stage
of the analysis, tax revenues are simply being taken out of
the economy and not being respent. As would be expected,
an increase in taxes affects jobs negatively in all states and
in all years. This negative effect on jobs increases over time,
as businesses and individuals continue to make location
decisions favoring areas offering greater opportunities.” (10-11)[3]
The people being affected by such a poor education system and decreased number of jobs are primarily those of poorer incomes. Also, those who can afford to send their children to private schools still have to help pay for the miserable public school system as well, even when they aren't using it. Is that fair? I don't think so.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, at least 15% of the students in Hawaii attend private schools,
which is one of the highest proportions in the nation. This is no wonder considering how poor the government school system is on the islands.[2]
The government spent an average of $8,100 per student in 2002-2003 [most likely that amount has grown in recent years]. That is sufficient for tuition in quite a few private schools in Hawaii. According to a recent article on private school tuition costs in the Star Bulletin, $8,100 could cover the tuition for Sacred Hearts and Damien for example.[4] Undoubtably the quality of education in those schools are much higher than in government institutions.
Wouldn't it be best for people to keep that money that the government spends for them and choose their own schools? If the government still wanted to make sure that education was compulsory for all minors then they could return the money to the rightful owners in the form of vouchers. These vouchers would go towards tuition for private schools, and then the government would no longer need to waste money on its failing school system.
The voucher system would help the education of Hawaii's students tremendously. One article in the Hawaii Reporter talks about the possibility of the voucher system:
"School Choice and Competition Offer Solution
Fifty years ago, Economist Milton Friedman proposed education vouchers and the idea that parents should choose the appropriate education for their children, not government bureaucrats. The Milton and Rose D. Foundation now reports the following progress:
• 7 states offer tax-funded voucher plans with 48,165 students enrolled in these voucher plans;
• 3 states offer tax deductions or credits for private education expenses with 542,910 families benefiting;
• 3 states offer tax-funded private scholarship programs, benefiting 57,391 families;
Eight studies on the benefits of these choice initiatives find significant academic benefits for students using the programs to attend private schools. No studies found adverse consequences for public-school performance.
No studies have found that public schools do a better job of promoting tolerance, civic participation or racial integration. Charter schools in Hawaii are saving taxpayers about $34 million per year in per pupil costs, because the state funds charter students at only half of traditional public school students. Miraculously, charter school students still outperform traditional public school students, despite operating on a shoestring budget.
Hawaii’s charter school success only hints at the heights to which student achievement could soar if a wide range of choices were available to parents -- including public, private and home schooling -- through tax-credits, vouchers and scholarships."[5]
Milton Friedman was a highly revered economist and a nobel prize winner for economics. I think that he was definitely wise in his advice about moving away from government schools to private schools. A voucher system is one way to acheive that, but definitely not the only way. If the government really wants to help the children of Hawaii, then that is the best first step.
*Note: For more thoughts on this subject by me click here.
[1] The Heritage Foundation
[2] United States Government Census 2003
[3] The National Education Association's Statistics on School Funding
[4] "Isle Private School Costs to Continue Steep Rise" by Dan Martin
[5] "School Choice - A Better Solution for Hawaii" by Laura Brown
2 comments:
Is is sad that in Hawaii we have lowered our standards for the education of our students and for the performance of our public education system so much. We are forced to celebrate tiny improvements in No Child Left Behind results as victories, though our children (as Kenli notes) lack basic knowledge in most areas. Is it no wonder that overall about 20 percent of Hawaii students are in private school, but (as I have heard) 30% of the children of teachers are sent to private school. According to Heartland, 21% of children of teachers in urban areas attend private school, so this sounds about right.
As long as we accept these results, nothing will change.
Alexa Untermann-
We students of Punahou are extremely lucky that we receive one of the best educations, if not THE best, in Hawaii and the US. There is definitely a trend regarding education and wealth. They wealthier you are, the better education you tend to receive. Specifically in Hawaii, education is pretty bad. The public school system is definitely half as good as the public school system on the Mainland. in California, almost everybody attends public schools because they are really good. When we think of public schools, our stereotype is totally differen than that of the mainland's public schools. The major reason is not enough funding to support public schools and not enough or the "right" teachers.
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