Lousiana implements education voucher program to send tax money to religious schools

[Crazedclerkthe2nd]

Full Article here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/0...n_1563900.html

Of course there are openings at NON religious schools, but at how many voucher students schools are allowing gives a clue as to the apparent intent of the program:

Far more openings are available at smaller, less prestigious religious schools, including some that are just a few years old and others that have struggled to attract tuition-paying students.

The school willing to accept the most voucher students — 314 — is New Living Word in Ruston, which has a top-ranked basketball team but no library. Students spend most of the day watching TVs in bare-bones classrooms. Each lesson consists of an instructional DVD that intersperses Biblical verses with subjects such chemistry or composition.

The Upperroom Bible Church Academy in New Orleans, a bunker-like building with no windows or playground, also has plenty of slots open. It seeks to bring in 214 voucher students, worth up to $1.8 million in state funding.

At Eternity Christian Academy in Westlake, pastor-turned-principal Marie Carrier hopes to secure extra space to enroll 135 voucher students, though she now has room for just a few dozen. Her first- through eighth-grade students sit in cubicles for much of the day and move at their own pace through Christian workbooks, such as a beginning science text that explains “what God made” on each of the six days of creation. They are not exposed to the theory of evolution.

“We try to stay away from all those things that might confuse our children,” Carrier said.

Other schools approved for state-funded vouchers use social studies texts warning that liberals threaten global prosperity; Bible-based math books that don’t cover modern concepts such as set theory; and biology texts built around refuting evolution.


Depending on how this plays out in Lousiana expect to see similar programs pop up in other strongly Republican states like Kansas, Arizona, Texas, Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, Tennessee, Arkansas, Utah and so forth.

This could radically alter the education landscape in America.

[Duelist925]

*snip*

This could radically alter the education landscape in America.

This could radically sent the nations collective IQ plummeting, if someone doesn't step in and go, "hey, yeah, accept those vouchers and you have to start actually teaching"



This frightens me. This frightens me immensely.

[Nekojin]

There are times that I've wished that we could let the Deep South go ahead and secede all over again, but not fight over it this time.

But that'd mean letting them take Florida, and we can't let them have Disney World.

[Seifer]

...Each lesson consists of an instructional DVD that intersperses Biblical verses with subjects such chemistry or composition...

...Her first- through eighth-grade students sit in cubicles for much of the day and move at their own pace through Christian workbooks, such as a beginning science text that explains “what God made” on each of the six days of creation. They are not exposed to the theory of evolution...

...“We try to stay away from all those things that might confuse our children,” Carrier said...

...Other schools approved for state-funded vouchers use social studies texts warning that liberals threaten global prosperity; Bible-based math books that don’t cover modern concepts such as set theory; and biology texts built around refuting evolution...

Only in the Bible Belt, where knowledge is frowned upon and everyone would rather believe an invisible man in the sky created the universe. If parents want their children to grow up morons, then fine. (I consider that child abuse, but the state doesn't, so whatever.) However, state money doesn't belong anywhere near religious schools. Oh, the school is about to go under? Boo-fucking-hoo. I guess a religious school isn't needed, then. Go to public school, where at least you'll learn about dissenting opinions, theories, and how the world actually works.

There's a quote in the article about how most of the kids using the vouchers are coming from abysmal public school systems with terrible track records. Hey, you know what? Instead of sending the child to a school where they'll learn even less about science and math ("GOD DID IT. NEXT QUESTION!"), why not FIX THE FUCKING SCHOOL SYSTEM? I know that sounds impossible to a political blowhard who cares more about his next bonus than the education of his constituents, but it's really not.

[crashhelmet]

Only in the Bible Belt, where knowledge is frowned upon and everyone would rather believe an invisible man in the sky created the universe. If parents want their children to grow up morons, then fine. (I consider that child abuse, but the state doesn't, so whatever.) However, state money doesn't belong anywhere near religious schools. Oh, the school is about to go under? Boo-fucking-hoo. I guess a religious school isn't needed, then. Go to public school, where at least you'll learn about dissenting opinions, theories, and how the world actually works.

But this is how they route money to the private schools. The voucher program is a "scholarship" for the students. The schools probably make more money this way too.

Makes you wonder how many colleges and universities will be reducing their educational requirements to get people enrolled.

[Seifer]

But this is how they route money to the private schools. The voucher program is a "scholarship" for the students. The schools probably make more money this way too.

Makes you wonder how many colleges and universities will be reducing their educational requirements to get people enrolled.

And the entire country's collective IQ falls another few precious notches. Yeah, that'll fix our education problem - lowering the bar.

I really can't stand this idea that a religious private school is somehow going to give students a more well-rounded education. According to the article some of the schools are flat-out anti-science and anti-thought ("We don't want to teach anything hard to our students! D:"). Instead of fixing the current broken system (which is already completely free to the parents and is most likely closer to their home than the private school), the politicians want to move money* away from the floundering public schools and give them to religious private schools. Why? So the kids can learn that evolution is "false?" That creationism is "accepted" by everyone? That if a question is too hard you should just stop thinking about it?

I don't get it, why is our country determined to stay at the bottom of the education ladder? At this rate, kids in 3rd world countries will eventually surpass us.

*I misread the quote in the article and thought 3.5 billion was being sent out to the private schools. It's actually a "portion" of that amount - whatever that means.

Just felt that I should add a quick aside:

I have nothing against religious schools as long as they:

A. Aren't funded through public tax dollars.
B. Actually teach all of the subjects rather than picking and choosing among them. (Teach science CORRECTLY - not just the science that agrees with whatever religious book the school happens to believe.)

If a private, non-public funded school wants to have prayer in the classroom, then go for it. Just don't dumb down the curriculum.

[bainsidhe]

This article both surprises and scares the hell out of me. The idea of a voucher system isn't altogether bad. For example, our community has crap for public schools and we sport a less-than-50% graduation rate. Is it any wonder parents want vouchers to send their child to a private school where they'll receive a better education? I happen to like that idea, so long as certain standards of education are met. Many examples in the article make me shudder.

[crashhelmet]

The article says that while normal private school students don't have to submit to state standardized testing, the voucher kids will. However... There's nothing in place right now that says what happens if the student receives low test scores.

[Seifer]

The article says that while normal private school students don't have to submit to state standardized testing, the voucher kids will. However... There's nothing in place right now that says what happens if the student receives low test scores.

I'm curious to see if the students are given the same standardized test as the rest of the state. Since the private schools are apparently teaching to their own curriculum and aren't held to the same standards as public schools (not teaching evolution because it's "challenging?" Really?), I'm curious to see if the standardized test is changed. I'd also love to see how those test scores turn out.

[MadMike]

There are times that I've wished that we could let the Deep South go ahead and secede all over again, but not fight over it this

It's not that simple. They've been trying to pull that shit in PA for years. They tried it back in the late 90s, and now they're trying it again. Thankfully, it's failed so far.

[SongsOfDragons]

Wow.

A friend of mine, T, was talking with an acquaintence of hers from the US - can't remember the state I'm afraid. I think it came from T talking about how much her wisdom teeth were annoying her, and she mentioned off-handedly their evolutionary source. US guy blinked then called her a liar...as he had never, ever heard about evolution in his entire life up until this point. T had no idea what to do, but attempted to explain anyway...aaaaand you can imagine how great that turned out.

What if this total ignorance and then shock of discovery starts becoming commonplace after these poor kids grow up? Let's hope they have little aspiration to join the scientific community... My dear US cousins, I feel for you, and I hope this doesn't happen.

[bara]

To argue with a person who has renounced the use of reason is like administering medicine to the dead.- Thomas Paine

[HYHYBT]

Wait a moment... Bible-based MATH? I don't recall any math in the Bible other than things like "A lived x years and had son B, then lived another y years, and the days of his life numbered x+y years." Hard to build a curriculum on that.

This article both surprises and scares the hell out of me. The idea of a voucher system isn't altogether bad. For example, our community has crap for public schools and we sport a less-than-50% graduation rate. Is it any wonder parents want vouchers to send their child to a private school where they'll receive a better education? I happen to like that idea, so long as certain standards of education are met. Many examples in the article make me shudder.

To me, the main problem with vouchers is that private schools are not under the same burdens public schools are. They are free to accept only the students who will do well anyway.... and then they get credit because their students do indeed perform well. Whereas public schools have to accept everybody and do the best they can (and, of course, those students at a disadvantage to begin with also tend to be more expensive to teach). That's bad enough as it is... but throw in a voucher system and enough private school capacity, and you essentially kill your public schools off (which is what some would very much like to see happen, of course.) And if the private schools in a particular area happen to be religious, once you've either killed off the public school system or put it in a position where nobody who really wanted their kids to learn would send them there, you wind up with a publicly funded system in which people are essentially forced to send their children to a religious school even if they are opposed to its beliefs and teachings.

[crashhelmet]

Not the best quality, but still fitting

[daleduke17]

I went to a religious grade school and a lot of this bashing of them is getting old. I learned "real" science. I learned "regular" math. It wasn't "God did it" (well, not completely). Yes, there may be some that make me sound like a liar. I think I actually had a better education than the public school counterparts where I live (and it showed on tests and the public high school having several valedictorians/salutatorians from my grade school). We were held to the same standardized tests as the public school in town.

This voucher program is probably the best thing that can happen to education in the US. Once enough kids flee from public schools, then the government might get their heads out of their asses and fix the schools.

I'm going to start a thread about fixing the schools (hopefully some/most of you will join me there). Might be some great conversation.