Press Release: Federal Agency Makes Wrong Move on Civics and History Education

[ashling]

http://www.civicmissionofschools.org/news/civic-learning-in-the-news/2013-05-press-release-federal-agency-makes-wrong-move-on-civ

Press Release: Federal Agency Makes Wrong Move on Civics and History Education

WASHINGTON—May 17, 2013—“‘Penny-wise and pound-foolish’ doesn’t begin to describe the decision by officials connected with the U.S. Department of Education to postpone indefinitely essential measures of student proficiency in civics, history and geography through NAEP (the National Assessment of Educational Progress)—the ‘Nation’s Report Card’,” said Ted McConnell, Executive Director of the Campaign for the Civic Mission of Schools (CMS), today.

McConnell was reacting to reports that agencies of the federal Department of Education have decided to postpone indefinitely next year’s 4th and 12th grade tests in the three subjects. McConnell also said, “Budget sequestration or no sequestration, this is the wrong decision, at the wrong time, made for the wrong reasons. It will further damage efforts to develop an American citizenry that has the knowledge and skills necessary to make our representative democracy function and succeed. We are talking about, in federal terms, a paltry $6.8 million expenditure. Do the educational bureaucrats not think the health of our system of government is worth about two cents per citizen? Apparently not, and that is outrageous!”

“The National Assessments of Educational Progress are the only national reliable survey of how well our schools are performing in the various subjects,” said McConnell. “Cutting out these vital indicators of how well our schools are meeting their civic mission to help prepare informed citizens sends the horrible message that these subjects are not valued at the Federal policymaking level.”



About the Campaign for the Civic Mission of Schools

The Campaign for the Civic Mission of Schools is a national coalition of over 70 civic learning, education, civic engagement and business groups committed to improving the quality and quantity of civic learning in American schools. Co-chaired by Justice Sandra Day O’Connor and former Congressman Lee Hamilton (D-IN), the Campaign's goal is to increase and improve civic learning in grades K-12 by working for policies that implement the recommendations of the Civic Mission of Schools report (2004), and the Guardian of Democracy report (2011), including efforts to bring about changes in national, state, and local education policy. For more information, visit http://www.civicmissionofschools.org/ or contact Ted McConnell at [e-mail] .


http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&v=hzDqhrQYTWw&NR=1

[Rex]

1. They are busy licking Bill Gates boots to do anything meaningful.

I am afraid capitalism is going to win out against public education.

[DCKit]

2. Wasn't that always the plan? nt

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

3. H.L. Mencken on education

And what is a good citizen? Simply one who never says, does or thinks anything that is unusual. Schools are maintained in order to bring this uniformity up to the highest possible point. A school is a hopper into which children are heaved while they are still young and tender; therein they are pressed into certain standard shapes and covered from head to heels with official rubber-stamps. H.L. Mencken