From: blockedofcourse@foo.invalid   
      
   On 2/17/2026 10:39 AM, bitrex wrote:   
      
   > Louisiana doesn't have a lot of money to spend on public education but they   
   > seem to allocate what they have pretty well. The fact that some other red   
   > states like Oklahoma seem actively trying to destroy their pubic education   
   > system has likely helped LA in the rankings.   
      
   "Rankings".  Isn't that the equivalent of saying "Heart Disease is (ranked)   
   the number one killer in the country" -- knowing that once you address THAT   
   cause of death, something else will be "number one" and just as many people   
   will be dying?   
      
   "Absolute" scores on standardized tests are more important.  And, the trend   
   line -- locally and nationally.   
      
   Who cares if you're "number 1" if *everyone* is doing poorly!  It's not a   
   case of squeezing a balloon but, rather, the balloon has a LEAK!   
      
   The number of unimaginable "fails" I've encountered in employees that   
   interact with customers is mind-blowing.  And, none of them are being   
   tasked with difficult challenges!   
      
   (Two $9.99 items coming to a total of $43?  Really?  Does that SEEM right   
   to you??  Four pounds of lobster tails for $11?  Being ASKED by the   
   kid in the mill how to measure off the 10" boards that I want ripped...   
   )   
      
   > The National Assessment of Educational Progress does demographic adjustments   
   to   
   > see who is actually teaching well in the public schools and who just has   
   > talented (aka wealthy) students getting outside tutoring.   
   >   
   > E.g. Massachusetts has a lot of wealth so does well in both categories, but   
   > Louisiana also tends to rank high in effectiveness per dollar spent on   
   primary   
   > school teachers.   
      
   I don't think money is the issue.  I think "attitude" is more the case.   
   If folks don't place value on a particular skill (set), then they don't   
   work at developing it (in themselves or in their charges).  I went to school   
   with lots of well-off students who were amazingly ignorant in many areas;   
   areas that my school district had considered important.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)