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A comment to “Collateral Damage” pointed us to some YouTube clips that deal with the New Jersey education system. The New Jersey situation is of particular interest because it is one of the biggest spenders on education, at approximately $15,000 per student. It seems that most of this largesse, far from benefiting students, is being squandered.
At the risk of sounding like a bore and a nag, the first problem with any education “system” is that it’s a system!
As to corruption, it is very hard to create a human enterprise in the first place that meets its stated objectives.
And that assumes the stated objective is relevant or important or needs to be done.
“Education” as a broadly based enterprise in the public interest, initially had quite different goals than it does today, practically and philosophically.
So, assuming a worthwhile objective and an enterprise/entity put together initially performing the task with competence;
there must, inevitably, be corruption as in the decay of allegiance to original ideas and goals.
Study any number of charities, churches, colleges, schools or other projects, in terms of the goals of their founders, their charters, etc.
Take the “Y”, formerly YWCA/YMCA, formerly Young Mens/womens Christian association; perhaps best known today by younger folk by the song celebrating homosexual liasons by “The Village People”.
Not many projects can survive over time or great expansion or multiple leadership transitions, persistently loyal to the initial purpose.
Then there’s the inevitable issue of bureaucracy.
On this, read the great C. Northcote Parkinson, as in “Parkinson’s Law”, “The Law and the Profits” and especially “The Law of Delay”, on bureaucracy. The key concept here is that managers exist to multiply subordinates, (hence making themselves seem more busy and more vital).
The great Laurence Peter will never go out of date: “The Peter Principle”, and two related works.
Another great and insightful read on educational issues in Canada is William Gairdner, “The Trouble With Canada”.
His thoughts on “A team vs. B team” are very valuable
and read anything you can find by him on school boards. He has a website and is still writing I believe. Gairdner was an olympian (Tokyo, ‘64) and an English scholar who also founded a private school.
Then there is the decay of the academic process itself, actual teaching and learning.
An Etobicoke high school teacher some time ago, made some profound discoveries by administering a math test to his students, from a 1932 Ontario standard grade three text….
(stay tuned….)
Is the Ontario system corrupt?