TriCityHerald.com
Published Sunday, Nov. 20, 2011
Fast focus: Parents should pay
I am a teacher in the Richland School District, and politically
I am an
independent fiscal conservative.
I agree with Gov. Chris Gregiore's austerity proposal, eliminating school bus
transportation entirely. I would even go so far as eliminating the school lunch
program, neither of which have anything to do with our children's education.
Public transit (Ben Franklin Transit) in our community is so underutilized that
it could be used to transport most students at no extra taxpayer cost.
Parents have the responsibility to transport and feed their kids and should
pay a per student fee for their children, as they do in most European countries
where education is much superior.
Why should people with no kids in school pay for the education of other people's
children?
We should also have school all year round, that would immediately add 25 percent
more classroom space without spending one more dime for new school construction.
It's easy for school boards to spend money they don't have to earn themselves.
How many kids work in the farm fields during the summer anymore? It's time to
leave the 19th century and embrace the 21st. Times they "are a changin'." For
half the money, we could get twice the education if we only started to work
smart.
Arno Illig, Richland
6 Comments:
Robert
McDonald
Sometimes it is difficult to tell if a letter-writer is being serious or
is engaging in subtle sarcasm. We should take a look at the state of
those countries that do not provide a system of public education. That
should tell us something. Education is an endeavor that is generally
considered to benefit society as a whole [...] Even those without children benefited from
public education and live in a society which has
benefited from it. Of course, we could save some money by eliminating
the law mandating school attendance. That would give us a window into a
society without public education.
11/23/2011 12:51 PM
MrsPotts
I completely agree. In fact, I would take it one step further and
eliminate public education altogether. Why should I pay to educate
Mr. Illig's kids? Moreover, the governor could easily balance this and all
future budgets by eliminating public colleges and universities, public
libraries, and public roads. If I want to drive to Walmart to purchase
cheap Chinese made goods I can pave my own road. It's the realAmerican
way.
11/20/2011 10:35 PM
1 Like
sparkle2
If this guy is a teacher then he must never have hungry students. A
hungry student is not fit to learn. I know in Pasco and Kennewick there
are many kids who only eat healthy warm meals on days when they are at
school. Maybe Richland does not have such students but I highly doubt
it. Cutting buses and school lunch would be a bad idea for the poorest
of the students in all districts....
11/20/2011 07:59 PM
1 Like
AimaPoltergeist
Mr. Illig is only a substitute teacher here. He doesn't realize
that everyone, including him, benefits from living in an
educated society. If he were a a real teacher he would probably
understand that.
01/21/2012 02:08
AM in reply to sparkle2
1 Like
MartinBensky
"....eliminating the school lunch program, neither of which have
anything to do with our children's education."......OMG!!
11/20/2011 01:51 PM
3 Likes
HappyHeathen
Offering drive by wisdom and advice for free! No waiting!
I see kids in poor school districts really taking a hit. Too bad!
Education is the one leg up on poverty tax payers provide.
11/20/2011 10:37 AM
2 Like
Source:
6 Comments, Tri_City Herald
|
