Perspectives; Thoughts; Comments; Opinions; Discussions

Posts tagged ‘Vermont’

They Spent $29,284 per Pupil, but Only 28% of Eighth Graders Rated Proficient in Math


By: Terence Jeffrey / @TerryJeffrey / May 09, 2024

Read more at https://www.dailysignal.com/2024/05/09/they-spent-29284-per-pupil-but-only-28-of-eighth-graders-rated-proficient-in-math/

Despite high per-pupil spending, New York, New Jersey, Vermont, and other states see low test scores in math and reading, as does D.C. Catholic schools, however, outperform. (Photo illustration: Comstock Images/Getty Images)

COMMENTARY BY

Terence Jeffrey@TerryJeffrey

Terence P. Jeffrey is investigative editor for the Daily Caller News Foundation.

The public schools in the state of New York doled out $29,284 per pupil in “current expenditures” in fiscal year 2022, according to a report published this week by the Department of Education’s National Center for Education Statistics.

“Current expenditures comprise expenditures for the day-to-day operation of schools and school districts for public elementary and secondary education, including expenditures for staff salaries and benefits, supplies, and purchased services,” the National Center for Education Statistics says.

“General administration expenditures and school administration expenditures are also included in current expenditures,” it says.

The $29,284 that New York spent per pupil on these items was more than any other state. So, what did taxpayers get in return for this investment?

Not much.

In the mathematics test of the 2022 National Assessment of Educational Progress, only 28% of eighth graders in New York state public schools scored proficient or better. Only 32% scored proficient or better in reading.

In our capital city of Washington, D.C., which the NCES lists with the states, the public schools had $28,128 in “current expenditures” per pupil. That was more than any state except New York. So, how did the students do in D.C. public schools? Only 16% of eight graders in the D.C. school system scored proficient or better in math. Only 22% scored proficient or better in reading.

New Jersey had the next-highest level of per-pupil spending in its public schools in fiscal year 2022. In that state, it was $25,550. The students there scored a little better in reading and math than those in New York or the District of Columbia. But they did not do great. Only 33% of New Jersey eighth graders were proficient or better in math, while 42% were proficient or better in reading.

Vermont, the state represented by Sen. Bernie Sanders, an independent, finished slightly behind New Jersey in per-pupil spending in its public schools. It spent $25,073. Vermont also finished behind New Jersey in its NAEP test scores. Only 27% of eighth graders in Vermont public schools scored proficient or better in math, and only 34% scored proficient or better in reading.

Connecticut, another New England state, came in fifth—behind New York, the District of Columbia, New Jersey, and Vermont—in per-pupil sending. It spent $23,868 per student. Only 30% of its eighth graders scored proficient or better in math, and only 35% scored proficient in reading.

Connecticut was followed by three other New England states when the 50 states are ranked by per-pupil spending. Massachusetts spent $22,778; Rhode Island spent $20,498; and New Hampshire spent $20,424.

Yet only 35% of eighth graders in Massachusetts public schools scored proficient or better in math; only 40% scored proficient or better in reading. In Rhode Island, only 24% of eighth graders scored proficient or better in math; only 31% scored proficient or better in reading. In New Hampshire, only 29% scored proficient or better in math; only 33% scored proficient or better in reading.

Did the results significantly improve if a state spent less money per pupil in its public schools? No.

Utah spent $9,496 per pupil in its public schools in fiscal year 2022. That was less than any other state. Only 35% of eighth graders scored proficient or better in math, and only 36% scored proficient or better in reading.

Similarly, Idaho finished next to last in per-pupil spending in its public schools, putting up $9,662. Only 32% of eighth graders scored proficient or better in math, and 32% scored proficient or better in reading.

As this column has noted before, students at Catholic schools score better on these NAEP tests than students at public schools. In 2022, eighth graders in Catholic schools had an average score of 288 on the math test, while eighth graders in public schools had an average score of 273. Similarly, eighth graders in Catholic schools had an average score of 279 on the reading test, while public-school eighth graders had an average score of 259. The average tuition at Catholic elementary schools in 2023, according to U.S. News and World Report, was $4,840. The average tuition at Catholic high schools was $11,240.

In the upcoming school year, DeMatha Catholic High School—in Hyattsville, Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C.—will have a tuition of $22,700, according to its website. That is $5,428 less than the $28,128 that D.C. public schools spent per pupil in 2022.

Parents in the District of Columbia and every other community in this country should not be forced to send their children to government-run schools. All parents should be given a voucher equal to the per-pupil expenditures in the local public schools and they should be free to redeem that voucher at any school—public or private, religious or secular—that they choose.

COPYRIGHT 2024 CREATORS.COM 

The Daily Signal publishes a variety of perspectives. Nothing written here is to be construed as representing the views of The Heritage Foundation.

Category:

Education

Tagged with:

School district replaces ‘boy’ and ‘girl’ with gender-inclusive phrases ‘person who produces sperm’ and ‘person who produces eggs’ in Vermont


By: CARLOS GARCIA | April 25, 2023

Read more at https://www.conservativereview.com/school-district-replaces-boy-and-girl-with-gender-inclusive-phrases-person-who-produces-sperm-and-person-who-produces-eggs-in-vermont-2659911577.html/

Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images

A letter from a Vermont school district to parents expressed a policy change to use “gender inclusive phrases” in place of words like “boy” and “girl” in a curriculum unit about human reproduction. The letter appeared on social media and went viral.

“It is time for our science/health unit about the human body focused on puberty and the human reproductive systems. This unit will take place during the last few months of school,” read the letter from Founders Memorial School Principal Sara Jablonski.

“In an effort to align our curriculum with our equity policy, teachers will be using gender inclusive language throughout this unit. With any differences, we strive to use ‘person-first’ language as best practice,” she added.

The letter outlined some examples of the new politically correct language.

“Person who produces sperm in place of boy, male, and assigned male at birth,” the letter explained.

“Person who produces eggs in place of girl, female and assigned female at birth,” she added.

The letter said the curriculum was going to “focus on the physical and emotional changes that occur during puberty” and also introduce the “basic structure and function of human reproductive systems.”

Many were extremely critical of the new policy and called on parents to pull their kids from schools and homeschool instead.

“ARE YOU KIDDING ME? Stop it. Stop focusing on sex and gender and focus on EDUCATION. No wonder kids are confused. No wonder they lack grammar skills. No wonder they are lost. They go to school to learn. You can’t learn in that word salad environment. Homeschool your kids in VT,” read one response on Twitter.

The letter was widely circulated and garnered almost 60k views in less than one day.

Here’s more about the transgender school agenda:

Megyn Kelly: Why I Took My Son Out of His School www.youtube.com

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Category:

Education

Tagged with:

School Principal Gets the Boot Because She Was Critical of BLM Pressures in a Facebook Post


Reported By Ryan Foley | Published June 22, 2020 at 9:02am

Tiffany Riley, the principal of Windsor High School in Windsor, Vermont, faced the wrath of the PC police after failing to fully and unequivocally endorse Black Lives Matter in a Facebook post earlier this month. The backlash was so severe that she ended up losing her job.

According to the Valley News, Riley’s post June 10 made it clear that she believes that “black lives matter,” but she added a caveat that caught the ire of the leftist mob: “I DO NOT agree with coercive measures taken to get this point across; some of which are falsified in an attempt to prove a point.”

“I do not think that people should be made to feel they have to choose black race over human race,” Riley wrote, adding: “While I understand the urgency to feel compelled to advocate for black lives, what about our law enforcement?”

She also declared that “just because I don’t walk around with a BLM sign should not mean I’m a racist.”

Sadly, according to many in Windsor, including the school board, her failure to “walk around with a BLM sign” does make her a racist.

The Mount Ascutney School Board, “uniformly appalled” by her words, voted unanimously to place Riley on paid leave June 14.

Channel 3 News

✔@wcax

The Mt. Ascutney School Board has voted unanimously to place Windsor School principal, Tiffany Riley, on paid leave immediately, following a Facebook post that ‘uniformly appalled” the board. https://www.wcax.com/content/news/Windsor-School-principal-on-paid-leave-following-appalling-social-media-post-571244001.html …

Windsor School principal on paid leave following “appalling” social media post

The school board says the post does not reflect the values of the district.

wcax.com

6

Twitter Ads info and privacy
25 people are talking about this

The district’s superintendent, David Becker, said the district will work to put together a “mutually agreed upon severance package” with Riley and justified the decision to let her go by saying, “It’s clear that the community has lost faith in her ability to lead.”

Ridiculously, Becker said he thought Riley’s Facebook page was hacked and indicated that he fully agreed with the criticism that her post was “racist.”

“I felt like a post like that, with those kinds of racial overtones and what I define as pretty much outright racist in my values system, she would have never posted that,” he said.

The fact that Riley’s community would take such umbrage at her comments should not come as a surprise. Windsor County supported Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton over Donald Trump by a 2-1 ratio in 2016, and the state as a whole keeps electing democratic socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders.

In an era when American education has become just another arm of the left, Riley’s circumstances are hardly unique. Eric Thompson, a professor who taught at Moreno Valley College in California, was dismissed from his position after daring to sympathize with traditional viewpoints on marriage, gender and sexuality.

In addition to causing professors to lose their jobs, holding conservative positions can also have consequences for students who hold prominent positions on campus. Earlier this month, the president of the Florida State University Student Senate was removed from his post after daring to criticize Black Lives Matter and other liberal organizations deemed heroic by the radical left.

Despite the fact that Riley went out of her way to empathize with the point of view of her opponents and offered analysis consistent with the views of many Americans, she lost her job. What happened to Riley could have a chilling effect that will cause many people to think twice about posting anything critical of Black Lives Matter — a leftist movement dressed up as opposition to racism.

That’s the whole goal.

With Riley’s firing, diversity of opinion in education continues to shrink. According to a 2016 study from Econ Journal Watch, liberal professors outnumber their conservative counterparts by a ratio of 11.5-1 in the departments of economics, history, journalism, law and psychology at “40 leading U.S. universities.”

This liberal uniformity extends into K-12 education, with research conducted by Verdant Labs finding that “there are 97 Democrats for every three Republicans” teaching English and “87 Democrats for every 13 Republicans” among math and science teachers.

Riley’s situation is saddening but not surprising. Hopefully, what happened to her will launch a renewed movement to ensure freedom of speech in education for teachers and students alike, from kindergarten through college.

Adam Carolla and Dennis Prager’s documentary “No Safe Spaces” is definitely a good start.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Ryan Foley
Ryan holds a bachelor of arts in political science from Rhode Island College. In addition to participating in the National Journalism Center’s internship program, he has written for several conservative publications.

Category:

Political

Tagged with:

New report: More than 14.5 million now licensed to carry


waving flagBy Dave Workman – July 27, 2016

URL of the original posting site: http://conservativefiringline.com/new-report-14-5-million-now-licensed-carry/#
Licensed concealed carry is up sharply according to a new report. (Dave Workman photo)
Licensed concealed carry is up sharply according to a new report. (Dave Workman photo)

 

Hey Leftist

A new report from the Crime Prevention Research Center (CPRC) says that there are now more than 14.5 million Americans who are licensed to carry across the United States, an increase of 1.73 million newly-armed citizens since last year’s report was published.

According to the CPRC, this means that 6.06 percent of the nation’s adult population now has permits or licenses. An abstract of the report may be read here.

Three states – Florida, Texas and Pennsylvania – now have more than a million residents who have active permits, the report noted.

This has been a continuing trend for several years. Anecdotal information from the states shows that the steady increase is often spurred by incidents like the mass shootings at San Bernardino and Orlando. Even the attacks on police officers in Dallas and Baton Rouge contribute a sense of uncertainty among the general public.

Another revelation from this year’s report is that in 11 states, permits are no longer required to carry in all or nearly all cropped-george-washington-regarding-2nd-amandment.jpgof those states. This is called “constitutional carry” based on how people have carried for more than a century in Vermont. At one time, permitless carry was dubbed “Vermont-style carry.”

In ten states, the report noted, more than ten percent of the adult population is licensed to carry, and Indiana has the highest rate at 15 percent. South Dakota is running a close second, with 14.7 percent.

Between 2012 and 2016, the report added, in states that break down their data by gender, the number of licensed women has increased twice as fast as the number of men who are licensed. In Washington State, for example, about one in five people with a concealed pistol license are female.

This doesn’t even touch on the growing number of people involved in the Open Carry movement, which seems to be expanding across several states.

While gun control advocates insist that the number of American gun owners is decreasing, there is anecdotal evidence that perception may be all wrong. Following the terror attacks both here and abroad, gun shops reported a significant number of first-time gun buyers came through the doors.

fight Picture1 true battle In God We Trust freedom combo 2

 

Category:

Political

Tagged with:

Liberals FREAK After Vets Set Up “Muslim Free” Zone… Cops Issue EPIC Response


waving flagBy: V Saxena on April 12, 2016

URL of the original posting site: http://conservativetribune.com/vets-set-up-muslim-free-zone

Unfortunately for them, the authorities in resident Troy Maxham’s town of Roxbury refused courtesy something proud patriots like to call the First Amendment.

“Local officials have said there’s nothing they can do about the sign because it’s considered free speech protected by the First Amendment,” The Barre Montpelier Times Argus explained.

Sorry liberals, but what’s good for the Black Lives Matter movement is also good for Maxham, a veteran who said he distrusts Muslims.

The issue originally arose because the U.S. Army veteran lives close to a major state highway, meaning a lot of people see his sign every day.

Still A Muslim Free Zone Sign

“While the sign is on private property, it is in public view, and its message is in direct conflict with the values we as Americans are supposed to hold dear,” Regina Logan, who lives in the nearby town of Braintree, complained in a letter to The Times Argus.Militent Radical liberalism socialism

So what? The sign’s message only applies to Maxham’s home. Moreover, forcing him to remove the sign would be a violation of his First Amendment right. Yeah, sorry, but Americans also value the right to free speech, Miss Logan.

Speaking of which, one resident responded to the veteran’s sign in a far more ingenious way — by making his own signs that promote tolerance and asking residents throughout town if they would put one up on their property.

Let this guy’s behavior serve as a fine example to all Americans. When you see a sign that you find offensive, you have two options: Whine like a baby, or exercise your own First Amendment rights and put up your own sign with a counter-message. It’s that simple and that easy.

Picture1 true battle Picture1 In God We Trust freedom combo 2

Category:

Political

Tagged with:

Tag Cloud