Other prosperous countries are having trouble funding education

Is it just me, or does it seem like once a culture "makes it," they slack off?  Rising economies - China, India, South Korea - see education as the most valuable investment you can make for the future of your children.  But, not all established economies see it that way.  We think we do, but our actions are starting to say the opposite.

Here is a morbidly fascinating article from our neighbors to the north about college students who don't read  - http://www.thestar.com/news/insight/article/994530--mallick-why-canadian-kids-can-t-read

Austin is fun and interesting

I went to the Capital on Saturday to join the Save Texas Schools rally.  The Save Texas Schools rally was small (about 100 accumulative throughout the day) but very enthusiastic.

I don't know if I made an impact on anyone, but the experience made a huge impact on me!  It was very interesting, and very educational.  I talked to clerks in 7 different offices, 1 Democrat Rep & 5 Republican Reps and 1 Rep Senate.  I went with my oldest daughter who graduated from SEM and my basic pitch was –

“I am here to plead for the life of my daughter’s alma mater, the #1 high school in America.  It operates at less than the state average for high school cost/per/student, has a majority minority and low-income population, and was held up as a model for the nation by President George Bush (or, Secretary Arnie Duncan for the Democrat.)  If the House funding levels for education go through, the program would basically disappear because we simply couldn't sustain the AP math & science classes.  Isn’t there a way to think creatively about funding, and identify efficient, high-performance programs like SEM and copy them rather than ax them?”

Don’t be fooled – my summary above is far more elegant than the actual messages delivered.  I stuttered and rambled a lot, but the clerks were very kind and patient.

While riding the elevator, I overheard some clerks talking about a snarky comment a House Rep made about “those teachers” in the rally.  I found out at the closing rally when they asked for a teacher show of hands, less than a third there were teachers.  I suspect this is significant.  I don't think our representatives are use to getting visits from ordinary citizens who are not associated with a union or a PAC.

Have you ever gone to Austin to visit your representative's office?  You can do it anytime - just go down and walk in.  You probably won't see your Rep, but you can talk to their friendly clerks and get your opinion logged.  You can pick up cards with phone numbers and emails.  You can sign their books to show you were there and why.

You can look at what other average citizens have signed the books, and be surprised like I was that there aren't that many.  See?  If you don't talk to your elected representatives to express your opinion, no one else will do it for you.