Redstate

Posted at 7:04pm on Mar. 6, 2008 HSLDA responds to California

By Ben Domenech

Home School Legal Defense Association offers this response to the news out of California that we've been discussing in this diary. The text is below:

Response to Ruling of California Court of Appeal

Posted in California | Education | home schooling | Law — Comments (3) / Email this page » / Read More »

Posted at 7:09pm on Dec. 9, 2007 Yes Virginia, There Is Bias In Academia

By Pejman Yousefzadeh

See here. At some point, stories like this one ought to be reckoned with and not just dismissed out of hand by those who have every incentive to preserve the status quo.

Posted at 12:11pm on Oct. 30, 2007 Re: In Praise Of School Vouchers

By Dan McLaughlin

As usual, Megan's response is brilliant. This is my favorite:

7) Public education is vital to creating a common identity as American citizens I would find this a slightly more compelling argument if it weren't made mostly by people who live in affluent communities where their fellow citizens are strongly discouraged from moving by zoning and other ordinances that bar the construction of cheap housing. You think some kid growing up in East New York, looking at the crumbling walls as an inexperienced teacher fumbles the lesson plan, thinks to himself "But at least I share a common identity with the kids in Bronxville's public school system whose cars I will someday have the privilege of parking"?

Personally, I think there are two arguments against school choice that require some reflection, but neither is beyond solution: one is the possibility of funding kids to attend radical Islamic schools that teach violent sedition, and the other is the fact that subsidies would increase the cost of private education. Anyway, I would refer the interested reader to this post of mine from last summer (which builds on the work of Megan and others) regarding additional logical flaws in arguments frequently made by the anti-choice crowd.

Posted at 8:10pm on Jul. 19, 2007 An A-PLUS Idea: Restoring Local Control Over Education

By Rep. Tom Feeney

Congress is gearing up to reauthorize the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), which was originally signed into law in 2002. Created to increase federal funding for education and increase accountability in our public schools, NCLB's goal was to ensure that our students are receiving the absolute best education possible.

Unfortunately, something was left behind: the expertise and input of the local educators, administrators and parents who best know the students and what they need to succeed. A student's education should not be held in the hands of the federal government. Every state, community and school district has unique needs that must be considered to create the best fit curriculum.

Read on . . .

Posted in Congress | Education — Comments (15)/ Email this page » / Read More »

Posted at 1:30pm on Mar. 11, 2007 Church and state! Church and state!

By Jeff Emanuel

...or, "Using another primary source in the teaching of history."

Last week, Georgia’s Board of Education, by unanimous vote, preliminarily approved two new literature and culture classes for use in public schools beginning next year. Pending a 30-day comment period, the board is expected to give these courses final, official approval.

The difference between these new courses and others – and the reason why there will be controversy surrounding them – is that they involve the Bible.

Entitled “Literature and History of the Old Testament Era” and “Literature and History of the New Testament Era,” the classes involve the reading of the Bible as literature, not as a religious text, and are intended to provide cultural, historical, and literary education and context (not religious indoctrination) through the use of a text which contains ample amounts of all.

Read on . . .

Posted in Culture | Education | Featured Stories | History | The Bible — Comments (49) / Email this page » / Read More »