How is the Department of Education relevant? It was created in 1980, and it’s not like we didn’t have good education before then. It doesn’t run schools, and it does a whole bunch of stuff largely unrelated to running schools. Schools are largely funded and run locally, and there really wasn’t any standardization of education until Obama’s “Common Core,” and a lot of states still don’t implement it.
Cuts to the Department of Education will largely not impact schools, at least not K-12. Universities could be impacted if federal loans and grants are cut, but that could also be a good thing since it’ll cut the cash cow that allowed universities to jack up tuition and dramatically expand administration.
That said, even if engineering departments at universities are gutted, it’ll be many years before we see impacts in industry, and there’s a very good chance companies like Intel will fund scholarships and whatnot to keep those programs alive.
The Department of Education is one of the areas I think we should make cuts. End the federal student loan program but keep grants (should help cut university costs), end whatever created Common Core (should be an independent nonprofit that states and private schools fund for education research), and keep most of the rest (and probably rename it since it doesn’t touch education much anymore). Oh, and investigate university costs to see what else is pushing prices up.
I think you’re underestimating the Department of Education’s role in preventing red states from destroying public education. They can now do whatever they want with their education system and there is absolutely zero federal oversight coming their way. And you better believe Republican state legislatures are chomping at the bit for this one.
It’s kind of fascinating. In Germany recently the idea of a federal education ministry has been floated and the general answer was “no”. Other states don’t want to have to deal with CSU politicians trying to get “the purpose of the school is to instil fear of god” into law applicable on their turf, that BS can stay in Bavaria. The federation is co-responsible for tertiary education (university etc) because they have responsibility when it comes to research so they can set, in practice, some standards regarding secondary graduation but that’s it.
I think you’re overstating how effective the DoEd is at coordinating curriculum, as well as how effective state governments are at the same.
I’m in a red state (Utah), and we’re pretty competitive in terms of scholastic attainment (top 15 in most metrics), above many blue states that spend way more on education. Higher spending does not seem correlated with higher achievement. Also, from non-rigorous comparison of some state lists of academic achievement (like this wiki page), I don’t see a clear relationship between how states vote and academic performance that can’t more convincingly be explained by rural vs urban/suburban demographics.
So while it’s a popular talking point, I’m not convinced the DoEd is actually helping here. Schools will do better in areas with more parental engagement, and curriculum choice, funding, and rigor in testing don’t seem have much of an impact. We’re spending more than ever, have strict education standards, etc, yet test scores continue to drop across the country.
So no, I don’t think the DoEd is effective, and in fact I think they’re largely to blame for tuition outpacing inflation, because student loans are easier to get, so sold m schools can get away with raising prices.
What we should have are laws that states must maintain a secular education, and if religion is taught, all major religions are given equal treatment. That, and that states must provide a free K-12 education for all residents, and that public universities must be affordable for all residents who qualify (with grants as appropriate). That’s it, no common standard, no loans, etc. Education is better handled locally.
That said, I don’t trust Trump or Musk to handle this properly.
How is the Department of Education relevant? It was created in 1980, and it’s not like we didn’t have good education before then. It doesn’t run schools, and it does a whole bunch of stuff largely unrelated to running schools. Schools are largely funded and run locally, and there really wasn’t any standardization of education until Obama’s “Common Core,” and a lot of states still don’t implement it.
Cuts to the Department of Education will largely not impact schools, at least not K-12. Universities could be impacted if federal loans and grants are cut, but that could also be a good thing since it’ll cut the cash cow that allowed universities to jack up tuition and dramatically expand administration.
That said, even if engineering departments at universities are gutted, it’ll be many years before we see impacts in industry, and there’s a very good chance companies like Intel will fund scholarships and whatnot to keep those programs alive.
The Department of Education is one of the areas I think we should make cuts. End the federal student loan program but keep grants (should help cut university costs), end whatever created Common Core (should be an independent nonprofit that states and private schools fund for education research), and keep most of the rest (and probably rename it since it doesn’t touch education much anymore). Oh, and investigate university costs to see what else is pushing prices up.
I think you’re underestimating the Department of Education’s role in preventing red states from destroying public education. They can now do whatever they want with their education system and there is absolutely zero federal oversight coming their way. And you better believe Republican state legislatures are chomping at the bit for this one.
Edit: “champing at the bit” per u/slumberlust
It’s kind of fascinating. In Germany recently the idea of a federal education ministry has been floated and the general answer was “no”. Other states don’t want to have to deal with CSU politicians trying to get “the purpose of the school is to instil fear of god” into law applicable on their turf, that BS can stay in Bavaria. The federation is co-responsible for tertiary education (university etc) because they have responsibility when it comes to research so they can set, in practice, some standards regarding secondary graduation but that’s it.
The phrase is champing at the bit. I was 35 years old before I learned that, so thought I’d pass it on. Thanks for posting!
I love learning new things, thank you for helping update my phrasing! Also 35, maybe this is just when we’re supposed to learn this phrase?
I think you’re overstating how effective the DoEd is at coordinating curriculum, as well as how effective state governments are at the same.
I’m in a red state (Utah), and we’re pretty competitive in terms of scholastic attainment (top 15 in most metrics), above many blue states that spend way more on education. Higher spending does not seem correlated with higher achievement. Also, from non-rigorous comparison of some state lists of academic achievement (like this wiki page), I don’t see a clear relationship between how states vote and academic performance that can’t more convincingly be explained by rural vs urban/suburban demographics.
So while it’s a popular talking point, I’m not convinced the DoEd is actually helping here. Schools will do better in areas with more parental engagement, and curriculum choice, funding, and rigor in testing don’t seem have much of an impact. We’re spending more than ever, have strict education standards, etc, yet test scores continue to drop across the country.
So no, I don’t think the DoEd is effective, and in fact I think they’re largely to blame for tuition outpacing inflation, because student loans are easier to get, so sold m schools can get away with raising prices.
What we should have are laws that states must maintain a secular education, and if religion is taught, all major religions are given equal treatment. That, and that states must provide a free K-12 education for all residents, and that public universities must be affordable for all residents who qualify (with grants as appropriate). That’s it, no common standard, no loans, etc. Education is better handled locally.
That said, I don’t trust Trump or Musk to handle this properly.