Say What?

It's the dark of the morning here in Cape Coral, FL and I have my coffee in hand along with the Sunday News Press as I sit in Starbucks. As I turn to the 'Views' Section of the paper my attention turns to editorial on education.

Of course, as is usually the case in todays climate, a good portion of the article is devoted to saying how poorly the U.S. is doing compared to other countries. The article says "We are no longer No. 1." I have news for everyone, this has been going on for decades.

Of course there is a 'call to arms' to do something about not being No. 1 and lagging behind when it comes to our standing, compared to the rest of the world, when it comes to reading, science and math.

Going further, and this is what amazes me about the outcome of the meeting of the Alliance Of Educational Leaders, there are four areas to address. Here are two of the four areas, "fix the reading problem" and "close the achievement gap."

Allow me to make just one suggestion regarding achievement. We need to have everyone who endeavors to have students learn to get them to achieve to the best of their ability. That's what really counts. Closing the American achievement gap is simply nonsense.

Dick