Botched Hearing Symptomatic Of Bad Education Leadership
Soon the task of writing new curriculum guides for Idaho public schools will begin.
Our tax dollars will fund these changes and I believe the public deserves to know precisely how they will affect Idaho’s educational system.
The Idaho State Board of Education held a public hearing in Lewiston on Oct. 17, one of six held around the state to discuss curriculum, technology and Schools 2000. Having attended the hearing in Lewiston, I found the purpose difficult to ascertain.
Tom Farley, state director of curriculum, told us the purpose was to acquire public opinion and to answer public questions about curriculum in Idaho’s schools. Speaking on behalf of Anne Fox, Idaho state superintendent of schools, and the state Board of Education, Farley said the proceedings were being recorded and that a compilation of the tapes would be made at the conclusion of all hearings.
One look at the recording device, an archaic tape recorder placed near the corner of the room, showed how little importance the Board of Education assigned to these transcriptions. If the content of the hearings interested the board, a more efficient recording system would have been used.
I spent nearly two hours of my afternoon at this hearing and heard not a single question answered directly. Farley’s answers in no way furthered public knowledge.
Idaho’s curriculum guides recently underwent one revision. The State Board of Education has not even attempted to determine the effectiveness of the revised guides and yet taxpayers will soon fund another revision.
Dr. Fox, elected on a platform of “back to basics” in education, presumably intends this ideal as the basis of our state’s new baseline curriculum. By back to basics, Dr. Fox refers to the three ‘R’s: reading, writing and arithmetic.
Can Idaho’s children receive an adequate education based on the three ‘R’s? What about physical education, health, wellness, art and music?
Obesity, cancer, unwanted pregnancy, drug use, and sexually transmitted diseasess are just a few of the health problems plaguing society. Our children must be able to identify the risk factors associated with disease and understand the importance of disease prevention through a healthy lifestyle.
Reading, writing and arithmetic alone can not adequately prepare a child to survive in today’s society. Students must be taught basic information about the body and its response to exercise. We, the public, can not allow such vital aspects of education to be ignored.
The recent hearings did not further public knowledge; the public has been denied the opportunity to express its intelligent opinion. If the public received a forthright explanation of the future of curriculum alterations, then we could inform the State Board of Education of our opinions.
One bizarre aspect of the hearing in Lewiston was the absence of public representation. Few people knew about it in time to fit attendance into their schedules - if they learned of it at all.
If the State Board of Education truly assigns importance to public opinion, these hearings would have received advance notice and efficient recording.
I feel a hidden agenda exists. The public can realize this agenda in one of two ways. We can immediately insist on an above-board explanation from Dr. Fox, or we can examine the changes in curriculum after they occur.
Legislative decisions are being made without public input - decisions that affect educators, students, parents and taxpayers. The public in Idaho deserves and must have a voice in the decisions being made by Dr. Fox and the state Board of Education.
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