The US Dept of Education: Going Forward
We Now Have an Unparalleled Opportunity Available
A current hot topic is: what to do with the US Department of Education (DOEd)? A few weeks ago I proposed a three point plan for DOEd, but here I’ll go into a bit more detail.
DOEd is involved with K-12, but even more so with higher education*. As attentive readers know, my focus is on K-12. Unfortunately, there is almost universal agreement — with solid evidence — that the US K-12 education system is an abject failure from multiple important perspectives. This is not good for our children (who are the victims), or for America.
The solutions proposed for this have ranged from: a) scrapping the entire K-12 public school system, to b) eliminating DOEd (e.g., here). Although the rationale behind these is understandable, neither of these suggestions are wise, practical, or effective resolutions to the dire situation we are in.
Consider the idea of eliminating DOEd. What we would be left with is fifty (50) State Education Departments. There is scant empirical evidence that much leadership, competence, or creativity regarding K-12 education is coming from any State. A simple example is that 49 (!) of the States robotically approved the inferior NGSS (Next Generation Science Standards). (See this Report which itemizes ten serious NGSS issues.)
Another example is that not a single State is formally teaching their K-12 children to be Critical Thinkers. Zero! Where is the K-12 education leadership, competence, or creativity?
Making the necessary reforms to 50 State Education Departments would be an extraordinarily expensive, Herculean project that would take at least twenty years — if ever — to come to fruition. In the meantime, the US would be effectively left with 50 different second-rate education systems. How is that good for the country? Further, who would take on this Sisyphilan task? And who would pay for it?
My recommendation (as an education outsider) is to solve this — affordably, effectively, and relatively quickly — by fundamentally changing DOEd. The idea is that DOEd would become a powerful game-changing force for GOOD (which would be very different from what it has been).
The new Department of Education would properly do major things like:
1 - Redefine its Mission.
Here is the boilerplate pablum that is DOEd's current mission. Its objective should be upgraded to include something like: “meaningfully assisting States in producing high school graduates who are competent, productive, healthy critical thinkers” (e.g., see this fine piece).
In other words, DOEd should leverage the power and money of the federal government to aggressively assist States in fixing the currently deplorable K-12 education system. (Note: in 2024 the Department had $80± Billion in discretionary funding [out of a $250± Billion budget]. That is a LOT of leverage!)
2 - Get rid of bureaucratic bloat.
Strip down the DOEd to the bare essentials. Right now there are over 4100 employees. How about aiming for 400 — a 90% reduction? Four hundred competent, motivated employees can do a LOT!
3 - Clarify what should be the primary objective of K-12 education.
Assuming that the 3Rs are properly taught, the #1 objective of every State Education System should be to produce Critically Thinking graduates. In other words, DOEd should profoundly change the education system from its current focus on teaching students WHAT to think (and a lot of that is Progressive ideology), to instead teach them HOW to think.
DOEd should make this as a condition for States to receive discretionary money from DOEd. In other words, unless a State can show that their K-12 education curricula is properly teaching students to be Critical Thinkers, they are not eligible for certain DOEd funds.
Since no State is currently doing that, this would revolutionize American education. (Note: presently less than ten even mention Critical Thinking in their Mission statements!)
4 - Investigate what is the most effective methodology of teaching.
In the education business, this is called pedagogy. For example, would the best way to educate our children be to have a classical education program (like here)? Or, would the best way be to adopt the state-of-the-art techniques used by MacKenzie Price in Alpha Schools — covering in 2 hours what traditional schools take 6 hours, and then using the remaining 4 hours to teach other valuable material (like financial management)? Or something else?
DOEd should solicit and evaluate a variety of teaching ideas — and then pass on their findings to the States. What sense does it make for 50 States to do this type of investigation? (Note: almost no States are seriously investigating this.)
5 - Take the lead regarding age-appropriate materials in K-12 schools.
What’s going on regarding materials being in K-12 school classes and libraries (see here and here) is extremely disturbing.
The fundamental problem is that the powerful American Library Association (ALA) does not recognize the issue of age-appropriateness! DOEd should officially go on record endorsing the significance of age-appropriateness in K-12 classes, libraries, and associated matters.
This idea is already societally accepted in the US. A good example is that the rating systems for movies and also for TV are based on age-appropriateness. The movie website says “Established in 1968, the film rating system provides parents with the information needed to determine if a film is appropriate for their children.” Exactly the same thing applies to books being considered for K-12 school classes and libraries!
To make a profound improvement in K-12 education, DOEd should specify that they will not provide certain DOEd funds to a State that does not have an enforced, appropriate official written policy regarding the age-appropriateness of materials associated with their K-12 schools.
Towards that same end, DOEd should aggressively oppose federal legislation that undermines the concept of age-appropriateness — like this.
Although there is some State-related activity on this matter, much of it is coming from outraged parents, rather than the State Departments of Education. Further, the ALA is a powerful national organization, so DOEd would be a much more effective opponent.
6 - Take the lead in defending parental rights.
A national “Parents Bill of Rights” regarding K-12 schools, could be an exceptionally helpful improvement on the country’s public school system. North Carolina has such a law that’s good, but the record in other States is spotty. DOEd can easily set a US standard for this important matter.
7 - Take the lead in the teacher certification issue.
Currently, the education mills are pushing out progressive graduates (e.g., see here) who have few Critical Thinking skills. How can such people be optimum teachers? No State can fix this on their own, but DOEd has the leverage and national influence to likely be able to.
8 - Take the lead in resolving the religion issue in K-12 education.
For some time now the public school system has been in a conflicting situation regarding religion. On the one hand, public schools are bending over backward to not do anything that some activists might claim is a 1st Amendment violation (a federal matter).
On the other hand, US public schools seem to feel obligated to convey morality and ethics (e.g., “discrimination is wrong.”) However, what is right or wrong is a religious [moral] position. Aggressively stepping into this gap are atheism and relativism — which are effectively religions (e.g., see here).
Directly related to this issue is that DOEd should take an official stand against the scourge of SEL that has infested public schools nationwide. SEL is effectively trying to replace Judeo-Christian standards with its own value system. DOEd’s position should be along the lines of this.
So, despite their concerns about not advocating for any religion, that is exactly what public schools are doing. DOEd should research and take a position on this exceptionally important issue, as (again) no States are doing that.
The Bottom Line —
All of the current K-12 education system’s weaknesses are being taken advantage of by anti-American, Left-leaning ideology advocates. The corruption of the K-12 Science curricula is a perfect example of how American students are being Pied Pipered to a woefully inadequate education.
Worse — MUCH WORSE — is that most of these miseducated graduates soon become voting citizens. What is our future if it is being determined by citizens who have no Critical Thinking skills, and have been thoroughly propagandized by Left-leaning ideology???
This clearly says that leaving our children’s education up to 50 different States IS NOT WORKING — and will likely NEVER WORK!
An updated DOEd should step into this void and provide constructive and effective K-12 education leadership. Now is the time to do exactly that!
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*See this superior new Report on DOEd, with an emphasis on Higher Ed.
Note: The best chance we have for substantially reforming DOEd, is to have a quality collection of “outsiders” (outside the education establishment) participating in the process. People who have few pre-conceived ideas of what can and can not be done are more likely to be advancing the most creative improvements.
Sample References —
What Does the Department of Education Do (USA Facts)
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Given the harm that the federal department of education does it should be closed. Cutting it by 90% won't work. It will grow back like a malignant cancer.
We cut the NC DPI by 50% in 1997 and now it is bigger than ever.
Seventy five percent of the federal government is unconstitutional. Not just the Department of Education. We need to close Agriculture, Energy, Environment and on and on.
Pennsylvania has over 600 separate and "independent" school districts. So while it sounds simple to cut down to 10% of the USDE, that would leave say 6 people overseeing the the more than 600 INDEPENDENT districts. And that's just the 1-12 public schools. It's a lot like healthcare, we keep hearing the solution to the rising cost of healthcare is to CUT the healthcare individuals can receive, when we already only see a doctor 1/2 as often as the rest of the western world.