Was desegregating our schools a bad idea? Why are US students nearly last in all categories now?
359245
no, it was not a bad idea.  There are other reasons by US students are last.\n\nNot sure how much effect it has on our contry.  The US is still by far the strongest economy in the world, and a large part of that is because of its highly skilled workforce.
463509
Bad: People want their students to get premium educations - but no one wants to pay for it.\n\nGood: Some students thrive and excel in the current system... and others... are scary.\n\nGood:  We strive towards the ideal that all people are created equally and are equally capable of succeeding in accomplishing their dreams.\n\nBad:  We deem failure when we don't meet the IDEAL... which is completely impractical anyway.\n\nBad: State testing... always wants to raise the bottom 50 percent to the top 50 percent.  Whoah... who taught the politicians their math? There will ALWAYS be a bottom 50 percent.
589575
No, and it has not been the outcome for others, except you. You have sought to degrade others because you feel superior to them. You are not aware, that the USA's population consist of over 20+ different nationalities and ethnic groups. Have you ever given someone other than your race a free ride to their job when it was raining cat's and dog's outside. I doubt it.  Have you ever needed something and another race offered you assistance? More than likely, but you probably refused.  Anyway, native born Americans have not been given ample opportunity to make their dreams come true. But maybe, you can run for president, and make a real difference in Affirmative Action issues.  I PRESUME YOU ARE RICH?  right?  I think not!  Please restate your question more humbly, than you may get the answer you are seeking.
532650
From what I have seen, American High schools pale in comparison to schools in other developed countries.  What we seem to be about a school behind.  Our college is their high school, out high school is their middle school.\n\nWhen I went to Europe on an exchange, the students in 10th grade were learning calculus and they had to take like 4 languages.  At home I was taking geometry and one measly Spanish class.\n\nAnd Asia is a WHOLE different story.  Their 5 year olds are smarter than American high schoolers.\n\nI think its a bit of a shame, but our government is so scared to single people out or leave people behind.  Everyone has to have an equal opportunity.  And I am all for equal opportunity, but if a student refuses to take advantage of his opportunity, then screw him.  Our laws keep "dumbing down" the curriculum and forcing homogeneous grouping (no smart kids classes and dumb kids classes) so the motivated kids get bored and aren't challenged, and the lazy kids don't do any better because they don't want to and they have no intent of trying any harder.  Schools can't kick out students who don't want to learn, and teachers get put in the middle of the whole mess.\n\nAnyway, I will stop ranting now...
650398
Is it too expensive? YES! Overrated, idk... So many ppl get college education today that it has almost become an expectation when looking for a better job. To really pull away from the crowd you have no choice, but continue your education, grad. school, etc. And that's becoming a natural step for many as well, while college has become almost an another high school.
206101
YES...\n\n\nThat's Right!!! All Highschool Latinos Are Being Asked To Miss School Monday!! Why? To Prove U.S. Aint Shyt Without Latinos!!!! Yes We Are Trying To Stop The Prop. HR4437 From Passing On March 27, 2006 . Do ANY Of You Know How Much Money Our Schools Make For Each Student That Attends Everyday? Around $50 [[EACH STUDENT]] Imagine How Much Money They Would Lose If We Didnt Go... We're Trying To Get Our Point Across That It Is Not Fair What They Are Trying To Do To Immigrants! Please Join And Tell Every Friend Of The Hispanic Race! Let Your Parents Know What We Are Trying To Do!!! The Statement We're Trying To Make!!! Please Repost This If You're A Proud Latino! And Let Out The Word! CALL Your Friends! Let Everyone Know! PLEASE REPOST! -THE DISTRICT ACTUALLY LOOSES ABOUT $7,000 EACH STUDENT.\n\nPass diz on everywhere!thanx!!!
484231
Okay, as far as each group being able to have its own board members, okay.\n\nIt's better than bussing children miles away to school, when there is one down the block from them.\n\nIt would be a good idea if there is a lot of racially motivated fights in a particular school.\n\nBUT--isn't this taking a step backward?  Isn't it telling our children that they are all "different," instead of instilling the information that "we are all the same?"\n\nCould it make racial relations in the future even worse?\n\nThere's a lot to think about here.  The most important being our children and our world.
67317
Affirmative Action is not a good idea.  It promotes, possibly, unqualified people into positions simply to collect government monies.\n\nIn some respects, it also promotes what some call "reverse" discrimination.  I call it discrimination, pure and simple.\n\nCompanies, schools, or any organization, would be better served giving a position to the most qualified person - regardless or race, gender, marital status, etc.  If they are concerned that there is not enough "diversity" in a certain area, set up a training program (open to EVERYONE) and train people to do what you need them to do.\n\nI fell the same way about school scholarships that favor one ethnic group over another.
623187
Yeah... the whole "opportunities available to everyone" statement is a bit of a joke.... it's hard to succeed when you go to a school that doesn't have a decent book, teacher or administrator... and that's not counting any social issues at home, like one parent families and little to no respect for education at home, because the family never learned the value of education...  \n\nand that's not even getting into the racism in the workforce or upper education... most of the managers out there grew up before the civil rights movement... of course some will still hold on to the racist attitudes they grew up with...\n\nit's not easy to break out of a poor social class, usually only the brightest 1 percent do...\n\nLazy is most often used to make the wealthy feel better about being wealthy... a convenient excuse to not help those in poverty... everyone who has been in poverty knows that many of them work, often two and three jobs, for often 12 or more hours a day... \n\nI know some wealthy people... they don't work nearly that hard and are much closer to being lazy than those I know who are in poverty... I don't know any poor people that take off early on friday to hit the golf course to get in 18 before the sun goes down... I know a lot of wealthy men who do though....
778381
Get great grades, do well on the SAT and check one of the boxes other than "Caucasian."  It also doesn't hurt to have parent who is an alum (legacy) or money to donate (development admit)\n\nOf the top 12 in my class, only those with a heritage other than caucasian got in.  Hoping things have changed since then.
790984
I voted down affirmative action because I was in the same situation as Jennifer Gratz last year when applying to U of M.  I was deferred, waitlisted, and rejected.  I was in the top ten percent of my class, involved in numerous activities, associated with alumni, wrote very good essays, got a decent ACT score, had good recomendations and I had a high GPA. I felt extremely bitter about it for the longest time, but now that I'm here at Michigan State, I realized that it's U of M's loss, not mine.  MSU realized that they could benefit from having me as a student and they took advantage of that right away, while U of M kept me waiting for more than 6 months.  Pretty frustrating when your friends know where they're going and you still don't know right?Every teacher I had, every fellow classmate, my guidance counselor thought I was guaranteed to get in and were shocked when I hadn't.  \n\nI think that admission should be based on merit, not skin color.  Also I think that admission should be based on socioeconomic situations as opposed to color, so a poor white kid from Detroit will have the same opportunity as a poor black kid from Detroit to get into a university.\n\nAlso, the ban affects public employment, contracting and public universities.
580087
Yes, Universities want to have a diverse mix of students and have "quotas" to meet, meaning they need to have certain numbers of different ethnic backgrounds so that they cannot be accused of discriminating and it also helps to make them look more well-rounded and universal.  But often what happens as a result is reverse-discrimination, where many Caucasian-Americans get denied with higher GPAs.
475721
Some minorities are at the bottom because of social conditions like poor and broken families. (How can you study for a test if you have to go to McDonalds to work to pay for your family of 7?) Other minorities (Asians and Jews for example) are statistically better in school than whites. It may be for cultural reasons. (Asian culture values education greatly.)
548968
looking at no child left behind... I almost start to wonder if this isn't trying to destroy an already underfunded education system... \n\nWith no public education...the wealthy would be the only ones that could afford to become educated and then keep control of their wealth through that control of education... \n\nah... capitalism at it's best...\n\nDon't you just love how freetyme813 insults basically every American with his rants on public school... almost everyone attends public school and if we're all that "stupid" then why did the majority vote for conservatives?\nTest scores are at all time highs... so if he's calling today's kids dumb... and you graduated a long time ago like I did... then he's calling all of us really dumb....\nI think we all know who the "dumb" one is here...\nSorry we didn't go to private school because our daddy was rich like you apparently did... some of us have to actually work for what we have...
960969
I really don't understand why you think it is so hard to be black. Do you think it is any easier to be white??? Really, get real, there may be a touch of racism out there, but legally you guys have as many if not more opportunities than the whites. You are legally covered against discrimination - we aren't. You have special federal funding of a lot of educational opportunities that whites don't have. Just check into the income level necessary for whites to get educational aid - it is pathetic. You have many housing opportunities that I don't have. Now guess who pays for all of this - we the taxpayers (you included I hope). You don't see me or any white squawking about reverse discrimination, but it has gotten to that point, so keep your pity party to yourself. God made us all. For some reason I ended up white and you ended up black. Be proud of who you are, and then go make something of yourself. It is hard for everyone right now with the rise in the cost of health care, cost of living, fuel costs, etc.. Jobs are still available for anyone who wants to better himself / herself, so get out there and overcome and see the dream that Martin Luther King described. I don't think he ever meant for you guys to wallow in sorrow about your state of affairs. God bless and chin up.
470475
Well, it's not one school system, it's many.  Some are very poor, and some are very good.  I graduated from a school system that sends many students on to Ivy League schools and has a very strong academic reputation.  I taught in a school system that has a very poor reputation and has many students who struggle with remedial classes at the local colleges.
848247
Things haven't change a bit sinse then compared to 50's and 60's esp during the segregation period. Georgia, is the most racist state I know, and mississippi too. I think it's really racist everywhere, things havent changed, martin king did have a dream, that all whites and black would be sitting at the table together, well that dream did come true, because we do have alot of interracial marriages more than we did back in the day. I think now statistically, even the "majority" will disagree with this. but minorities are now becoming the majoritities....