Dancing While the Ice Melts

There was a local election last night here in Raleigh, NC.  The big race was not the mayoral race, but rather the seats on the local school board.  As I have talked about in the past, the Wake County school board has been under fire for the last few years as they have moved to change how school districts are organized.

Those that celebrated last night’s results were the champions of previous policies of more economic diversity.  It was a victory to “end the divisiveness” as one newly elected member spouted.  Moral high ground was claimed by the winners, with words of “healing” and “ending partisanship.”  I am guessing that with last night’s results, parents and students will again be looking at choosing different schools.

What seems to be missing from anyone’s discussion around the election is talk of results.  Not the election results, or victories and losses for the various political views, but actual academic results.  School is, at last check, about learning.  While the various parties spend piles of money to get elected and change the social structure of schools, and celebrating pyrrhic victory, the ice is melting under their (and our) feet.

The United States continues to get further and further behind academically, and yet we spend millions of dollars on school board elections where the criteria for decision appear to be largely rooted in social concern.  What a luxury!

The period of Western economic dominance is coming to an end in the next five years.  In 2016, the United States will cede the top spot to China.  When we have a school board election that is about solving THAT problem through better education, I will be out there dancing with the victors myself.