Free Press – September 4, 2008

Patrick Murphy National Service, PSSA scores

Dear Friends,

Good morning. Don___is one of my favorite critics. He'll be pleased with Congressman Patrick Murphy’s answer to my question about national service. But first, here are my observations about the recent release of local test scores for the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment (PSSA), associated with the federal mandate…No Child Left Behind.

The federal law requires every student in America to be proficient in math and reading by 2014, and all schools must test the children annually. Readers should be happy that the schools in this area are meeting the standards, although it’s getting more difficult as each year passes.

But state and nationwide scores haven’t kept up with the feds’ requirements as it raises the bar each year. “Statewide, [only] 69 percent of schools made adequate yearly progress compared with 74 percent last year,” the Morning Call reported (Aug. 15).

“Most schools and districts that failed to make adequate yearly progress did so because of poor scores by students in some subcategories, which include special education, minority and low-income students.”

That may be a key reason why public schools in the Palisades, Pennridge, Quakertown, Souderton, and Upper Perkiomen districts passed muster. They probably have less special ed, minority, and low-income students in their districts, when compared to the other 496 school districts in the state.

What is troubling is that there are only six years left before 2014 when every student must be proficient in math and reading. Generally, the highest test scores occur in the elementary schools and decrease in the middle and high schools, this year.

In the Quakertown school system, for example, the proficiency level for the seven elementary schools hovered around 90 percent (in math and reading); but decreased to the mid 80 percent for middle school; and fell to the mid 70 percent for high school.

The federal regulations are aimed at lifting scores to equal the Asian and European competition. That’s not easy, especially when foreign school systems teach 240 days each year…compared to America’s 180. Further, I believe that Asian and European schools separate the children into academic and vocational categories after the eighth grade, and American schools don’t.

But what I worry about most is whether the federal requirements influence administrators to require teaching to the PSSA test, rather than teaching academic subjects.

We’ll have to stay tuned.

And now to National Service.

A few days ago, I had a chat with Congressman Patrick Murphy. He knows how I feel about national service. If I were the President, I would have every young person who turns 18 or graduates from high school…which ever came first…serve in military or non military service (at their choice) for two years, no exception for both young men and women. I would also give a full scholarship to a state college or university for each student after they served.

How did the congressman respond?

“I’m for it [national service] but not if it’s mandatory,” he replied.

Murphy is a member of the National Service Caucus, a bipartisan group whose mission is to expand service opportunities. He told me that volunteers in AmeriCorps and Vista gave 1.6 million hours during the Katrina disaster.

Murphy was quick to point out that he was a co-sponsor of Teach for America where 12,000 young college graduates are teaching two million students in “under resources” schools, a term he uses for urban and rural settings.

He also mentioned the Peace Corps, which has seven thousand volunteers in places around the world at an annual cost of $330 million. I say, that’s a bargain.

Murphy saved his best ammunition for the end of our interview. He described the college loan forgiveness act about which he is most proud. “If a volunteer gives ten years of service, her/his total collage loans are forgiven,” Murphy told me. If the service is less than ten years, the amount of college loan forgiveness decreases.

His version of national service doesn’t have the critical element that I prefer…mandatory. My bet is that too few young people will sign up. To me, making national service mandatory would accomplish much more. With out exception, every young adult would give service to her/his country.

If everyone served…no exception…the next generation would already be trained for volunteerism, one of the most important elements in society. If all young people were in the mix, there would be enough of them who’d choose military service.

And, in my opinion, that would make elected officials far more wary about starting a war.

I’ll be waiting for Don, my worthwhile critic, to respond.

Sincerely,

Charles Meredith