[MD] Value and the Individual

[Arlo Bensinger]

[Craig]
The value of uniform standards of education (which tend to equalize 
the education of everyone) vs. the value of minimum standards (which 
tends to promote variety & innovation in education).

[Arlo]
First point, your "versus" elements here are incorrect. You should 
have either (maximus uniform standards of education versus minimum 
uniform standards of education) or (uniform standards of education 
versus no uniform standards of eductaion), i.e., the question should 
be to have them at all, and then to have a lot of few.

The preliminary activity to this is to first articulate "why" we are 
educating in the first place. The "standards" we do set are simply to 
make sure our goals are set. If our goal is "literacy", we must 
decide "how literate?", to be able to read 'what'? legal documents? 
novels? cookbooks? street signs? Dostoevsky? These goals inform the 
standards we set.

Agree. There should be innovation in meeting these goals. Not every 
student learns the same way. Nor does every student benefit from 
homogenous study. For example, if our goal in education is to meet 
labor-needs, then some students may want to intern, others can work 
on their family's farm, others can launch their own business. In the 
end, we ask "have they demonstrated a learned labor skill?" And if 
our goal is "exposure to the arts", one student may want to study 
dance, another sculpture, another may take weekend painting classes, 
another may attend Tuesday evening poetry readings, etc. And if a 
goal is "to meet local community needs", a Nebraskan rural town may 
offer courses in agriculture and farming business, while a town in 
West Virginia may offer courses in mining engineering and geology.

So I am with you (I think) on tailoring innovative and 
personally-valuable experiences to meet educational standards. 
(Although above the Pirsigian in me disdains the idea of separating 
"art" from other areas of study, the long-term goal should be to see 
that course in mechanical engineering is as much about "art" as a 
course in watercolor.)

[Craig]
The value having a public educational system without vouchers, 
placing the full burden of private education on those who choose it 
vs. the value of having a voucher system where those who choose a 
private education pay only the marginal cost (if any).

[Arlo]
If we do away with public education, we will do away with taxes 
paying for public education, so where do "vouchers" come from? And 
are you suggesting that the more-expensive schools won't be like 
"Ferraris" and the least-expensive schools like "Pacers"? If so, I 
take it you see that as acceptable? Are you suggesting that the poor 
will have access to the same quality of education as the rich?

[Craig]
The value of general funding of education (which tends to 
redistribute wealth) vs.the value of funding by education users 
(which tends to counteract overpopulation & better match cost/benefit).

[Arlo]
Before public education, poor families were quite large. I doubt 
funding education has any effect. But, take any point in time before 
America (or any country) started funding public education, and 
explain to me why you think things were better (were poor families 
smaller? did everyone have better access to a quality education?)


[Craig]
The value of having the whole society responsibility for education 
vs. the value of not having people dependent on the government.

[Arlo]
Yikes! Are we also dependent on the government because of our social 
responsibility to manage public lands?!

[Craig]
At bottom I think there is a difference in values between those who 
believe we are obligated to make the world a better place (or at 
least not worse) vs. those who believe we are normally only obligated 
by our voluntary actions.

[Arlo]
So for you its pragmatically irrelevant, really, whether private 
schools do a better job educating than public schools. The issue is 
whether or not YOU should be forced to FUND education AT ALL is the 
central concern. Even if it was shown that private schools would 
serve less children, provide a worse education, and stratify the 
classes (walk with me hypothetically for a second), you would still 
favor privatizing education because of the "immoral" nature of 
forcing people to fund education through taxation. No?