Deliberate Dumbing Down of America Public Education

222 behavior, and the effectiveness of teaching and learning in their schools. They are adherents and advocates of the late Professor Ron Edmonds’s—of Michigan State University and Har vard University—effective school principles, which emphasize the belief that while public schools realistically can’t control what happens in their surrounding communities, public schools can control what happens within their “four walls.” [Ed. Note: This particular legislation, which originally called for a whopping $230 million over a three-year period, did not pass. However, similar effective schools legislation, H.R. 747, passed and provided $4.5 million over a three-year period during William Bennett’s tenure as U.S. Secretary of Education. The above schools—especially Jackson, Mississippi, the home of the Effective School Report and one of the first inner city schools used as an effective schools (ML/DI) research experiment—which have been using mastery learning for a long period of time would provide an excellent list for Congress to use in an investigation of inner cities’ norm-referenced test scores!] The National Education Association is beginning an 18-month program to develop a new school curriculum designed to assure that students master basic skills, NEA President Mary Futrell announced Friday. “The association first will survey scholars to determine what they believe constitutes ‘mastery’ in reading, writing, mathematics and social studies. Using cri teria from the scholars and the findings of current education research studies, the association will develop experimental strategies to teach the mastery skills at five schools that will be selected from throughout the nation. The results of the programs tried at the five schools will determine the shape of the new curriculum,” Mrs. Futrell said in a speech to the Edu cation Writers Association. That curriculum then will be tested for three years at 24 schools nationwide.... The Mastery In Learning Project will be funded by $600,000 from the NEA and donations from other foundations. Nine education research institutes will participate in the project. Summit Christian Academy of Dallas, Texas included the above article in a promotional flyer on which it typed the following additional information regarding the use of mastery learning: The purpose in sending you this article is to evidence that truly we did create “TOMORROW’S EDUCATION TODAY” five years ago at a cost of over four million dollars. We employed over 250 dedicated Christian writers and editors to create the LIFEPAC curriculum. Each had an average of five years classroom teaching experience, and over 75% held Masters degrees or higher, and 40 held Doctorate degrees. Truly, there is no finer curriculum in the market place today. For comparison between our curriculum, A.C.E., A-Beka, Bob Jones and others, please write to: Summit Christian Academy, 13789 Noel Road, Suite 100, Dallas, Texas 75240. [Ed. Note: This article proves the extensive use by Christian educators of the same Skinnerian mastery learning used and recommended by the National Education Association. How can Christian educators, opposed to the teaching of evolution, support a teaching method based on Darwin’s theory of evolution? Dr. Francis Schaeffer was right on target when he said: “Many of T HE D ALLAS M ORNING N EWS OF M ARCH 23, 1985 RAN AN ARTICLE ENTITLED “T EACHERS ’ Group to Develop New Curriculum” by Karel Holloway of Boston. An excerpt follows: