|
(click on ads for more
details)
|
|
March 30,
'01 Vol. 1, No. 5
===================================
T H E S C H O O L L I B E R A T O R
===================================
Alliance for the Separation of School and State
1) Our Therapeutic Government Schools
2) Bullies on bullies
3) The New *Government* Face of Homeschooling
4) EduAbsurdity: High stakes test speeds
separation?
PLUS
* Debut of "Ask Marshall Teleconference"
* SepCon2001 Set for Nov. 16-18 in Arlington VA
* Fritz to speak in Rockford, Chicago, Minneapolis
* Fritz available for NYC and Philly
===================================
WELCOME
You're reading "The School Liberator," the email newsletter from
the Alliance for the Separation of School & State. "SchoolLib"
will keep you informed about the deep reform of "public
schooling"--the liberation of all schools from politics by the
separation of **school** and state. If you were forwarded this newsletter
and
would like your own subscription, send an mail with one word
"subscribe" in the BODY of your message to
mailto:SchoolLiberator-list-request@free-
market.net
If you enjoy "The School Liberator" please pass it along.
===================================
THIS WEEK'S LINKS
1-----1-----1
Guthrie, Oklahoma police chief proposes the use of an intrusive federal
survey for sixth to 11th graders--without parents' knowledge or approval.
Seems those pesky parents tend to "skew the results." Says the
Chief, "Some of these are sensitive questions that parents don't want
to know the answer to, but these answers won't be revealed to them."
(One wonders if the good Chief has considered the effect on children of
being
given this type of test and being told to keep it secret from their
parents, who don't want to know anyway?--Ed.) (Copy and paste long urls
into your browser.)
http://www.newsleader.net/today/article.
html?id=local-03092001-6654446952
In "Who's In Charge of Johnny's Personality?" Andrew J. Peterson
points out that the trend toward using schools to shape children's social
development is hardly new, yet no less disturbing for its long history.
http://www.sepschool.org/Edlib/v3n4/inc
harge.html
2-----2-----2
Yet another bully came out shooting in a government school this past week.
As state legislators across the country scramble to propose anti-bullying
laws
in their typical "don't just stand there, do
something" mode, a startling number of children admit to being afraid
of going to school.
"Survey: Bullying a way of school life."
http://www.msnbc.com/news/540853.asp
"Bill on Student Bullying Is Considered in Colorado."
(Registration required.)
http://www.nytimes.com/2001/03/19/natio
nal/19BULL.html?searchpv=site04
"Harassment now major concern of schoolkids."
http://seattlep-i.nwsource.com/local/bull
y14.shtml
Could it be that the worst possible candidate to preach against bullying
is the biggest bully on the block? Debbie Schlussel comments on where the
government anti-bully crusade is leading.
http://www.wnd.com/news/article.asp?AR
TICLE_ID=22030
3-----3-----3
Government school programs attracting homeschoolers --and the state money
that accompanies them--are on the rise, says education reporter Peggy
Farber in
the Harvard Education Letter. She reports the happy talk from both school
administrators and homeschool parents on these cooperative programs said
to lead to change in government schools. Make note of one little sentence,
however: "[A]lmost all [parents] are reentering the school system,
having earlier opted out." (Translation: Bribery works.--Ed.)
http://edletter.org/current/
Chris Cardiff warned about the dangers of government programs aimed at
homeschool families, in his 1998 article, "The Seduction of
Homeschooling Families."
http://www.themestream.com/gspd_brow
se/browse/view_article.gsp?c_id=141681
4-----4-----4
EduAbsurdity: High stakes test speeds separation? The Dallas Morning News
reports that "State warns of massive test failures: schools told to
prepare." Al Kauffman, legal counsel of the Mexican American Legal
Defense and Educational Fund is quoted in the article saying, "This
is a very bad use of a test. It is going to produce high failure rates,
and when you have high failures rates, it causes
many students to drop out of school."
Music to our ears...
http://www.dallasnews.com/texas_south
west/319246_1Aexam_23tex.A.html
===================================
DEBUT OF "ASK MARSHALL TELECONFERENCE" was held
Tuesday, March 27, 9:30 pm Eastern, 6:30 pm Pacific, for signers of the
Proclamation and invited guests.
Duration one hour. If you missed it, fear not. There's more to come.
Proclaimers receive notice of how to dial in. If you haven't signed the
Proclamation
do so now by clicking here:
http://www.sepschool.org/Proclamation
Information on the next teleconference will be sent to you. You may also
find out how to participate by emailing Morgen at mailto:Morgen@psnw.com
Participants pay their long distance charges to Oklahoma call center. The
next teleconference is set for Tuesday, April 10.
===================================
FRITZ'S APPEARANCES
Arlington Heights IL--Saturday, April 21 at noon, details TBA.
Chicago--Saturday evening, April 21
Topic: "School Liberation Is Closer than We Think." Call Ken
Prazak for details: (847) 426-1974.
Minneaplis--Sunday afternoon, April 22, 2:30pm Libertarian Party of MN
2001 convention at the Mystic Lake Casino and Hotel, Prior Lake MN. Call
Charles Test for details: (612) 874-8531. (Free to public.)
St. Paul--Sunday evening, April 22, details TBA.
Rockford IL--Monday evening, April 23
University Club of Rockford. $12, includes hors d'oeuvres and coffee.
Topic: "Separate School and State? How to Remove Politics from
Education."
Hosted by Allan Carlson and the Howard Center. RSPV to Jean Heise (815)
964-5819.
Chicago---Tuesday lunch, April 24, noon
Heartland Institute. Topic: "Schools Can Be Liberated from Politics
Sooner than We Think." Call (312) 377-4000.
Marshall will be available to meet with your
group in New York City Tuesday night, April 17, in Philadelphia Thursday
night, April 18, or in Chicago Monday night, April 23, or a Denver
breakfast meeting April 25. Call (559) 292-1776 to arrange.
===================================
SepCon2001 is set for Friday-Sunday, Nov. 16-18, 2001, the weekend before
Thanksgiving, at the Hilton DoubleTree Hotel in Arlington VA. Pencil it in
your calendar now.
===================================
SCORECARD
Total Proclaimers (as of March 23, 2001): 12,223 New Proclaimers
year-to-date: 593 New Proclaimers in two+ weeks Mar 10-27, 2001: 147 Top
three states in Proclaimers per million population:
Minnesota, 177; New Hampshire, 133; Utah, 119.
See all states at
http://www.sepschool.org/cgi/ranking.
cgi/PPM0
MINNESOTA GOT 30 new proclaimers after Marshall's appearance on the Jason
Lewis Talk Show. If you have a favorite local talk show and would them to
invite
Marshall to be a guest (remotely by phone), here's how you do it: 1) call
the station and ask for the producer of the show; 2) ask that person if
the host
wants an interesting guest on education; 3) if the answer is yes, give
them a brief overview and ask if they'd prefer more info by website, fax,
or mail; 4) if website, give them http://www.sepschool.org,
if fax or mail, call (559) 292-1776 and give any Separating School and
State staff member the contact information of the producer.
SIGN THE PROCLAMATION or get a family member to: "I proclaim publicly
that I favor ending government involvement in education."
http://www.sepschool.org/Proclamation
WANT TO SOUND OFF? Discuss education issues with fellow articulate School
Liberators. Go to
http://www.sepschool.org/Other/eGroups
Discussion.htm
COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS? Send us your message at
mailto:ccuthbert@fix.net
WORD OF MOUTH is the most efficient means of marketing the Separator
philosophy. Please forward this newsletter to your family, friends and
associates.
===================================
FINAL THOUGHT
From "Private schools boom: While public school enrollment declines,
private schools have as many students as they can handle." Florida
Union-Times,
March 10. 2001.
http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/
stories/031001/met_5609933.html
"It's a trend that has officials of Duval County's public school
system concerned. They say they offer a quality education, yet enrollment
has fallen
yearly since 1997. The trend is costly, because the system receives about
$4,900 in state money annually for every student enrolled, according to
Stephen Bright, the system's budget director.
"'We want those students in our system,' Bright said. 'Students are
to a school system like dollars are to a bank,' he said. 'You have to have
kids if you want money.'"
===================================
THE SCHOOL LIBERATOR is currently a FREE service Of The Alliance for the
Separation of School & State 4578 N First #310, Fresno CA 93726 (559)
292-1776. We are a non-profit, grass roots educational organization
dedicated to informing people worldwide how education can be improved for
all--not
only the poor--by liberating schools from politics.
For more information and to sign our "Proclamation for the Separation
of School and State" go to
http://www.sepschool.org.
Publisher: Marshall Fritz
Editor: Cathy Cuthbert
Copyright 2001, The Alliance for the Separation of School & State,
Inc. All rights reserved.
===================================
TO SUBSCRIBE to The School Liberator send an email message to
mailto:SchoolLiberator-list-request@
free-market.net
with just one word, "subscribe," in the BODY of the message (not
the subject.)
TO UNSUBSCRIBE do the same but with the single word,
"unsubscribe" in the body.
|
