dayum. and here I was thinking it was a shame you didn't agree with me!
>Why smart people -- all presumably functioning at Adult Literacy Survey
>Level 4 or above -- buy the myth that goes against their interests is an
>interesting question.
Stop flaming!
*getting up of the floor, brushing myself off, still gasping from laughter*
Anyway, and seriously, nothing I've written on this topic recently supports your characterization. The statement you're responding to, which is the closest you will come to even a hint that something's 'wronger' than it used to be, is the claim that _schools_ are getting worse. I said utterly nothing about student performance on tests. Though I _will_ say that if these tests are fairly static over time, they _are_ measuring something. I.e., if your scale is off by 5 lbs., it doesn't follow that you didn't lose 10 lbs. when the LCD reads 130 lbs on March 31 as opposed to 140 on Jan 1st. _
Similarly, in your haste to put everything into dichotomous binaries, you also do a disservice to Doug. (to Louis, hard to say, since he's been too reticent but I'm going to give him the benefit of a doubt. He's my brother! He ain't heavy!)
Further, it simply doesn't follow that, if you acknowledge a decline in student performance, that you need to buy into the conservative agenda. If student scores _are_ declining (notice the subjunctive mood! really. Shall I put it in caps to improve reading comprehension? OK. Will do. NOTICE THE SUBJUNCTIVE MOOD: IF. IF IF IF!), then there's no reason why anything has to be "a shame".
IF schools are getting worse, they might say, that's all the more reason why schools need better funding. By drawing on comparative statistics, they could show that, say, Sweden does better because they spend more. Voila! Political allies -- who may not agree with you about everything -- are no longer people for whom you feel pity or are embarassment (it's a shame!) but solidarity.
-- http://www.inkworkswell.com