This is a letter sent to the Editor of the Indianapolis Star Newspaper in response to an editorial titled “Let’s start earlier to stop falling behind”.

Dear Sir:

Would you please explain the logic you used in reaching the nonsensical conclusion in your editorial titled ”Let’s start earlier to stop falling behind” and printed today, April 27, 2006 as your second editorial?

In the first three quarters of the editorial you did an excellent job of describing the failed Indiana Public School system and I must congratulate you for that part of the editorial. You well described how the present school system is unable to reach and educate the majority of students in that system today. Then you reach the conclusion that we should give that same failed school system access to more and younger students by opening full-day Kindergarten. This makes no sense at all. Why on earth would any thoughtful person want to give more students to this failed school system?

Indiana schools are funded as number 16 in the country at $10,000 per student. Its students rate at number 40 in the country, that’s Number Forty, on the standardized SAT test. As a comparison, Iowa is funded at number 33, at slightly over $8,000 per student yet its students’ rate at number One (1) on the same SAT test. It makes no sense to expand the Indiana school system.

It makes more sense to do one of two things: Do as New Zealand did a few years ago--abandon the state schools and change to local independent schools. They did it in one day. Or we could go back and find what the schools of 100 years ago were doing and start doing what they were doing. Those schools, 100 years ago, were doing what schools had been doing for 2300 years and they were doing it correctly and turning out excellent students.

I have the eighth grade final examination for Salina, Kansas dated April 13, 1895 and I challenge any modern school teacher, or newspaper editor, to try it. Here are the first three questions:

1. Give nine rules for the use of Capital Letters.
2. Name the Parts of Speech and define those that have no modifications.
3. Define Verse, Stanza and Paragraph.

And it goes on for three pages. Are there any takers? Call me and I’ll fax it over to you.

How do you dare propose that we trust our youngest, most impressionable, young children to these failed Indiana schools when the information I quote above is available to you on the National Education Associations’ website, page 39 (2004)?

Sincerely
Ed Sparks

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