A Minnesota education reform bill, bulletproof whiteboards in classrooms, and physical abuse being used as punishment once more all are in effect today. Whether these changes will help education or obliterate its progress is unknown; however, we hope for the best.
In Minnesota, a $15.7 billion education bill has just been approved that will make school affordable for all and will rid curriculums of unnecessary tasks. In Florida, paddling students as punishment is once more legal, lifting the ban that was put in place three years ago. And soon all states’ schools will be equipped with bulletproof whiteboards.
The Minnesota education reform has promising outcomes. By approving the bill, the state will now provide free all day kindergarten classes, scholarships for preschools and more money for K-12 classrooms. The goals are to lose the achievement gap that affects minority and underprivileged students to create a more equal workforce and to accomplish a one-hundred-percent high school commencement rate by 2027, when current preschoolers will be graduating.
The reform is also ridding schools of the current graduation exams and swapping them out for more appropriate tests coordinated with postsecondary education and employment opportunities. Lower income areas will also receive more money and support as the funding formula will be altered and specifically-tailored-attention will be granted to their students.
Finally, the bill has also put aside $850 million to pay back the state’s debt to schools. Fingers crossed this reform improves education and then other states can adopt the same or similar changes.
Florida reintroduces physical abuse as school punishment after banning it in 2010. During the ban, the schools used an in-school suspension program, which is arguably a better tool for reprimand than paddling.
The school board only allows paddling in elementary schools and only if the parent gives permission. Apparently a student can be paddled only once per semester, so the offense should be extreme to warrant the beating. Despite its victory in the votes, some board members have voiced their objections.
Bobby James stated his concerns about how it could be used disproportionately on minority students, which is an interesting point. Having the paddle in the wrong hands could lead to future lawsuits based on discrimination.
And lastly, in an attempt to help schools that are under attack, the manufacturer Hardwire has developed bulletproof whiteboards that can be used as protective shields for teachers and students. Inspired by tragic events, especially the one at the Connecticut elementary school where twenty children and six teachers were killed, these boards were created as a line of defense in case someone cannot get away.
Their resistance has been tested extensively and the product works just as it is advertised; however, it is feared that having these boards in classrooms could create a false sense of security. If a school is under attack, the best thing to do is to get away; and having a shield easily accessible may make people feel that evacuation is not necessary.
However, the schools that do carry them do assure skeptics that the boards are a last resort to a well-structured safety drill. Currently, North Dakota, Maryland and Minnesota possess the boards and Pennsylvania and California will acquire them next.
Some education reforms will progress schools into perfection while others will pull schools back in the medieval times. One can only hope that the best outcomes possible result from each.
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