Jesse Watters: The Department of Education's Failure to Educate American Children

Failure of the Department of Education

• 🎯 The Department of Education is criticized for failing to improve student outcomes despite decades of operation and trillions in spending.
• 📉 Since its founding under Jimmy Carter, reading and math scores have declined, with a third of students struggling to read at an eighth-grade level.
• ⚠️ College students are reportedly failing basic civics exams, indicating a systemic breakdown in fundamental education.

Proposed Solutions and Criticisms

• 🚀 A key proposal is to dismantle the federal Department of Education and return control to the states, a move described as common sense and popular.
• 🚫 The plan aims to eliminate agencies not deemed necessary to shrink the size and cost of big government.
• 🍎 Teachers are acknowledged as vital, with a commitment to supporting them regardless of union affiliation.

Impact of Teacher Unions and COVID-19

• 🔒 Teacher unions are accused of prioritizing their own power and finances over student well-being, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• 🏠 Unions allegedly forced school closures, contributing to increased student depression and academic decline, while receiving significant funding without accountability.
• 📢 Parents were reportedly shut out and spied on by the administration for opposing policies like Critical Race Theory (CRT) and for concerns about student safety.

Systemic Issues and Student Outcomes

• 🏫 Schools are described as becoming like "fight clubs," with issues like violence and girls being raped in bathrooms, while parents are silenced.
• 🎓 Students are graduating illiterate and then encouraged to pursue expensive, often worthless college degrees, leading to significant student loan debt.
• 📉 The system is seen as broken, with politicians' children attending private schools while public schools suffer from outdated resources and technology.

Parental Involvement and Monopoly Concerns

• 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 The core customers of education are identified as parents, whose involvement has decreased over time, leading to institutionalized schools.
• 📉 This decline in parental engagement, coupled with a perceived monopoly in education, has resulted in a decline in service levels.