After Serious Consideration

by

Doreen McShea

 New I.V.B.E. member Doreen McShea, an educator from Collier County, chose to withdraw from the Collier County School Board race in early July 2000. The following is a copy of her withdrawal statement reprinted with permission.

    After serious consideration, I am withdrawing from the race for school board, Collier County- District 4.

  Having devoted countless hours to the study of education, drawing upon my former experience as an educator, and having children presently enrolled in the public schools, I've come to the realization that local control of our schools is virtually nonexistent. They have been federalized and are controlled by both the liberal Clinton agenda and the NEA. Their mission is to mandate "Outcome Based Education" (OBE), replacing traditional academics with politically correct behaviors and attitudes along with workforce training. Public education is a monopoly in which we, the people, have no voice. It involves our children, our money, our schools, yet we have little control over the steady decline. As I write this, the NEA is meeting, designing more programs for dumbing-down our youth.  Remember, the mission of the NEA is not to educate - it is political, driven to create jobs and to vie for power.

  Unfortunately, those in the "trenches", the teachers and the principals, are forced to take the blame for poor performance. They must comply with "edufads", are brainwashed to believe that they are qualified to function as neurologists and psychoanalysts in implementing practices aligned to the educational quackery of "brain theory", and are bullied into teaching diversity and multiculturalism instead of American History. The "crock" of "higher order thinking skills" replaces a basic knowledge of facts. The educrats ignore the obvious: skills must be based on the knowledge of facts. Group learning, peer tutoring, coaching, facilitating, and other lame excuses for not teaching replace "tried and true", "look you in the eye", teacher-directed instruction.

   The facts defy spin. Test scores in the middle schools and in the high schools are shameful. The superintendent remains, "upbeat".  As a parent, I am disgusted.

  Could anyone have honestly expected any better? Block scheduling, implemented to accomodate School to Work, deprives students of up to 40% of the recommended instructional time. With School to Work, students provide free labor to the workforce rather than remaining in the classroom in order to learn how to read and do math. The main objective of one of the high schools is to have 50% of the present 10th graders and 60% of the present 9th graders enrolled in career academies by their 12th year!

   The middle school improvement plan has me extremely concerned. Plans for our children include confidential e-files, e-portfolios, or e-profiles, containing personal information. An advisor/advisee program will be instituted whereby our children will be assigned an adult mentor or counselor with which they will meet regularly in order to discuss concerns, problems, etc.  Since when did I give up my parental authority so that someone else could mentor my child? The Kovalik method or some type of thematic approach is to be implemented; this type of instruction has not been thoroughly researched, is "outcome based education", contains questionable components, and promotes weakened academics. All this for the low price of just $17,500,000!

  What have we, the people, allowed to happen in our schools? The concept of homosexuality must be tolerated yet God may not be recognized! We allow the teaching of "decision making", weakening parental authority and the absolute values and beliefs with which we send our children to school. Values clarification, sex education, and other New Age programs thrust our children into an adult world, robbing them of the innocence of childhood. Eleven-year-olds are being asked to explore their "inner selves" often times leaving them troubled and confused. Human sexuality classes in the sixth grade include the topic of oral sex. How many parents are aware of this? Few, I believe, as they are not allowed to take their books home.

    If I believed that I could honestly make a difference, I would remain in the race. Instead, I've decided to withdraw, play with my kids, go for a walk with my husband, and work on a book and other educational essays, position papers and exposes. Perhaps I will be a more effective change agent for reform. I will continue to work on "real" school reform, not reform "Bill and Hillary style." As parents of our two school-age sons, we have a moral obligation to begin to research the most appropriate private schools. Until they are fully accommodated and reoriented, they will remain in the public schools under our close and vigilant supervision.

     In discussing school issues with a petulant talk show host, he used the words "grassy knoll" to insinuate that I was making conspiratorial accusations. Perhaps he, as many, can't "see the forest for the trees", the real imminent danger, and the sad reality.

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From IVBE's newsletter Voices -- Fall, 2000