A land where schools go out of business

I grew up smack in the middle of the rust belt, the wealthy suburbs of Detroit, Michigan.  Sixteen years after "graduating" from elementary school I learn that that school, Wooddale, is closing its doors permanently.  Its strange thinking that a place where I spent countless hours as a child is going to be no more.

Apparently Farmington Public School is in some dire straits.  They are closing 4 elementary schools, which will mean that kids will have to transition from elementary school, to upper elementary school, to junior high, to high school.  So a total of 4 schools over 12 years, which I think is a bit excessive.

On a larger note, you can bet that property values will tank in these areas.  Nobody wants to live next door to an abandoned school (brings to mind Nightmare on Elm Street).  Schools are very much the foundation of a community.  Farmington Hills, Michigan.  Formerly the home of one the best school districts in the country.  Now a land where schools go out of business.

For Profit Schools a bad deal for everyone

This expose on online education for-profit universities should make anyone think twice about attending University of Phoenix or other for profit universities.

When it comes to for-profit vs. non profit, note the average salary of University of Maryland University College (online, NON-profit) vs. Phoenix (online, FOR profit).  The difference is quite staggering.

The reason for lower quality education makes sense.  A for profit school is probably going to have a higher student/faculty ratio and less qualified instructors (they cost more).  State supported non profits, such as UMUC are basically normal universities that offer a lot of courses online.

The article also implies that for profit schools are ripping off the taxpayers.  This is a PR nightmare for Phoenix, Strayer, and their ilk.  Why go to a for profit school that costs more and provides less return?

Grad School Bubble?

Both of these articles make convincing arguments, that the high cost and modest rewards simply are not worth it for aspiring MBA's and JD's.  Is grad school, or education in general, the next bubble?

I think so, but I think that the rapid rise in online education will reign in costs to a point at which a decent quality education is attainable to anyone, not just the rich or those who want to be in debt up to their eyeballs.

MBA: http://www.economist.com/theworldin/displayStory.cfm?story_id=14742624&d=2010

Law: http://lawyerist.com/law-school-admissions-bubble/

Livemocha

After reading a great article on CNN about computer based language learning, I tried out one of the top picks: Livemocha. This site takes online language learning to a new level and is completely free. I am currently learning Russian, and was able to quickly set up an account and get started. They also offer many other languages, just about anything you would want to learn.

The main benefit to using Livemocha is that it is a community, who helps each other learn languages. So when I submit a voice sample in Russian, a native Russian speaker will rate it and provide me with feedback. I do the same for others who are learning English. It is also possible to engage in chats with users, and of course there are the lessons which are pretty good.

I have to admit, I'm surprised how good this site is. I also have Rosetta Stone, which is great and helps a lot, but one thing it does not provide is feedback from native speakers which is obviously helpful.

While I don't think that you can learn a language from one source alone, Livemocha is a perfect complement to other options out there, like Rosetta Stone.

Schools gone crazy over pills

In my neck of the woods, it is apparently a more serious offense to carry birth control pills to school than heroin.  Seriously.

Glad this week is winding down

I've had a helluva week. Put in close to 70 hours working, on top of studying for the GMAT.

I took that today, scored 43 quant, 44 verbal, 710 overall. Should be good enough to get into any school I want.

CA Shuts down homeschools

In a government move that I happen to agree with, a California District court has basically said that home schooling is illegal, unless the parent has proper teaching credentials.  This ruling (which is being appealed) would affect over 100,00 students. 

 

While parents should definitely have options when it comes to teaching their children, when it is done in the home it will generally lead to academic and social problems.  When kids are home schooled they do not get to interact with other children and may have socialization problems later in life.  Furthermore, of the home schooled people I have known, they were at least 2-3 years behind their grade level in math and science.  Obviously, your mileage will vary in a home school.

 

The parents quoted in the article are scared that their children will be "exposed to teachings about evolution, homosexuality, same-sex marriage and sex education."  How scary!  A kid may actually learn about true science, as opposed to the BS in the family bible, which may be a fun story but is far, far from fact.  He or she will also learn techniques to prevent HIV infection, how horrible! 
 

I think that if a group of parents wants to start up a school (which could take place in a home) and come up with an adequate curriculum, home school could be a good thing, especially for kids who would have to attend some horrible public school.  But even in those cases, private schools are generally available.  The problem is that the parents cannot take the money out of the public school (which their taxes pay for) and use it to pay for private school tuition.  If this problem is fixed, I don't see a need for homeschools anymore, unless there are some very extreme circumstances.