We got to get this kid to thirty-two before the libs assassinate him, Marsha Blackburn need assistance beating sense into Boehner.

Well, that makes 2 of us.

Beware "green" states; they're collectivist.

I think the real reason is that women (and men too really) want all the bells and whistles that their friends have...nice car, nice house, new boots...bla bla bla... If there's a will there's a way to stay home with your kids.... why have them otherwise... farming out my kids was NOT an option. Priorities.

I would love to be a stay at home mom but the men need to stand up and be committed to their wife, a huge reason for women in the workplace.

While I can't sight the research, I have heard there is a strong positive correlation to the decline in the US education system and the creation of the Department of Education. Something else we can thank Carter for implementing.

I work at a school...I see all of this daily. How parents think their child's education is not THEIR responsibility and are totally okay with handing off their kids to the gov for "free" day care (essentially), is beyond me. They don't see the danger in this at all... "it's always been this way"...as if that justifies a damned thing.
I know most of us were not home schooled... but more should be. Kids gets lost in large classrooms...something else I watch daily, up close. It's really sad.

Its about the parents lack of interest in the child's progress

Most of us were NOT home schooled .... The problems in the Public school system primarily stem from MASSIVE govt regulation .... Instead of allowing great teachers to teach, we force them to teach to standardized tests .... It is nearly impossible to "disclipline" problem students because of the threat of lawsuits ... many parents are uninvolved and have no desire to be involved and there is no way to make them be involved ......As cold-hearted as this may sound, we also spend a large amount of tax dollars on the "special needs" children who have a nearly 1-1 relationship with a caretaker during the school day. This is a massive waste of resources (after a specific point) since these children are unable to function at a higher level.

There's LOTS of problems... Class size IS one of them.
The real answer is to home school.
What answers do you have?

Here in the peoples Republic of Oregon, their answer is to give the staff a raise, and cut 3 more days each year, and then the individual districts jump in and cut some more. My wife and I discussed how kids used to be able to work on the farm, drive farm equip and help out as an expectation/job, and now it is virtually impossible to hire any kid under 16. The school year used to be structured so that you did do the intense study in the non growing season and were off to help on the farm the rest. As far as quality, today that is such a loose term when applied to education (quality as in did they feel good about themselves today, are they happy, do they like the teacher, or quality as in did you learn something useful) so you have a hard time here trying to get to what a "quality" education is. And it does not stop there, I have seen 4 year college grads dumber than a doorbell. In fact, as a Chief submarine sonarman, I had 3rd class pettyofficers with more sense and learning ability, than my fresh from college division officer. One reason I retired as soon as I could, they were getting very dangerous. But where I work now, they hire Phd where they used to only want a BS degree. And some of them are incredibly incompetent. Education is not a guarantee of intelligence or ability anymore.

I would disagree with the school year getting anything but shorter. There are so many "service days" and the hours have been cut that the time these kids have to fill by hanging out or watching videos is growing year to year. I was amazed when our HS in our dinky town let kids out at 2:30 starting this year due to "funding". However, they have a superintendent who makes 135,000 a year for a high school and elementary school. I don't give a rats ass if he has a phd or not, it still isn't worth it. The food service worker works more than he does.

Don't need a time machine... just involved parents making some demands for smaller class sized and to get the gov OUT of education.
Okay...maybe a time machine is more likely. (Involved parents... what the hell am I saying?)

Good find Maph :)

LOL!! Thanks, Maph! Actually, take our education system back to the turn of the previous century... at a time when enterpreneurism was king, and people were rewarded (or failed) for their daring to try something different... How is it that the generation that was born in the latter part of the 19th century could contribute so much to the world, and yet we, the new generation with all its marvels, cannot make the far-reaching discoveries that hapened from the latter part of the 19th century and into about the mid-20th?