one more...

Ok, one more political post and then I'll stop whining for a little while. Andy asked whether I was going to keep this up for four years. I'll try not to, but it all depends on how things go. However, I do want everyone to read part of this email that my mom sent me in regard to the outcome of the election:

At school the big concern of course is more of the NCLB [No Child Left Behind] requirements and testing stuff that has ended up costing the districts "stupid" monies.... For example to do the 6th and 7th grade math testing, all students had to have a certain type of calculator made available for each student by the school (Kids could use their own if they preferred but the school had to have one for each student... and since the tests all had to be given at the exact same time, we ended up spending another 2000 dollars just on testing calculators. That is equal to the both the entire 6 and 7th grade teachers' math budgets!!!)

I understand that every state has testing, and even my great state of Vermont has its own idiotic testing rules, but this one just made me laugh. All the other tests my mom has ever given allowed the tests to be given at different times on different days (although this might have been because different versions of the test were given - I don't know the specifics). That way, my mom and the other math teachers could pool their calculators and have enough without wasting precious $ on calculators that will only be used once per year (unless the whole school gets together for a math bee). $2000 could buy so many things! I know that even democrats voted for NCLB, but this is just one example of non-thinking by politicians in general, and a president unwilling to admit that he doesn't have all the answers as a specific. I know I didn't make a good point there, but maybe I can work it out a little better and edit it this afternoon. :)