This education issue ticks me off:

First I absolutely think it is NOT the fault of teachers. The vast majority of which are doing their honest best with improperly raised kids, government bureaucracy, and a school system that was essentially designed by robber barons of the late ninteenth century to churn out factory workers and of course a stubburn teacher's union that fights any real improvments or accountability tooth and nail.

Western Europe is successful in educating their kids for a number of reasons, but some some things are quite suprising.

1. They spend LESS per child. Per capita expenditures in most of the countries of Western Europe is much less than the US. in fact in some countries its only about half per child.

2. They have larger class sizes

3. They have in many cases less technology.

The one thing that they do have however is SCHOOL CHOICE. Suprised huh? That is the dirty secret out there the teacher's union does not want anyone here to know.

Thanks to their investment in public transportation Euro parents can pick any school within reasonable distantance of where they live without penalty. The result is that over time low performing schools go away and only good ones are left operating, just like the marketplace.

If you think I am full of it, consumer advocate John Stossel has done exhaustive research on this subject. He sights the Belgian system as an example in his book, "Myths, Lies and Stupidity, Get out the Shovel, why everything you think you know is Wrong" In the book he speaks to a local district superindent who bluntly states that school choice is partly responsible for the superior performance of their kids. Funny how liberals want to import Universal Health Care but do not want to inport Europe's methods of education which have proven results.

It not a matter of throwing more money at the problem. Our system needs a redesign from the ground up.

1. We need a system that is geared toward the marketing and information economy of the 21st century. The manufacturing economy is going, and no amount of ranting by Lou Dobbs or Rust Belt pols is bringing it back.

2. Parents need resources for being able to chose schools within a resonable distance, public or private. We need the equivalent of a G.I. bill for kids to level the playing field. Whenever any organization has a captive audience, it has NO incentive to do its best. Parents must become the customers and learn more about alternatives such as home schooling etc.

3. Education must be truly learner driven and we all need to become life long learners.

I know people will disagree with me, and thats fine. I would also suggest reading various books by Alvin and Heidi Toffler, and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich who has written extensively on this subject.

In the end trying to pour money into the same outdated model will continue to fail. We need a radical rethink of how we educate kids and adults in this country.