| Myth #1: The United States was founded on a philosophy or principle of "public" education; thus, the public school system is the Holy Cornerstone of Democracy.
Myth #2: Government schools are truly "public" schools.
Myth #3: "Private" schools are more expensive than "public" schools, and it follows, therefore, that only the rich can afford them; that's why we need "public" schooling.
Myth #4: We are a more literate nation today than we were prior to compulsory government schooling.
Myth #5: Before the government take-over of education, there weren't enough schools, and many parents neglected their children's education.
Myth #6: The "public" schools would improve if only they had enough money to do the job right. |
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Myth #4: We are a more literate nation today than we were prior to compulsory government schooling.
Between 1650 and 1795, male literacy climbed from 60 to 90 percent and female literacy rose from 30 to 45 percent. Between 1800 and 1840, literacy in the North rose from 75 percent to between 91 and 97 percent, and from 50-60 percent to 81 percent in the South. Literacy was growing across every population in the years prior to the government take-over of education.
Today, after more than 100 years of government schooling, according to the US Department of Education National Adult Literacy Survey  , 25% of adult Americans read (if they can read at all) at the lowest, rock-bottom level of literacy. Examples of Level 1 literacy are: being able to locate one piece of information in a sports article, locating the time of a meeting on a form, and totaling a bank deposit entry. Another 25% function at Level 2 literacy, examples of which are: locating two features of information in a sports article, locating an intersection on a street map, or determining the difference in price between tickets for two shows. One-half our adult population is unable to function at full Level 3 literacy, which includes such abilities as writing a brief letter explaining an error made on a credit card bill; using a sign-out sheet to respond to a call about a resident; or using a calculator to calculate the difference between the regular and sale price from an advertisement.
What this means is that half our adult population can not comprehend the contents of a voter pamphlet (so much for Jefferson's "informed discretion"). Furthermore, colleges and universities complain that incoming high-school graduates require remedial courses in writing and math, and businesses complain that an alarming number of college graduates have skills insufficient for performing entry-level jobs.
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