4th Grade Economics: An Intro to Socialism
Today was the first day of school for kids in Dallas. I only know this because I’ve become partially financially responsible for a 9-year-old and 13-year-old girl in the last few months’¦ it’s a long story I won’t get into. In any case, we enrolled them in the public schools near our home, and today was their first day.
I had misgivings about putting them in public school, of course. As any reader of this blog knows, I am politically libertarian, which means I don’t think the public school system should exist at all. Even so, I don’t have any problem taking advantage of it – my tax money helps pay for it, after all. My problem with public schools is that they are full of kids that don’t want to be there with parents who have no real investment (financial or otherwise) in the education of their children. This doesn’t apply to all children and parents, of course, but as long as a sizable fraction of the school population is made up of these people, I think it brings down the quality of education. That’s my opinion based on my own experience in the public school system, anyway. I want something better for my kids.
Unfortunately, private schools are prohibitively expensive for most people. If I had been planning for children, I would have started saving for their elementary education early so I could avoid the public school system as much as possible. These two girls came into my life a few months ago, which didn’t allow much time to rearrange my finances in such a way as to fund a private school education. So here we were with two girls who needed to start school and most of our income already spent. Thus, public school was the choice. I knew I would probably have issues with that choice sooner or later, but I was hoping it would be later.
I didn’t get past day one.
The 9-year-old came home from school and explained that the supplies we bought her had been taken from her and distributed to other students. For instance, we bought her four folders as instructed on the school supply list – she came home with one. We bought her several glue sticks – she came home with one, smaller glue stick. All the students were told to stack these items up, and then the teacher went around and redistributed the items. Apparently, their first class was Socialism 101.
Here is the letter we sent to the teacher:
Ms [Teacher],
I would like your take on today’s events regarding school supplies. I have a real issue when my daughter comes home and tells me that she needs more folders and other items – school supplies that I spent hours trying to locate to complete her entire list. I bought her good quality supplies because I understand how rough kids are on their supplies.
I sent [my daughter] to school today with all of the supplies we were told she would need for the school year. She came home with only one of the several folders and only one small glue stick of the several large glue sticks, and I’m not sure what else might be missing. I’m told these were taken from her and then handed out to other students.
I want these items returned. I bought these for [my daughter] – not for other students. If you intend to confiscate any other property from my daughter, I would like notice in advance so we do not send her to school with any such property. If you wish to ask me to donate supplies for other students, please do so in an upfront and honest manner rather than taking property I specifically bought for my daughter.
If these items are not returned, I suppose I have little recourse. However, I certainly will no longer be buying the requested school supplies for the first day of school in any future years.
Thank you for your time.
The original version was a little shorter and more direct, but my other half thought it best to soften the tone slightly. Still, I think it makes the point nicely. I do not want my children taught to sit meekly by while their things are taken from them, or that taking another person’s hard-earned property is ok, or that they are entitled to the fruits of someone else’s labor when they show up unprepared. If one wants something that belongs to someone else, one should have to ask.
If a private school pulled this stunt, I would remove my child from that school and the school would lose out on my money. I could send my child to a school that doesn’t do this, and the problem would be solved. I only wish I could pull my tax dollars from this public school.
If I was a conspiracy theorist, I would think that this was a purposeful attack on the concept of property rights – an effort to turn the children into good little subjects that don’t question their leaders when their earnings are taken and spent on foreign wars, corporate welfare, or ethanol subsidies. I don’t give the school that much credit, though. I think this is likely an unconscious side-effect of the mentality required to work for the public school system. The whole system is based on the idea that everyone pays for the schools, even if you disagree with what they teach, how they teach, or don’t even have kids or use the system. You can’t opt out and fund a school you agree with or choose to send your kids to some other public school. You’re trapped based on where you live, unless you’re fortunate enough to have the financial means to pay for a private school (on top of the taxes you already pay to support the public schools).
Of course an institution based on those ideals wouldn’t have kids ask other kids if they could have or borrow what they needed. If they had to ask, maybe they would get what they needed, and maybe they wouldn’t, but they would learn that voluntary association and trade is the proper way to conduct themselves – the very foundation of a free society and what makes our economy work. Instead they learned the basis of a welfare mentality – don’t worry about providing for yourself, because you won’t even have to suffer the indignity of asking for something. It will be taken from others and given to you.
Apparently plenty of students came to class without the listed supplies – probably the children of other parents who had more experience with the public school system. We won’t make the same mistake again.
In the future, we intend to make sure the girls have enough of an allowance to cover their school supplies with their own money. Then, if they want to, they can give away the supplies they bought. Or, they can say no, and we will back them up if the teacher has a problem with it. Or maybe they will choose to simply not bring the supplies. The point is that it should be their decision – not an automatic thing or some subtle trick played by the school district.
Needless to say, we will be working hard to come up with the money for a private school.
—-
Bill keeps a personal blog, touching on a range of disparate topics, from relationships to video games to economics and politics.
Photo credit: stock.xchng.
I have never heard of such a thing. I suppose it is possible that the teacher is trying to make the most of the resources available — but what is the lesson the students are supposed to learn? Not to bring the requested supplies and mooch off of those who do?
I would have been infuriated as well. If the school needs contributions — which is likely by the way — they should request them. I donate to the local elementary school through a website called donorschoose.org — allows you to be anonymous and selective about which projects you support.
I am willing to bet that the teacher will justify his/her actions on the basis that it is impossible to conduct class if the students do not all have some basic supplies — but that many show up without and the school cannot/will not provide same.
Many teachers that I know will pay for the supplies themselves — which is not right either. Seems all turned upside down when I think about it.
I would be interested in knowing what sort of response or explanation comes back from the teacher if you think of it.
The teacher may be attempting to assist students who cannot afford the supplies (do you know if this is a Title 1 school?) but as someone with a M.Ed. degree, I think the teacher did it in the stupidest way possible. I’d understand if the teacher said in the pre-school letter that this would be happening, but in such a case I’d not send my kid to school with supplies at all.
I would send a copy of the letter to the principal, too.
Everyone in my family has always gone to public school and I don’t think that your surprise is caused by a lack of familiarity with the public school system. I haven’t heard of this kind of thing before!
This post makes me wish I didn’t have to pay for your children to be in school. My money is being confiscated from me regularly and given to your daughter, to pay for her public schooling. I think you should return this property of mine immediately, or I won’t be providing my tax dollars each year for this purpose.
What would you be doing with your kids right now if the public school system didn’t exist, and your libertarian view was already in place? Home schooling? I’m curious about that.
“You can’t opt out and fund a school you agree with or choose to send your kids to some other public school. You’re trapped based on where you live, unless you’re fortunate enough to have the financial means to pay for a private school (on top of the taxes you already pay to support the public schools).”
You CAN get involved either at the classroom level, school level, or school board level, though! I am not a parent or involved in my local school board, but I did go through public schools and loved my education. Classroom supply redistribution is bizarre, I have never heard of this. I can see requesting donations or saying all supplies will be communal, but redistribution in this manner is probably the worst way to do this (like Mary Sue said)
Wow, I think it’s a pretty big stretch to take this one experience and generalize it to the entire institution of public education in this country. I went to public schools my entire life, got a great education, and never encountered anything like this. While this situation sounds very strange, I think it’s worth at least talking to the teacher to find out his/her side of the story and the rationale behind what happened.
This is the first post of yours that I have read on this site and since so far the tone of other contributers has been earnest, nuanced and carefully researched, I will endeavour to be more circumspect that I typically care to. So:
“I think this is likely an unconscious side-effect of the
mentality required to work for the public school system.”
The situation you describe is a very consciously recognized side-effect of a systematically under-funded school system. There is no good response to this absense of money. Among the other other options for the teacher is to pay for the supplies out of her own pocket. This is just as unjust and inappropriate – or as just and appropriate – as the redistribution solution.
This may pain you, but there is some good evidence that teacher quality is directly co-related to teaching pay. Good teachers will be purchased more cheaply through a public school system, but you may find you have to do more than purchase glue sticks to improve the situation.
Unfortunately, our experience does not appear to be unique. Some searching turned up several articles like this one:
“Some such as Jennie Reed Elementary School in Tacoma, Washington are rather open about their intentions to pilfer school supplies from their students. In doing research for this annual column, I came across the school’s 2004/2005 list on the Internet with the following proviso tacked on in the bottom left corner of the page: “Also, all supplies are considered communal supplies and considered a donation to your child’s classroom.†”
http://www.athomeinamerica.com/node.php?id=117
At least those parents got some warning in advance. I also found comments on various blogs with similar experiences, such as:
“I remember my parents fulfilling the list of name brand school supplies, only to have the teachers swipe them and redistribute them to the “less fortunate” (the ones that don’t follow instructions).”
http://www.tampabay.com/news/education/k12/article744312.ece
“The real kicker is, after you’ve spent all that time and money to get the supplies, when your kid needs something there’s nothing available. It’s the school system’s way of supplying the kids whose parents send nothing.”
http://www2.beaufortgazette.com/blogs/post/21760
Apparently, this is quite common!
Marty:
The teacher’s response was either an outright lie or just obfuscation depending on how you look at it. She claimed that yes the supplies were gathered up, but they were being stored safely away so our child would have them when she needed them. Of course, this does not really explain how our child came home with a different glue stick than the ones we bought, a different composition book than the ones we bought, etc. I don’t think there’s any point in pressing the issue with her anymore, though we may send something to the principal as Mary Sue suggested. After finding all those articles about the same thing happening at other public schools, though, I’m doubtful it will do much good.
Resonanteye:
I agree completely, and I wish you luck in withholding your tax dollars. Typically that lands you in jail.
As for what I would do with no public school, home schooling would certainly be an option. Of course, with no school tax I would get back enough money to cover nearly a quarter of the cost of the cheapest private schools in my area. However, did you ever notice how everything the government tries to guarantee to everyone actually becomes less available and more expensive? Just about everyone can afford things like cars and a computers, yet education and health care costs spiral upward so quickly as to price even the middle class out of private education and individual insurance policies. I would argue this is due entirely to government attempts to guarantee education and health care to everyone. With no public education system, there would suddenly be a market for low-cost education providers, and we would likely see some cheaper private education options arise.
At the very least I’d like to see education vouchers or tax credits widely available, and I’d like to see parents able to choose which public school they send their kids to without going through miles of red tape like we have to in Texas.
Alexis:
That’s a good point, and if we end up keeping them in public school for any length of time I will probably decide to get directly involved with the school. It’s just frustrating that, ultimately, I can’t take my business elsewhere like I can with a private institution. We can send the kids elsewhere, but the public school gets our money either way. So it’s not like they have any real incentive to give a damn whether I approve of what they’re doing.
Bill,
This has happened before in other school districts however I believe you went WAY too soft on this.
I would be down in the Principals office yelling my head off first thing the next morning and I would try to get the Newspapers and TV stations in on it as well…it makes a good story and might nip this thing off.
Strategies with the principal…
“Since everything is considered ‘Communal Property’ is this going to be done in the Lunchroom as well…do I need to make sure my Daughters lunch is Labeled with the proper Allergan Warnings…prepared in a kitchen that prepares nuts, milk, soy etc. so that when its taken from her for ‘Redistribution’ I don’t get sued ???”
“Are all the students clothes at Phys Ed going to be piled in the middle of the Locker Room and after class students just pick out what they want to wear??”
“Am I going to be told I have to take some student to their own home instead of them riding the bus because its ‘On My Way’ because I have a car and their parents don’t???”
Where is this going to end???
~ Roland
If this is a true illustration of the state of both the American public finances and the private finances of people in the position of the parents of your daughter’s classmates, then the United States are in a sorry state…
Bill: First, it’s commendable that you’ve taken on the financially responsibility of these two young girls. Kudos to you and your partner for stepping up to the plate. Second, I’m mesmerized by your experience… and a bit surprised there hasn’t been more ruckus in the media about the redistribution of the dreaded school supply list!
Slightly off-topic here, but I wanted to point something out that you said above:
“…I am politically libertarian, which means I don’t think the public school system should exist at all.”
Based on your posts I can tell you are a well-informed and intelligent person, so I believe you actually mean the reverse. However, too many people’s political affiliations determine their personal politics in just the way you stated above. Rather, the reverse should be the case; people should think about their personal politics, and then (and only then) should choose a political affiliation that most closely matches their ideals.
In this election year, this distinction is more important than ever, as people too often blindly vote for the party indicated on their registration card, without regard for the individual issues at stake.
Back on topic – I agree whole-heartedly that communal school supplies is completely unfair to you and your daughter, and taking the advice of those above (contacting the principal, etc) is your best course of action.
I’ve been dealing with the communal school supplies as well for quite a while with my son (he just started his 7th year in public schools), but it’s been handled much better here than what you encountered. For supplies that would reasonably be used by the same student all year (notebooks, binders, etc) I send them in to school labeled with his name. I can tell they do not get redistributed to other kids, because they come home full of my son’s papers and writing at the end of the year. For the more consumable sort of supplies (gluesticks, markers, etc) the teachers pool what the kids bring in, and then kids grab will grab a gluestick from the bin whenever they need to glue something. Personally, I don’t have a problem with this approach. I know my son uses about as much glue each year as I’ve been asked to send in; I know my son would lose a gluestick if he had to keep track of his own personal one; and my son has never complained that he couldn’t do a project because he couldn’t get a gluestick. (Relative quality of school supplies is not a factor here, since teachers generally specify the size of the gluesticks requested.) But I would be very mad if my son were in the situation your daughter is, expected to be responsible for her own gluestick supply after the teacher has skimmed off the bulk of it to give the other kids!
In an ideal world, I think that public schools should be well-enough funded that kids only need to provide supplies which it is age-appropriate for them to keep track of and which are solely for their personal use. For example, I don’t think kindergartners should have to keep track of crayons. I do think middle-schoolers should be responsible for their own pens. So ideally I would like to see school districts paying for the crayons, and middle-schoolers using whatever pens they each bring in. And I think there should be some kind of reserve (funded by the school system, not classmates’ parents) for kids who are truly too poor to bring their own pens. Ultimately, I think our society shortchanges itself if we say our poorest children should be offered an education but denied a chance to take notes in class because they can’t afford pens.
We are told upfront that school supplies will be shared, and not to put names on them. They also aren’t brought home; they are left at school. In fact, I’ve never heard of kids taking school supplies back and forth between school and home.
In one daughter’s case, we were given a list of items that we should label with her name (3-ring binder, folders, notebooks) and items that would be shared (glue sticks, etc.).
I’m OK with it either way. If items are shared, great — even if some kids don’t bring what they’re supposed to. People who HAVE are sharing with people who don’t. I would rather teach my children to share than teach them to hold onto what is supposedly theirs.
That said, the teacher in your case could be more honest about it (although perhaps she felt intimidated by your strong opinions on this).
Thanks for answering my question! I think tax credits would be great- as long as they were extended also to people without children who do not use the school system at all.
If you are so against the notion of sharing, why even enroll them at all? It seems like the idea of public schools is very distasteful to you, so why not go for the home schooling? It may seem unfeasible but given your dislike of the situation you are in (needing a service which you don’t believe anyone should have access to) that it would be better to make the necessary changes in your life, and do that, rather than continue utilising something you are so against.
My sisters are home-schooled. They really have more initiative because of it, I think.
Kathleen, if the kids are forced to ‘share’ by having their things taken and then given to others, that’s not exactly learning to share. If they have a say in the matter – if the other student has to *ask* for something and they willing give it (or not) – it’s a very different lesson.
Resonanteye, we’re still researching other options, and homeschooling is definitely still on the table. The course material from k12.com seems pretty popular, and – get this – there’s an *online charter school* in Texas run by k12.com. Pretty interesting stuff! Public school is hopefully a very temporary solution.
I don’t see it as forced sharing as much as an expectation of sharing. But, like I said, we had prior knowledge that this would happen — it wasn’t a surprise on the first day of school.
America is breeding a country of ignoramasuses that is increasingly the laughing stock of the world. I can only imagine the descent into barbarity that would happen if the public educational system was rescinded altogether.
Free, universal education is the hallmark of civilisation. Clearly what is required is more funding for education rather than using tax-payers money to launch illegal imperial wars which are nothing but crude, greedy oil grabs masquerading as democracy promotion.
You seem to struggle what socialism actually means. Contrary to what you imply, Socialism is about democrcay,questioning your leaders and certainly not about funding foregin oil wars. That is Imperialism you are thinking of!
Be grateful that your society allows free education as otherwise your children would be consigned to a lifetime of illiteracy and superstition. By your own admission you cannot afford private education so I wonder why you would advocate Social Darwinism in the form of unmitigated libertarianism?
Finally, it is interesting to note that you only care about providing resources of your genetic offspring. This is simply because, from a genetic level, we unsconsciously strive towards facilitating the reproduction of our offsprings genes as this is in our interest. Richard Dawkins wrote about this in The Selfish Gene and Robin Baker in Sperm Wars.
We care about supporting our offspring and view the offspring of others as competitors for resources.
That is we we must rise above such base instincts.
1. Universal education is not free – it is paid for by taking money from people.
2. The idea that public schools need more funding is a myth. They are already funded at levels beyond some private schools while turning out students who know less. DISD spent over $10,000 per student last year. While funding has gone up and up over the last few decades, test scores have gone down. Money is not the problem.
3. From dictionary.com, socialism is defined as “a theory or system of social organization that advocates the vesting of the ownership and control of the means of production and distribution, of capital, land, etc., in the community as a whole.” You are correct that socialism is about democracy – it’s about 51% of the people voting to take the money and property of the other 49%. It’s about lobbyists and pressure group warfare as everyone tries to get a piece of the taxpayer pie. It’s about sending money through a huge, inefficient bureaucracy so that by the time it gets to the people it was intended to help, a lot of it has already been spent. Unlimited democracy is just the tyranny of the majority.
4. I advocate the elimination of public schools because the education available to everyone would actually *improve*. First of all, low-cost private schools would appear because there would be a market for them. Parents themselves would ensure this would happen. When I was a kid living in a small East Texas town, there was no Montessori school. Some local parents, including my mother, decided they wanted one. They interviewed some teachers, hired one of them, rented an old building, and created an affordable Montessori school for themselves. There’s nothing magical about this process and certainly no need to rely on government bureaucrats to do it.
Even homeschooling is better. One study found that homeschool students at grades 1-4 perform one grade level higher than the national average, and by grade 8 they perform 4 grades higher. It also found that it made no difference if a parent was a licensed teacher or not. If a parent spending a few hours a day teaching their child can make this big of an impact, why are we bothering with public schools at all?
5. I’m actually a big fan of Dawkins, and I’ve read The Selfish Gene and The Extended Phenotype – fantastic books. But, these children are not my genetic offspring. They’re the adopted daughters of my, well, I guess you’d call her my mother-in-law even though we can’t be legally married in Texas. From a genetic standpoint I have no more interest in getting an education for these girls than I do for any random public school kid.
I advocate the elimination of the public education system because I believe all our children – even those of poor families – would be getting a *better* education without it.
Part of this week’s Carnival of the Insanities!
Hey, Bill! Former public school teacher, now homeschooling mom who lives in the DFW area, here. I could say a lot, but I’ll just say that there are tons of resources available to you should you take the homeschooling route. I’d be happy to point a few out to you, if you wish.
Best of luck to you!