By Karen Testerman
Once again the taxpayers of Franklin are confronted with a request for an increase in funds. Oddly with a declining population of students, there is still a need for an increase in cost.
What concerns me is that the discussion regarding budgets centers around teacher pay or the number of personnel required or facility needs. There is no discussion about job performance. The results demonstrate to the taxpayer the return on their invested tax dollar.
When one examines the statistics at the NH Department of Education they will see that the literacy of Franklin students at all levels of “assessment” is unacceptable. Obviously more money for teacher pay, personnel or facilities do not produce literate students. And this is not just a Franklin problem, the results for the state are equally depressing.
Franklin reading proficiency in 11th grade is 55% and math at 25% while the state average is reading at 66% and 44% respectively. Additionally examining similar results at all grade levels raises the question: why is this inadequacy not being addressed at the lower levels instead of passing along the deficiencies?
Class size is not the problem. More funding is not the answer. Continuing to maintain and increase the SAU and teacher population is not improving the results.
Contrast graduates of the current system with that of 1831 when Alexis de Tocqueville speaking with the man on the street who could thoroughly discuss the Constitution of the United States. Could our current graduates do likewise?
Schools are tasked with teaching the students and the proof is in the performance of the students in an acceptable level of achievement. In other jobs were the employees to produce these results they would be looking for another position.
When I talk with employers about finding qualified workers their first concern is that 50-60% of the applicants cannot read, write, or compute. This means that roughly half the students who graduate are unemployable. This is a factor driving our drug crisis and our welfare dependency.
Our children deserve better. Please tell me why the taxpayers of Franklin should continue to pay for such poor results.
