Is our Students Learning?

Parents Forum
21

<p>GWB has a sense of humor, which is sometimes lacking on CC.

[quote]
Then there is my most famous statement: "Rarely is the question asked, is our children learning." (Laughter.) Let us analyze that sentence for a moment. (Laughter.) If you're a stickler, you probably think the singular verb "is" should have been the plural "are." But if you read it closely, you'll see I'm using the intransitive plural subjunctive tense. (Laughter.) So the word "is" are correct. (Laughter and applause.)

[/quote]

Remarks by the President at the Radio-Television Correspondents Association 57th Annual Dinner
Washington Hilton Hotel
Washington, D.C.
<a href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2001/03/20010330-1.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2001/03/20010330-1.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

22

<p>
[quote]
Listing Alabama A&M as #24 is just ridiculous.... it is such a very low ranking school. It wouldn't even qualify as a safety for Alabama students.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Did you mean "very low ranking" by U.S. News & World standards? PR reports that 77% of their grads go on to graduate school. Enrollment is 69% African American according to PR, but 97% according to College Board. Admission is not selective, yet graduates are apparently well-prepared, particularly in science and engineering -- a focus Washington Monthly emphasizes as nationally important.</p>

<p>I don't know the school. But I wonder if it's hasty to dismiss the WM ratings as any less salient than, say, USNWR?</p>

23

<p>
[quote]
GWB has a sense of humor, which is sometimes lacking on CC.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>Naw, GWB has got us all laughing hysterically ... emphasis on hysterical.</p>

24

<p>


Took the words right out of my mouth. </p>

<p>I say, the more rankings - and the more they diverge - the better. Anything that makes inroads into the herd mentality that sends kids mindlessly applying to the "top 20" schools based on nothing but USN&WR is good in my book. Shake-ups that put "unranked" schools high on the WM list, or Alabama A&M way higher than what the Gospel is According to USN&WR are all to the good. This kind of ratings dissonance gets people thinking and talking about what goes into the ratings and what a given school might have to offer.</p>

<p>The ratings are handy; I use them myself. But they should just be a starting point and too many of our cc kids (especially) are beholden to them.</p>

25

<p>Speaking of which; when is the UNS&WR college issue due out? (I read it for the articles. Really I do. ;) )</p>

26

<p>lol, anxiousmom!</p>

27

<p>I also plan to buy a hardcopy of the WM rankings. It is refreshing to see a results-oriented approach to rankings. </p>

<p>BTW - "Is Our Children Learning" is a very interesting little book by Paul Begala. Begala is an alum of University of Texas Law School where GWB applied and was rejected prior to being admitted to Harvard Business School. This fact alone ranks UT above Harvard in my book.</p>