An educational documentaryBy John DeSando, WCBE's "It's Movie Time," "Cinema Classics," and "On the Marquee"
In 2006, 35% of American high school seniors were proficient in reading; math was at 23%. So reveals provocative documentary The Cartel, produced, written, directed by well-known TV gadfly Bob Bowden.
The Cartel is a sincere, albeit flawed, look at a broken educational business that places American children last among industrialized countries for educational effectiveness.
The statistics Bowden presents are arresting: Despite spending more than any other state per student, New Jersey prepares barely half of them for college and not surprisingly ranks 37th in average SAT scores in 2006.
Bowden gives little weight to the enormous poverty and crime in cities such as Newark. Bowden gives too little to the successful city public schools that must exist in such a large state.
I realized China and numerous smaller countries are winning the educational race without the weight of unions and selfish bureaucrats. We need to fix the system?fast.
John DeSando teaches film at Franklin University and co-hosts WCBE 90.5's It's Movie Time, Cinema Classics, and On the Marquee, which can be heard streaming at http://publicbroadcasting.net/wcbe/ppr/index.shtml and on demand at http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/wcbe/arts.artsmain Contact him at JDeSando@Columbus.RR.com