A thread sort of got into a tangent onto the nature of education so here it is so far:

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Trust me, I'm a socialist!

There's power in a factory,power in the land, power in the hand of the worker. But it all amounts to nothing if together we don't stand, there is power in a union.
The union forever defending our rights, down with the blackleg, workers unite. To our brothers and our sisters in many far off lands, there is power in a union.
Money speaks for money, the devil for his own. - Billy Bragg

I'm not an expert on education systems but I'd really like to see No Child Left Behind....left behind. With that in mind education should be state-governed.

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"I find no black men appealing, they look like giant monkeys." -LilithIshtar (some member of another forum I used to be part of)

I agree weith Levi that each individual state should administer a mandatory educational program requiring attendance from K-1 through grade 12. Participation in extra cirricular activities would be dependant on the student's GPA. Teachers ratings and job retention would be dependant on the avergae GPA of their students, not solely on union contracts.

Education is far too important to the success of a society to be left to the whims of the individual family unit.

The education system must be under the direct control of the state, no corporations, no charity status, just tax funded equal education. Otherwise any claim you may have to being a meritocracy just doesn't cut it.

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If there ever was in the history of humanity an enemy who was truly universal, an enemy whose acts and moves trouble the entire world, threaten the entire world, attack the entire world in any way or another, that real and really universal enemy is precisely Yankee imperialism - Fidel Castro

Unbreakable union of freeborn republics
Great Russia has welded forever to stand
Created in struggle by will of the people
United and mighty our Soviet Land

Hands Off Venezuela - Home

I'd say that charitable donations for specialized labs and programs are acceptable as long as there is a clearly defined caveat that the donor gains no advantage of any sort other than honorable mention and an appropriate tax deduction. Many school districts are under extremely restrictive budgets and can't afford ancillary programs. For instance, my clinic provided a local high school with sufficient funding to construct and equip a pre-nursing medical sciences lab for the specific purpose of interesting and preparing students for entry into post high school medical education programs. We received nothing in return other than a brief ceremony celebrating the opening and our clinics name as part of labs name.

In answer to the title question, I'd say "No." The government has no business dictating to parents what they must do with their children. If the government wants children to indoctrinate then let it learn how to give birth to its own damned kids!

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A panda walks into a cafe. He orders a sandwich, eats it, then draws a gun and fires two shots in the air.

"Why?" asks the confused waiter, as the panda makes toward the exit. The panda produces a badly punctuated wildlife manual and tosses it over his shoulder.

"I'm a panda," he says at the door. "Look it up."

The waiter turns to the relevant entry and, sure enough, finds an explanation.

"Panda. Large black-and-white bear-like mammal, native to China. Eats, shoots and leaves."

In the richest country on the planet (infact in most countries) there is no reason why that should happen. We have plenty of resources to give schools everything they need. The problem is private companies and individuals hold too much of these resources and the state is either too afraid or too tied up with these individuals to alter that. If the richest were properly taxed and even more so were blocked from acquiring such a perverse control of resources, then schools and all public services could be properly funded by the revenue generated within the state.

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If there ever was in the history of humanity an enemy who was truly universal, an enemy whose acts and moves trouble the entire world, threaten the entire world, attack the entire world in any way or another, that real and really universal enemy is precisely Yankee imperialism - Fidel Castro

Unbreakable union of freeborn republics
Great Russia has welded forever to stand
Created in struggle by will of the people
United and mighty our Soviet Land

Hands Off Venezuela - Home

I attended private school - and my son attended private school.

I think that education should go back the way it was until a century ago. Those in families with enough wealth to have them educated - or could get a patron - were educated. The rest started to work as soon as they were able.

I think we should return to that. Pay for what you receive. If your family isn't rich enough - and you can't obtain a patron - grab yourself a shovel. Who cares if the people who clean our streets and dig our ditches and pick our vegetables can read and write?

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"No man is happy without a delusion of some kind. Delusions are as necessary to our happiness as realities."

...Christian Nestell Bovee

Exaclty, the plebs just waste their opportunities anyway.

__________________
Trust me, I'm a socialist!

There's power in a factory,power in the land, power in the hand of the worker. But it all amounts to nothing if together we don't stand, there is power in a union.
The union forever defending our rights, down with the blackleg, workers unite. To our brothers and our sisters in many far off lands, there is power in a union.
Money speaks for money, the devil for his own. - Billy Bragg

Perhaps it shouldn't happen but nevertheless it does indeed happen where schoold districts in many communities are forced to cut programs because of funding issues.

Government, business and industry have a stake in the education of the future workforce and it's to their advantage to enhance educational opportunities.