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FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 16,2007 WWW.KANSAN.COM
GENTRY: Why should reality TV be realistic? Nobody wants to watch someone do homework for hours or sit in a lecture hall. See Kansan.com for more opinions and Free for All comments
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
OPINION
PAGE 7A
》 OUR VIEW
Kansas says it wants an evolution
The national reputation of Kansas took a determined step forward on Tuesday when the State Board of Education, suddenly flush with sensible moderates, voted to restore the state science standards to their pre-intelligent design structure. The decision was lauded by moderate, criticized by ID proponents, and wearily welcomed by those charged with managing the state's good name.
In the frustrating and seemingly interminable amount of time since the standards were changed to cast doubt upon the theory of evolution, the Sunflower State has attracted the kind of attention tourism directors
dread. It is the rare official who relishes seeing his state's name used in close proximity to words like "laughingstock," "backward," and "ridicule."
The national standing of Kansas
tily and smirk rocketing at those poor backward Midwesterners. So sad, they said with a faux-exasperated shake of the head, that residents of flyover country should allow evolution to go the way of the flat earth theory.
But our humble state has been mounting a slow comeback. We have a popular and moderate governor whose name is frequently bandied about as a potential presidential ticket booster. One of our senators is a presidential candidate, though one already marginalized by the coastal media. Finally, our esteemed State Board of Education has elected to reverse the multivear trend of equat-
It's the rare official who relishes seeing his state's name used in close proximity to words like "laughingstock,""backward, and"ridicule."
has been weakened by several elements in recent years. First came the dismissal of evolution from science textbooks, a move which invited criticism from scientists and mockery from the talking point-craving punitocracy. This was followed by a bestselling book in which author Thomas Frank used his native state as an example of policy gone wrong, a book whose very title implied that something was seriously wrong with Kansas.
ing a nouveau and unproven design theory with a scientific theory of relatively accepted standing.
The problems were compounded by the condescending air of coastal superiority, which saw smugly self-assured coastal residents sniff haugh
to know the inner workings of something as mysterious as the cosmos, but let us not ignore the overwhelming bulk of scientific opinion, nor forget that Charles Darwin was a devoutly religious man and saw no need for faith and science to clash. Regardless of your personal feelings on the matter, Tuesday's decision marks a step forward for the reputation of Kansas The State Board deserves our commendation.
— McKay Stangler for the editorial board.
》 COMMENTARY
School inequality starts with funding disparity
Public education, once heralded by Horace Mann as "the great equalizer of the conditions of man," has become so misguided that it is neither equalizing nor educating. Intended as a safety net for children born lacking the means for a sufficient education, the K-12 system has become another station on the road of socioeconomic pre-determinism.
According to the U.S. Department of Education, public schools in the U.S. are funded partially by local property taxes, meaning that areas with higher property values receive more money. The discrepancy in quality of education between inner-city and suburban schools is no coincidence.
Many factors affect a child's development, including the income of his or her parents. But the quality of education the child receives, regardless of other factors, still has an undeniable effect on his or her development. While schools cannot give children better parents, they
can and should give them better teachers, textbooks and buildings.
And that starts with funding. But lower property value means fewer tax dollars, regardless of tax rate.
BY LUCAS LUX
Higher property values in Overland Park means that the Blue Valley school district gets 56 percent of its funds from local property taxes. The U.S. Department of Education cites the national average as 37 percent. Kansas City, Kan., schools, despite a higher tax rate, are only able to pay 21 percent of their bills with local money. Kansas City schools are forced to rely on dwindling state and federal funds usually marked for specific purposes such as English as a Second Language programs.
This difference shows in each district's goals. In its colorful 2005 06 executive report, Blue Valley
BLOCAS LUCA
KANSAN COLUMNIST
OPINION@KANSAN.COM
boasts of its "core concept of Personalized Student Learning" and promises an "education tailored just for you." The report focuses on among other
things, improving students' standardized test scores. The Kansas City schools are faced with more serious challenges; their report focused on "First Things First," including a program to boost literacy rates. The report said a look in its schools would "find challenges facing any urban district; insufficient funding, large numbers of at-risk students, declining enrollment and teacher shortages"
Gaps like these are ensured by the current way of funding public schools. The inequalities become perpetual, creating an American aristocracy. Parental income largely decides if a child will be given a
chance to succeed. This is more than inherently unjust. It is bad policy. The wasted potential of millions of youths – and the crime that some revert to – costs society more than a quality education would have in the first place. Not every uneducated child becomes a criminal, but few are able to save their children from the same experience.
Some argue that children of the affluent are entitled to the better educations they receive. The problem is not the great education of the rich children, but the deficient education of the poor. By creating public schools society recognizes that it has an obligation to its children. This obligation should not apply only to children in certain neighborhoods. Public schools are not the place for inequality. If educating every American child is indeed a priority, treat it like one. Fund every student equally.
Lux is a Topeka sophomore in German and economics.
HOW NOT TO PICK UP AN ENVIRONMENTALIST
Hey, you wanna go clubbin' this weekend?
Grant Snider/KANSAN
FREE FOR ALL
Call 864-0500
Free for All callers have 20 seconds to speak about any topic they wish. Kansas editors reserve the right to omit comments. Slanderous and abscene statements will not be printed. Phone numbers of all incoming calls are recorded.
Obviously no one in the physics department gets laid, or else they wouldn't schedule test on valentines Day.
behind Snow, who were going off the ramp; You guys are nuts!
To my students who called Free-for All because I asked my French class the other day if you guys eat rabbits in America: Why thanks! I'm so happy that you're actually listening to what I'm
saying
Every time I hear "V-Day" I think V.D., venereal disease.
I just saw a squirrel make an origami crane out of a leaf.
I once saw Chuck Norris fold a piece of paper more than seven
图
behind Snow, who were going off the ramp; You guys are nuts!
To the bus driver who is driving our buses on campus, through the snow, while texting: I would really like to see what my life looks like tomorrow.
time.
Free-for-All, I'm pretty sure my roommate is the coolest ever, because today there wasn't even a Free-for-All, but somehow she
WaS.
I wish my eyelashes could get an erection.
The scorekeeper during the Kansas-Colorado game has to be on drugs. What the hell is wrong with the score?
thanks
So, according to ESPN Plus, Brandon Rush just scored a 6-
pointer
Damaged Circus sucks.
图
So I paid for a 12-rose arrangement and got 11. Is that like a
Valentine's Day's only redeeming factor is that there are lots of icicles on the cars that I get to
To the kids who were sledding
kick of
Free-for-All, please tell my roommate that she's lying to herself when she says she's single, and that she's just being an atten-
tion-wh
behind Snow, who were going off the ramp; You guys are nuts!
To the four guys that helped me back up on Wednesday night at 11:30. You guys are lifesavers,
policy?
My girlfriend can't get mad at me for forgetting Valentine's Day, because she got her period.
policy?
Free-for-All, you must be a parking ticket, because you've got "fine" written all over you. Giggity-giggity-goo!
图
Today is a bad day to be a
policy?
Do you think there's a special place in hell for people who walk around talking about karma?
Since when did the Wescoe outside stairs become a safe haven for smokers?
图
policy?
I like it when girls wear Ugg boots with stretchy pants!
So my car ran into a ditch while I was trying to make it to class the other day, and I'm curious if when a student dies, is that when they'll rethink their inclement weather
My friend and I are walking out of class, and we can't get over how wasted our professor just
I just saw a Park-and-Ride bus being towed on I-70. It made me
laugh
wa:
COMMENTARY
Reality TV OK,but best if taken with dose of reality
Truth is stranger than fiction. Just flip channels on the television and you'll find multiple examples. Our culture has gravitated from fictional to reality-based television shows. Gone are the days of witty sitcoms that end with a sugar-sweet moral or an impossibly perfect solution to all the characters' problems. Now we are bombarded with "reality", or at least some network executive's conception of it. There's even a channel exclusively devoted to reality television.
KANSAN COLUMNIST
OPINION@KANSAN.COM
Certainly, some notable fictional dramas inspire a cult following, such as "Lost" or "Grey's Anatomy," but they are largely overshadowed by the sheer volume of reality television. The shows run the gamut from forcing people to eat cow intestines for money to watching people fall in love — or lust.
The term "reality TV" is a misnomer because it very loosely defines the term "reality." If you define reality as "something that could only happen in my wildest dreams or worst nightmares," then go ahead, and call it that.
We watch television to escape our realities. Though "reality TV" is
about "real" people, it's actually no different than the sitcoms that were popular a few years ago. If it's not you and it's not going to happen in your life, then it's not your reality.
As an example, I'll use my own — very embarrassing — reality TV show addiction: VH1's "I Love New York." I watch the show religiously, mostly because the main character, New York, is so outrageous. She's the proverbial train wreck: horrible yet I can't rip my eyes away. The ridiculous men on her show make it obvious they were hand-picked to create the best drama possible.
This show isn't reality, at least not my reality. But that's why it's so entertaining. I certainly don't want to watch someone on television sit through a history class or do homework for hours. America doesn't
love reality television because it mirrors our own lives. It cathartic because we can sit at home thinking, "Man, I might have flunked my chemistry quiz today, but at least I'm not stranded on an island with only rice to eat."
Yes, reality television is often mindless and contrived. That doesn't mean you should be ashamed to admit that you relax while watching "Laguna Beach" or "Survivor" instead of listening to NPR or reading The New York Times.
Just realize that those lives aren't real. TV networks have to make it entertaining to get people to watch it. Keep watching whichever reality show you might be addicted to, but with a dose of real reality. Remind yourself the purpose of the show is to make money, not to provide a documentary of people' lives.
>> TALK TO US
It's heartbreaking for me to think "New York" may not be as psycho as she seems, but I guess I'll just have to come to terms with that.
Gentry is a Kansas City, Mo., sophomore in English.
Patrick Ross, managing editor 864-4854 or prossikansan.com
Gabriella Souza, editor
864-4854 or gsouza@kansu.com
Nicole Kelley, managing editor
864-4854 or nkelleysikansan.com
Courtney Hagen, opinion editor
864-4924 or chagen@kansan.com
Natalie Johnson, associate opinion editor
864-4924 or njohnson@kansan.com
Lindsey Shirack, business manager
864-4014 or lshirack@kansan.com
Malcolm Gibson, general manager, news adviser
864-7667 or mabisonjikansan.com
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864-4462 or jschaffer@kansan.com
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EDITORIAL BOARD
Gabriella Souza, Necole Kelley, Patrick Ross, Courtney Hagen,
Natalie Johnson, Alison Kieler, Tasha Riggins and McKay
Stangler