How do you dumb down education? How do you make sure the best and the brightest get mediocre education? Dr. Colman has figured it out.
“Three letters — D, I, and E — can be used to describe the war on talent. “D” stands for diversity. “I” means inclusion. “E” represents equity. Together, the three letters form the acronym DIE.
Supporters of DIE wants to eliminate merit-based admissions to certain prestigious public institutions, especially prestigious public high schools.
Instead of bringing up the education standards for all students, the Left has decided to bring down the education opportunities for those with lots of talent. This will cause the parents to drop government “education” for real education.
By Richard Colman, Exclusive to the California Political News and Views 7/27/21
Powerful, egalitarian forces are waging war on talented students.
Three letters — D, I, and E — can be used to describe the war on talent. “D” stands for diversity. “I” means inclusion. “E” represents equity. Together, the three letters form the acronym DIE.
Supporters of DIE wants to eliminate merit-based admissions to certain prestigious public institutions, especially prestigious public high schools.
Three prestigious high schools are examples: Boston Latin in Boston, Massachusetts; Stuyvesant High School in New York City; and Lowell High School in San Francisco.
At each of these three schools, merit-based, admissions policies are under attack.
Boston Latin has distinguished alumni. Among these alumni are five signers of the Declaration of Independence, four governors of Massachusetts, and four presidents of Harvard University.
DIE supporters argue that these schools are elitist and discriminate against lower-income students, especially lower-income students who are of African-American or Latino background.
In some cases, parents of talented students are waging court fights to protect merit-based admissions.
At the present time, the United States faces enormous challenges in such areas as science, technology, engineering, and mathematics — the so-called STEM academic subjects.
Without talent, opponents of DIE argue that the United States will not be able to compete with foreign nations.
Competition is occurring in such areas as biotechnology (think of the COVID-19 pandemic), quantum computing (a new highly advanced form of computing), agricultural productivity, industrial productivity, artificial intelligence, robotics, and what is called Big Data (the kinds of activities performed by such firms as Google, Apple, and Microsoft).
It is too dangerous for the United States to become a second rate (or 10th rate or worse) nation in the STEM areas. DIE policies will ultimately make the United States an inferior nation.
Challenges to American technological superiority are not new.
On Oct. 4, 1957, the Soviet Union launched Sputnik, the first man-made satellite to orbit the earth. The United States was caught off guard and had to catch up to the Soviets.
Working with a Democratically controlled Congress, President Dwight D. Eisenhower, signed legislation in 1958 to improve science and mathematics teaching in American schools. The legislation led to improvements in such high school curricula as biology, chemistry, and physics. The legislation laid the ground work for future American technological developments.
In May 1961, President John F. Kennedy, in an address to Congress, promised that before the 1960’s ended, America would put a man on the moon and return him safely to earth.
In July 1969, the U.S. became the first — and only — nation to put men on the moon and return them safely to earth.
Helping students in low-quality high schools is a worthwhile idea.
But helping such students at the expense of denying admissions to challenging high schools is not in the national interest.
