Does Governor Corbett really think he can ignore the mandates of No Child Left Behind legislation and the PA constitution that mandates free quality public education for all children?

The discussion about funding for schools . . .( Corbett's idiotic proposal to shift the responsibility to the local school districts and their most unfair property taxes) . . .misses conversation that is truly worth having:

is our educational system functional?

I don't think it is, for a simple reason: it disempowers the child.
It discards the child's RIGHT to be in a state of play, not work.
My proposal is a simple one: keep the existent facilities, K-8, but discard the didacticism. Adults would be there simply to assist the children if needed.
The children would play. All day.
Adults would not interfere with the children, but would identify which children need counseling from trauma.
Only adults who are loving and empathic would be chosen.
Parents could play also, but only if the children wanted them.
No attempt to "teach" the children at all.

Savings would be deferred to the high schools/vo-tech schools.

@Robert

That school does exist. It's called the Waldorf school. However, it is not for everyone or every child. I personally, loved learning and would have been truly bored by an "all play" type of education. All children learn differently, which as you inadvertently pointed out, is not being addressed by our educational system.

Why are we not addressing education policy’s treatment of students as objects to be acted upon by policies, teachers, and administrators? Students and their parents have the responsibility to work at being successful. We should not treat teachers/administrators as machines to produce grades using students. My husband is a school teacher and finds that it is becoming increasingly difficult to teach because students have no self-control or motivation, and their parents provide no direction. The best teachers, the best textbooks and standards, the best education cannot turn unmotivated, immature students into good citizens and employees.

This first book appeal is baffling to me: At every thrift store, flea market, yard sale and library sale there are books to be had for next to nothing...25 cents is common. How is it that any child does not have a book? That is unbelieveable.

Private school families donate their tax dollars to public schools and only use the transportation money. We pay twice. We are taxpayers, too, who desire nongovernmental designed school days. Every family should be able to choose the education they want for their children.Re funding for public schools,let's fund public schools fairly by dividing up tax dollars statewide rather than by districts. That will provide equity. And let's also give families who wish their education tax dollars to go to schools they choose to have that option.
It's the American thing to do. Remember, private school families currently pay twice.

I finally had time to listen to this after my wife heard it said it was a must-do!

I'm so glad I did. Mr Cowell was outstanding. It was SO refreshing to hear a frank discussion of these issues without the overtones of anger and hatred that we too often hear in the media. Just a calm discussion of the issues we face and the consequences we risk.

Congratulations on an(other) excellent show.