Wisconsin's Crumbling Schools

Wisconsin's biggest teacher's union posted this story on their website:

Magazine gives high grades to state public school districts

Wisconsin public schools again came out on top in a new national ranking that emphasizes the importance of quality public education for companies seeking to expand their business.

Seven Wisconsin metropolitan areas are included in Expansion Management magazine's list of the top 25 locations with quality public schools. No other state has more than three metropolitan areas included in the list.

The magazine ranked the nation's largest 362 metropolitan areas in terms of the quality of public education. The seven Wisconsin areas to make the top 25 are Sheboygan at 5, Eau Claire at 7, Madison at 8, Wausau at 11, Appleton at 16, Oshkosh-Neenah at 20, and Fond du Lac at 24.

Here's a link to the report.

Our education bureaucracy, teacher's union included, wants us to believe two things: one, that our system of school funding is destroying our schools; and two, that our schools continue to be among the best in the nation.

Evidence very strongly supports the second of these statements - our public schools perform excellently compared to those in other states.

What to make of the first statement, then? I know, one common explanation is: revenue caps haven't destroyed our schools yet, but it's only a matter of time.

And still: that system was enacted in 1993. It took effect in 1995. Over a decade ago.

Perhaps there's something to the argument that more money is not the same thing as better education.