Stage 6: Money to schools? Says Who?

I was intrigued when I reviewed a peer’s post entitled “Can you be more specific?” on Yesterday’s Texas Today blog dated Friday November 2, 2012. The post was written by a peer and posted on our class blog page. I consider that to be a credible source. The argument was that if schools need additional money, could they be more specific. The author argued how they came up with that exact amount and how that specific amount will impact the achievement gap. The audience is the general public. The generalization is because most individuals are concerned with education and especially where their tax dollars are going.

The basic argument is regarding the trial of school districts against the State of Texas and an expert named Lynn Moak who spoke claiming schools needed $6 billion a year to meet higher standards. The argument goes further to ask “can they be more specific” as to why that dollar amount and where the money will go.

The assumption that the argument relies on is that the reader already knows how a school district spends money. One value held is regarding the general public and its concern about education. Another value is the general public’s concern where their tax dollars are spent, so much so that they need to know exactly where the money will be used. There is a slight hint that government should regulate how school’s use money given to them. But there aren’t specifics on what government should do.

The argument doesn’t give hard facts. It does use the author’s knowledge about education from watching news and talking to friends that are teachers. The author doesn’t support the argument with evidence.

I believe the argument is successful for me personally because I have knowledge of the current situation with school districts vs. the State. It does convince me because I agree with the factors listed that the author felt needed to be addressed. It doesn’t change my mind about my current beliefs. It actually confirms my current beliefs and reiterates my feelings that we should know how school districts will use the extra money. The author does well to conclude the post with asking a valid question “isn’t it about time we stop wasting valuable tax dollars...” I learned from the argument that I am not the only one concerned about the achievement gap. The argument successfully reinforces my beliefs about education in general.