Reader comments
Utah slips in report on higher ed in U.S.

entrenched | 5:28 a.m. Dec. 3, 2008

It seems to me that a great deal more could be done to make university basic lectures available off-campus. This could reach geometrically increased numbers of students at home on private computers at a much reduced cost.

Instead there is an entrenched system that hasn't changed much in decades. It all seems to be done in the interest of the faculty and administration with no thought for the convenience and economy of the students.

Homeland Security | 5:36 a.m. Dec. 3, 2008

Schooling cost can not continue to rise out of site
What kind of idiosy is this anyway??????
Even at that
High schoolers are needing a calculator to make change, NMaybe they are drop outs?
Try $4.25 from a Twenty Dollar Bill
Try a Nurse that can not read the chart and enter information on a computer?
Sad in Utah

Don't Throw Stones | 7:26 a.m. Dec. 3, 2008

To Homeland Security: As you throw stones about education, check your own spelling skills!

Comments continue below

DR Don | 8:08 a.m. Dec. 3, 2008

No doubt higher education in Utah would be more affordable if education for illegal alien criminals weren't being subsidized by the state and the feds with our tax dollars.

Research | 8:58 a.m. Dec. 3, 2008

Just another example of an institution over-paid to research something they don't know much about then share their results in such a way as to scare us into thinking the sky is falling.

Henry Drummond | 9:01 a.m. Dec. 3, 2008

If nothing else, the article shows that lawmakers are in a state of denial over what has happened to Higher Education nationally and locally.

Support for Higher Education has steadily declined in this state over the last twenty years. The State is paying a smaller and smaller portion of what it costs to obtain a college degree. I have some very bright students who have to drop out because they simply can't afford housing, health care, and college tuition.

The result is that the percentage of college educated people in this state has steadily fallen. This affects our ability to compete as a State. This newspaper has already run several articles about employers passing over Utah because of the shrinking supply of college education professionals.

Nationally we graduate and ever decreasing number of engineers and scientists while countries like China and India are increasing theirs.

And then we complain that our jobs are going overseas...

Out of focus | 9:14 a.m. Dec. 3, 2008

A college education is the norm for a small minority of students within the education system and yet it continues to dominate the discourse. Why? There are other education systems around the world that put far less emphasis on college preparation and yet, according to similar reports as the one mentioned above, these same systems do a much better job educating the youth of those nations. What is the biggest difference between the American system and the European system? Students who have proven themselves capable of competing within the higher education system are prepared for the higher education system, and students who have proven unable or uninterested are directed towards the trades. We value personal choice in this country which also opens up the possibility of personal failure. Lately, however, we like to blame the system for our personal failures instead. We need to decide what we want. We can't have a system that forces students to take a "rigorous" college prep schedule with little regard for student interest or ability and expect that all students will come out prepared for college or prepared for the workplace. That is not happening currently and it will continue to not happen.

Charter Schools | 9:32 a.m. Dec. 3, 2008

The state education system certainly needs some change and I don't think that charter schools are the answer. It seems to me that they (charter schools) reduce money available for large fixed costs of the school districts.

Additionally I don't see where there is any huge difference in standardized tests (outside of a marginal increase for charter schools which is expected because they can "cherry pick" their students.)

It seems like there should be a better solution out there.

WakeUp | 10:35 a.m. Dec. 3, 2008

The State's "great social expeiment" gets yet another failing grade. Too much money and TIME worrying about the State's greatly overpopulated illegal alien's education, and not enought time and effort in teaching the basic 3R's to our own children.

Utah Teacher | 10:49 a.m. Dec. 3, 2008

This article would have been more useful if it had identified the three areas where Utah is lagging, plus included specific examples from "Measuring Up 2008." Google "Measuring Up 2008" to go to the web site where such information is contained. Why were you so soft on Utah education, Deseret News? Afraid of offending the teachers' unions?

consider the source | 11:25 a.m. Dec. 3, 2008

Jim Hunt is a lifelong Democrat who has always been in bed with the bottomless money pit education establishment. I'd take the info presented here with a grain of salt

Dr. Stool | 11:39 a.m. Dec. 3, 2008

Our education is a reflection of our political leaders. We are told what and how to teach. Teachers are constantly observed to see if they are in compliance with state and federal guidelines. Of course they function by taking our tax money. Three questions:

1. How can a Federal government which mismanages American money, be trusted to manage our schools?
2. Where in the Constitution does it say government can take peoples money and use it to manipulate the education system?
3. Is it the will of the American people to have schools constantly testing rather than teaching our children?

Steve | 12:03 p.m. Dec. 3, 2008

ï¿½to Americans of all backgroundsï¿½

ï¿½which Americans receiveï¿½

ï¿½poor and middle-class Americansï¿½

Three times this article expresses concerns about the diminishing quality and increased cost of Education for Americans, yet never addresses one of the main causes --- Illegal immigrants and anchor babies who greatly contribute to this decline and shouldnï¿½t even be here.
Perhaps the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education makes no distinction between Americans and criminal invaders.

Patriot | 12:23 p.m. Dec. 3, 2008

I agree with Utah Teacher and Consider The Source. Why can't the Deseret News even answer the statement that they pronounce in their headline? Tell us where we are slipping and quit snoozing on the job. What are the causes? Why?

Are you afraid to state the obvious? We have been invaded by illegal aliens and their 3rd world children. Then, they have children that become 2nd class citizens because of the cultural attitudes within that culture. Look at the states that had the worst performance and most of these states had a very small percentage of minorities 10 years ago. Utah, Wyoming, the Dakota's etc. Now, they've all been invaded by foreign illegal aliens which puts extreme pressure on the system that functoned so well before.

Wake up people and think!

Brother Chuck Schroeder | 1:36 p.m. Dec. 3, 2008

Here's my 2 cents worth. School's doing better preparing students for higher education than they did a decade ago? now that's a joke, when the talk goes out on higher education institutions, today they ment more sex, drug's and beer-bong's being used, than cheat, lie and steal on all test's just to get a degree/sheeps-skin. Progress must only count on ones grades of all straight A's, not states to do more to prepare high school students for college and make college more affordable and accessible to Americans, that should make a college enrollment the way it always use to be before. When we see a so called college educated person of today, so dumb-sized-down with a sheeps-skin in hand, flipping burgers somewhere, for a living, or delivering pizza's because they know how to make some change, it makes me sad me, just to think, someday they to may be your Boss, while still all wet behind the ears, and, knows nothing about the real world outside of a dorm, or a classroom. That's my view. What's yours?.

Re 12:23 PM | 1:58 p.m. Dec. 3, 2008

You are so right here, Utah lets em in, through Canada also, the Mormon's embrace em and feed them, than Utah that has been invaded by illegal aliens and their 3rd world children rot's in scores and everything else to for that matter to. Then, they have children that become 2nd class citizens because of the cultural attitudes within that culture. Look at the states that had the worst performance and most of these states had a very small percentage of minorities 10 years ago. And I thought all Mormon's are to obey ALL the written law's of the land to, not just what it says in the Book of Mormon to do only?.

l | 5:28 p.m. Dec. 3, 2008

Um, *Re 12:23 PM | 1:58 p.m. Dec. 3, 2008*

What?

Why even take the 30 seconds to post something if it's going copy what someone else wrote and turn it into something completely unintelligible?

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