Articles written by Tom Koecke in Education

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About me - Tom Koecke

With thirty years experience in consumer finance, having raised two daughters as a single father, and trying desperately to get through my second childhood, I bring two things to the table when I write: an overload of experience, and a sense of humor!

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Education > Education (Other) Should public school teachers get merit pay?: 4 of 23
I have heard it said, "teachers are glorified babysitters." I fully agree with that statement. We give them our babies, they sit them, and we should hope they earn our glory. Teachers, and especially the best teachers, make tremendous personal sacrifice to sit our babies; is that not worthy of our glory? We should, however, ... More..
Education > Educational Philosophy Should schools be allowed to teach creationism alongside evolution as part of their science curriculum?: 49 of 78
I suspect many of the authors on the "no" side of the debate will argue that God should be expelled from public schools. They may contend that religious philosophies are the scourge of free society. To me, that argument is a bit ironic. To me, atheism is not only religious philosophy, it has organization similar to other rel... More..
Education > Education (Other) The value of people's opinions: 10 of 14
It is my opinion that many people connote 'value' to mean 'worth.' You may take that for what it is 'worth.' It may have some 'value' to you. The value of people's opinions work with physical laws, as does everything in the universe. If you accept that premise, then we can move on to opinions with 'light value,' opinions wit... More..
Education > Education (Other) Should parents or schools lead the way in teaching children about homosexuality?: 63 of 70
Parents lead the way in teaching their children about homosexuality, whether they should or should not. Schools merely reinforce, or offer counter-perspective, to what children learn from their parents. Leading the way is discipline. Children learn more from watching people than they do from books, and they most generally wa... More..
Education > Secondary School (Other) Are high school competitive sports worth the time and expense?: 19 of 19
As we look for ways to fund schools sufficiently for better academic results, one of the considerations commonly overlooked is how much money could be saved by eliminating bureaucratic processes designed mostly to report to us that schools need more money. For example, for the stated purpose of improving education, the feder... More..