NJ Education Report

Newsflash: at last night’s Republican Debate in Florida (#18, but who’s counting) there was actually a mention of public education. I don’t know if I’m the only one who’s been astounded by the lack of attention paid to America’s schools, No Child Left Behind, Race to the Top, and all that stuff. Maybe they’re just too busy up there decrying Obama/Romneycare, Bain Capital, Newt’s pals at Freddie Mac, the gold standard, and military action at the Strait of Hormuz.

Anyway, Mitt Romney, who seems to turn a whiter shade of pale at each subsequent debate, was answering a question about the Dream Act, which would give the illegal immigrants the right to stay here as long as they join the army or go to college. Or maybe he was answering a question about whether English should be our “official” language and, if so, whether Americans who spoke a different language would get to have their ballots translated into their native tongue so they could, like, vote and stuff.

Anyway, he started talking about a revolutionary program in Massachusetts when he was governor there. Seems that immigrant schoolchildren were enrolled in an English-immersion program for a couple of years and then – voila! – they learned English and transitioned into regular classes. Plus, Romney said, Massachusetts has the best schools in the country.

It’s kind of true. Massachusetts does have great schools, although its achievement gap between poor and rich kids is as big as Jersey’s. But, unlike Jersey, Massachusetts was one of the first winners in Pres. Obama’s Race to the Top competition, reaping $250 million.

That immersion thing? Everyone does that. Romney taking credit for it is like Al Gore taking credit for inventing the Internets. Still, it was nice to hear the “e” word come from a Republican contender, even if his next comments involved something called “self-deportation,” which will no doubt play well with Florida’s Hispanic population.