Re: FoxTrot 8/10

On 14 Aug 2008, Pat O'Neill said the following in
news:6893e5d6-41a0-42f5-b862-4e3059720c8d@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

On Aug 14, 8:40 pm, Dann <detox...@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

Any chance we could toss out this "Republicans=rich and
Democrats=poor" bull? Did you see who was at the fundraiser in San
Francisco for Mr. Obama's campaign? The one where the whole "poor,
resentful people clinging to religion and guns" meme came from? And
then there are the rich people in Hollywood, Chicago, Detroit and New
York City* that vote for and fund Democrats on a regular basis.

I've got more Democrats representing me know that you can swing a
dead cat at. And yes they are/were either self-employed or a small
businessmen/women. But none of them were "rich" by any reasonable
definition compared with the rest of the community.

*and almost every other major American city.

I suggest you take another look at the demographics of each party.
Yes, there are rich folks in the Democratic party...but in general
they are in the performing arts or communications fields. Not a whole
hell of a lot of corporate CEOs voting Dem. Not a whole hell of a lot
of people of inherited wealth, either.

The "rich" Democrats I know usually worked their way up and have a lot
of sympathy for the middle and working classes. The rich Republicans I
know usually don't...because most of them are working in exec
positions in family businesses, exec positions they "earned" by birth.
As is often said, "They were born on third base and they think they
hit a triple."

In Michigan, schools are funded by millages that are usually created
on something greater than an annual basis. Typically they are on 5,
10, 20, 25, or 30 year cycles.

Then Michigan is decidedly unusual. In most localities, school budgets
and taxes are created on an annual basis; in many, they are subject to
referenda, in which initial budgets with increases are most often
rejected. In some cases, there is then a second round of voting on a
reduced budget. In others, a rejected budget requires an "austerity"
funding measure.


Athletic programs also correlate reasonably well with improved
academic performance. They help develop valuable skills such as
individual effort and working with a team. Sports also provide a
motivation for developing a broader sense of community.

I'd like to see some data on that academics/athletics correlation. All
I know is that in every school district I'm familiar with, the
athletes in the "glory sports" (around here that's football--boy is it
ever!, basketball, and lacrosse) are generally mediocre students who
get a lot of "passes" on academics. Most of them are in the lowest
tier of academic rigor (we have three levels of academics in our
district...the top is for advanced kids, the middle for average kids,
and the lowest for those who haven't a chance in hell of getting into
college based on academic achievement. There are an awful lot of
football, basketball and lacrosse players in that last group.

And if those sports were the only thing keeping those kids in school so
they could get whatever education they could?? Would that not be a
positive effect? [I've known more than a few kids that fell in that
category.]

<googling....>

http://www.nfhs.org/web/2004/01/the_case_for_high_school_activities.aspx

[I'll admit that the folks at that website are biased. The research they
report appears to be reasonably unbiased, IMO. Googling for "correlation
high school athletics academic performance" resulted in roughly 823,000
links.]

--- Research conducted in 1991 by Skip Dane of Hardiness Research,
Casper, Wyoming, revealed the following about participation in high
school sports: 1) By a 2-to-1 ratio, boys who participate in sports do
better in school, do not drop out and have a better chance to get through
college. 2) The ratio for girls who participate in sports and do well in
school is three to one. 3) About 92 percent of sports participants do not
use drugs. 4) School athletes are more self-assured. 5) Sports
participants take average and above-average classes. 6) Sports
participants receive above-average grades and do above average on skills
tests. 7) Those involved in sports have knowledge of and use financial
aid and have a chance to finish college. 8) Student-athletes appear to
have more parental involvement than other students. 9) Students involved
in athletics appear to change focus from cars and money to life
accomplishments during the process.

--- A 1989 nationwide study by the Women's Sport Foundation indicated
that athletes do better in the classroom, are more involved in school
activity programs and stay involved in the community after graduation.
The study also revealed that high school athletic participation has a
positive educational and social impact on many minority and female
students. The study, based on an analysis of data collected by the U.S.
Department of Education's High School and Beyond Study, indicated that:
1) Girls receive as many benefits from sports as boys. 2) The "dumb
jock" stereotype is a myth. 3) Sports involvement was significantly
related to a lower dropout rate in some school settings. 4) Minority
athletes are more socially involved than non-athletes.


--- A study of nearly 22,000 students conducted by a University of
Colorado professor for the Colorado High School Activities Association
which was released in the fall of 1999 indicates students who participate
in some form of interscholastic activities have "significantly higher"
grade-point averages than students who do not. Data obtained from the
spring 1997 study by Dr. Kevin J. McCarthy revealed student participants
in Jefferson County high schools had an overall grade-point average of
3.093 on a 4.0 scale, while the GPA for non-participants was 2.444.
Jefferson County School District, the state's largest school district,
has matched the academic success of its students with success on the
playing field. The 16 district schools have won a combined 39 state
championships in the 1990s in sports, while its music programs
consistently bring home "superior" ratings.


--- In a comprehensive, statewide study of the academic performance of
high school student-athletes in North Carolina over a three-year period,
the North Carolina High School Athletic Association found significant
differences between athletes and non-athletes. Five criteria were used,
including grade-point average, attendance rate, discipline referrals,
dropout rate and graduation rate, for the 1994-95 academic year.

Athletes Non-athletes
Grade-point average 2.86 1.96
Average number of absences per 180-day school year 6.52 days 12.57
days
Discipline referrals 30.51% 40.29%
Dropout rate 0.7% 8.98%
Graduation rate 99.56% 94.66%


--- 1990-91 study in the Randolph (North Carolina) County school system
showed a strong correlation between participation in athletics and
positives such as improved grades and increased attendance rates.
Athletes in grades 9 through 12 in the school system's four high schools
recorded an 86 average, compared to 79 for the general population.
Athletes averaged four absences, while the general population averaged
seven. Eleven percent of the athletes had discipline referrals, compared
to 25 percent of the general population. None of the athletes dropped
out, while 3.7 percent of the general population were dropouts.



-----------------------------------------------

http://www.kon.org/urc/v5/fujita.html

[long quote here....trying to be open on the question. The short version
is that results of studies vary from showing a strong correlation between
athletics and academic performance to showing none at all. Most studies
show some correlation.]

The impact that athletics has on academic performance has been debated
over the years?some say the impact is positive, while others say it is
negative. ?Early analysis of the effect of participation in sports on
academic achievement produced inconsistent evidence? (Broh, 2002, para.
3). Even today, there is inconsistent evidence, but most research tends
to lean toward the idea that participation in athletics does, in fact,
improve academic performance. The result of one particular study
indicated that ?with the exception of a few subgroups and outcomes,
participation in sports is generally unrelated to educational
achievement.? Additional information from this study has ?found that
playing sports in high school has no significant effect on grades or
standardized test scores in the general student population? (Broh, 2002,
para. 5). Although this particular study produced a negative relationship
between sports and academic performance, many demonstrate a positive
relationship. Broh (2002) believes that ?participation in interscholastic
sports promotes students? development and social ties among students,
parents, and schools, and these benefits explain the positive effect of
participation on achievement? (Para. 1). ?Longitudinal studies on school
sports have suggested that such participation raises students? grades and
test scores? (Broh, 2002, para. 2). Stephens and Schaben performed a
study looking at the number of sports each student played and its affect
on academic performance. They noticed that students who participate in at
least one sport each year outperformed those who participated in one or
less, in class rank, overall GPA, and math GPA (Stephens & Schaben, 2002,
para. 6). They also noticed that the students who participated in more
sports for many seasons had a ?higher level of scholarship than the
[students] who had competed in only a few seasons or for only one year?
(Stephens & Schaben, 2002, para. 7). Some research indicates that
physical activity not only improves academic performance, but has an
actual physical benefit for the mind. Shepard (1996) said, ?Regular
physical activity might influence cognitive development by increasing
cerebral blood flow, altering arousal and associate neruohormonal
balance, changing nutritional status, or promoting the growth of
interneuronal connections? (Para. 12).

Compared to other extracurricular activities, however, athletics does not
appear to produce as strong a positive correlation. Darling et al. (2005)
found that students who did not participate in any extracurricular
activities showed the poorest adjustment as far as grades, attitude
toward school, and academic aspirations, while non-sport extracurricular
activities showed the most positive adjustment, with sports related
extracurricular activities in the middle (Para. 40). Guest and Schneider
(2003) reported similar results, saying, ?In all schools, participation
in non-sports extracurricular activities has a stronger association with
being seen as a good student than does participation in sports? (Para.
36).

Also around these parts, when millages fail, the FIRST programs that
get less funding are athletics. That is when all those fees kick in.

*Of course, band students usually have to pay for their own
instruments and sometimes artists have to buy their own supplies as
well.

You live in an unusual area, then. First thing cut here is "elective"
programs other than sports...our music program has been cut to the
bone over the past two years. Our band raises all its own money for
competitions. The only thing the school district pays for is travel
to...you guessed it...football games. Our drama program exists
entirely on its own fundraising, volunteer effort, and ticket sales.
The district pays one English teacher a small stipend to teach two
drama classes a term and to be the play director.

OTOH, we have a full-time football coach (who teaches nothing else)
and just hired a part-time one as well.

I'm willing to bet that in an _average_ high school, there are more kids
participating in the football program in some way than there are in the
drama program.

I have no facts to back that up and I very well could be wrong.

Homes are cheap in Michigan right now. It might be time for a move! We
have a pleasant penninsula [2 actually] that is a winter wonderland!

Sadly, unemployment almost leads the nation.

--
Regards,
Dann

blogging at http://web.newsguy.com/dainbramage/blog.htm

Freedom works; each and every time it is tried.
.

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