In a recent survey of 57 industrialized nations the United States ranked 29th in science and 35th in math. A few decades ago we were number 1 in both. What happened?

Public schools began experimenting with social engineering. They ceased concentrating on their primary mission and began focusing on being every child's parent. They began providing two and three meals a day, after school child care, sex education, medical and dental care, mental health counseling, grief counseling, and sensitivity training. Mother School essentially replaced parents.

Public schools abandoned phonics for whole language. Now nearly half of high school graduates need college remedial reading to prepare for college work.

They abandoned math theory in favor of new or "in the ballpark" math. Now we have to "import" engineers and computer programmers.

They watered down civics and American history and replaced them with multiculturalism and revisionist history.

God has been, or is being, removed from public schools and has been replaced by the morality of secular humanism.

Competition is denounced and opposed. The "we are for the children" crowd despise charter schools, parochial schools, and home schooling. They vehemently oppose any voucher system which would give parents the choice of schools.

But you say, "My child's school has high academic scores."? Check the Internet.

The state testing scores are a farce. Students can pass a reading, math, or science test while getting 50 percent of the answers wrong. Zanesville schools are below average even here, and are at the bottom of the extra lenient new Value Added category.

"Our schools don't bash religion or harbor biases." Wake up! Liberal universities produce liberal teachers who join liberal unions. The NEA directs national policy and speaks for the majority of teachers. Check their Web site. They endorse abortion on demand, support the homosexual agenda, and endorse UN treaties which supercede American law. They oppose vouchers, real testing, and competition.

Our children are suffering, changes are necessary, and only involved citizens can turn things around.

David Zaverl
Zanesville