LIFELONG LEARNING: AN OVERVIEW

In this period of economic crisis Americans can and must look to the public school, as they have always done, for a way out of poverty and joblessness. Investment in education bears a fruitful return:

• Educated citizens make a greater financial contribution to the public economy. They earn more; they pay more taxes.

• Educated citizens consume fewer public services such as welfare, Medicaid, unemployment insurance.

• Educated citizens make a greater contribution to our quality of life and to our country's well-being.

Yet, instead of spending on education, instead of making a sound investment in the future, governments at every level are cutting back school budgets. The inability of the schools to maintain quality programs results in immeasurable harm to our young people--and, in turn, weakens the fiber of our society.

Truancy is increasing.

Dropouts are increasing.

School violence and delinquency are increasing.

In addition, the general economic recession and the schools' unmet needs create further problems:

• Increasing numbers of young men and women enter the job market without required skills, and join the ranks of the unemployed.

• Growing unemployment increases the numbers of children who come from disadvantaged homes.

• The special needs of disadvantaged youngsters cannot be met by schools whose programs are increasingly cut back.

Thus the vicious cycle works itself out. Further, fiscal "austerity" actually saves no money. In fact, it costs more, for if government does not invest in jobs and education, it must spend much more--on welfare, unemployment insurance, prisons. For every one million people out of work the federal government loses $16 billion in revenue. There are further revenue losses to state and local governments.

The nation must change--now¾its course toward the neglect of human needs, toward increasing unemployment and poverty. AFT proposes, as one essential step toward bringing our economy back to health¾a major investment in education from infancy through adulthood-Lifelong Learning.

Right now:

• Six million children are in need of early childhood education;

• There are approximately 16 million working mothers, many of whom would need early childhood education and/or day care services for their children;

• Eight million unemployed adults need skills, retraining, and countless more need and want education for a better, more rewarding life;

• Thousands of school age children are failing because classes are too large and teachers can't provide individualized instruction¾yet there are twice as many candidates for teaching than there are open positions;

• Thousands of high school graduates are deprived of higher education because they can't afford it, and because there aren't enough seats to go around.

We propose to meet these needs by a program of:

• Universal early childhood education and child care, within the public schools¾to meet the needs of children in their early years and enable their parents to work.

• Teacher internships¾on the job training to improve the quality of teacher effectiveness, educational programming, and research on the teaching-learning process.

• A second chance for adult citizens¾education instead of unemployment; learning instead of loneliness and isolation.

In addition, we support increased federal assistance to:

• Education of the handicapped. One out of ten school-age children¾seven million of them nationwide¾are handicapped. They must be given a place in the public schools. Many states have begun to provide aid along these lines, but not all districts provide anywhere near adequate programs. More will need to be done¾with federal assistance.

• Bilingual education. Children who cannot speak English must be provided with English language instruction and bilingual education in the public schools. Bilingual education is non-existent in many places where it is needed. Even those programs which do exist need constant vigilance and improvement in order to serve those children who need them. More will need to be done¾with federal assistance.

• Alternative education. Many students cannot succeed in the normal school environment. Alternative programs have been designed which make it possible for potential dropouts or non-learners to achieve. But an investment in their potential and in their futures must be made by our federal government.

The American Federation of Teachers resolves to work with parents and others in the school community, and with the rest of the organized labor movement, in a sustained effort to bring pressure to bear on Congress and the White House for legislation and funding which will enable us to accomplish these vital goals.