Rep. Peters Updates Rochester Parents on Education

Congressman Gary Peters shared his views on school legislation and the federal deficit with a small group of parents Friday morning.

Peters, the Democrat from Bloomfield Township, grew up in Rochester. "I'm a product of Rochester Community Schools and proud of that," he said. His father, Herb Peters, was a longtime teacher.

While in the Michigan Senate, Peters was a ranking member of the state Senate Education Committee.

About 25 people — mostly parents — asked Peters questions for about an hour. The questions focused on federal issues related to education — though the meeting came the morning after the Michigan House approved funding cuts for education.

On No Child Left Behind

Mandates from the federal government under the No Child Left Behind Act require schools to keep up with paperwork and measurements, but don't fund those requirements. "This pulls money away from teachers and classes. It's almost creating the problem it was expected to fix," parent Brian Kirksey said.

Peters agreed the federal government needs to streamline and eliminate the paperwork. "I personally don't think the federal government should be involved in education," he said. It's a local issue — or a state issue — but one best driven by parents and the individual schools, he added.

"The federal government can send money to be helpful, but without all of the strings attached," he said. "My view is that unfunded mandates be minimized."

On 'teaching to the test'

Again, related to the No Child Left Behind Act, Peters fielded questions about whether lesson plans that are based on standardized test preparations create children who can pass tests but cannot apply what they learn to real-life situations.

Peters responded that "a vibrant school district is about more than test scores."

Specifically, Peters criticized cuts to art education. "Creative thinking skills are so important; those skills are incredibly important in problem-solving," he said. "You've got a great art program here. Those enrichment programs are not frills — they are an integral part."

He mentioned the relationship between "test" knowledge (such as math) and creative thinking. For example, one of the top jobs right now is that of a video game designer, for which you need good art and math skills,  he said.

On online learning

Audience members asked Peters if there was a push toward more online learning. 

"When we get away from the classroom, you get away from individualized attention," parent Ramona Winarski said. "You take away the things the kids need most: a person standing next to them."

Peters agreed: "I could not have said that better myself," he said.

On bullying prevention programs

Peters said he has seen great success stories from a program called Partners in Prevention in Pontiac, which is funded largely by federal funding.

On bullying in politics

Peters was asked about the importance of lawmakers modeling good behavior and civil conflict resolution.

"It's complicated to bring more civility to Congress," he said. "Ultimately, as informed citizens, we won't stand for that behavior. But yes, our children are very good at watching and picking it all up."

On balancing the federal budget

"You can't deal with a deficit without spending cuts," Peters said. He mentioned finding more revenue sources rather than focusing on spending cuts.

The good news, he said, is that businesses seem to be hiring, which will put more revenue back into the local economies.

"I come home every single weekend and meet primarily with small businesses, and the one question I always ask is whether they are hiring," Peters said. "They are starting to say yes, and that's encouraging for school revenues because they are tied to the economy."