Discussion about this post

User's avatar
Michelle's avatar

You make me want to teach in a homeschool situation. I taught in a vocational setting as a guest speaker on a regular basis, and absolutely adored doing it. The students were hungry to learn, which made the whole situation a beautifully symbiotic relationship.

Public schools are horrible; my brother took a middle school job and quit halfway through the year, as his students were more interested in watching their crotches (looking at their phones) and wiping boogers on their desks (yes, literally!) for him to clean up in between school periods.

I’ve already told my daughter-in-law if they want to homeschool my grandsons, I will absolutely be a willing, energetic, and grateful participant!

Expand full comment
Joseph L. Wiess's avatar

I live in Texas, and this state has this stupid State wide STAR test that doesn't mean anything. The teachers hate it, the students hate it, the school districts hate it, but the people who sell standardized tests love it.

I graduated in 1987, and to graduate, I had to prove mastery of content over Mathematics, Science, History, Government, History, Music, Art, and Drama. That meant that we read a chapter every two days, for nine months, and we even had to read extra to make sure we finished the books. We had two types of tests, a fill in the blank/multiple choice test, and a practicle exam of content mastery. That meant that we had to know how to find the answer and show the teacher how we found the answer. if we used a book, we had to show chapter and paragraph.

Cut to 2018. I asked my niece and nephew if they knew what happened in 1776, 1941, 1986, and 1989, and they couldn't tell me. (for those curious, 1776 Declaration of Independence, 1941 WWII, 1986 Challenger explosion, 1989 Fall of the Berlin Wall.) When I asked them what they were studying in school, I got, "I Dunno, we were studying for the stupid STAR Test."

Without content mastery, you get stupid people who will vote for idiots.

Cut 10 2023, My niece is a senior in high school who will graduate with an Associates in Science degree before she graduates with a high school diploma, because she finally found something that kept her interested.

Expand full comment
102 more comments...

No posts