Bad Day for Public School

I used to quip that I could write faster than I could read. And it was almost true.

I've been a fairly good typist ever since I taught myself by attempting to write a mystery novel at age 10 or so. I got to 83 pages of single-spaced text. That's when I went back to read what I had written. Horrified by my pathetic prose, I abandoned the project.

But reading blogs has forced me to learn how to skim. So my reading speed has much improved. I hope the same is true of my writing. That said...

While burning through hundreds of posts in my RSS reader this week, I saw a recurring theme: Major problems within public schools. Things like poor mental math ability, Hollywood in the classroom, and the lack of acceptance of those who are different [NB: that last post has mild profanity]. Stories like these cause me to pause. 'What's changed in the last few years? Was it like that when I was a kid?'

I am not a proponent of a "the world's getting perpetually worse" mentality. I think such a perspective ignores human history. But there are certainly shifts in culture. What is acceptable and proper ebbs and flows. So it is entirely possible that this is a low point--or a shift downward--for our nation's public schools.

If you find your students in similarly less-than-ideal educational environments, perhaps it's time to consider a home education. Yes?

Absolutely. Yes.

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Surrogate Father

P.S. I am going on vacation next week. I won't be back until a few days into December; at which time I will need to skim quickly to try to catch up with the thousands of posts I'll have missed. Have a wonderful time of thanksgiving! And I'll see you next month.