Another dumb idea for educating our young

 

"Are our kids more stupid today than kids of yesteryear? No, but they are more ignorant. This learning thing has become a real puzzle. The teacher unions have not helped - maybe even accelerated this downward spiral we are on. Losing one day in five of learning mystifies those of us who are trying to solve this vexing problem."

Okay - let's try and put some perspective on this one. The United States spends a total of 3/4 trillion dollars each year on education. For that astonishing amount of money, we are ranked 13th in the world in education. And our numbers are not going in the right direction. We have school districts which are going through massive budget cuts, as despite being smothered in money, that does not seem to help their sophomoric way of doing finances. Minnesota, who also struggles with education, has come up with yet another dumb idea how to fix things.

How about a four-day school week? That would certainly help districts who cannot budget their way out of a paper bag. Could that help and save some money? Maybe. But hold on! Are we going to a four-day work week also? Because if we are not, there is a huge problem waiting for us on the horizon. Like, are the kids going to be left all alone on the days they don't have school? And what will they do on those days? Independent study, or play Mario Bros. on their I Pads? I think we all know the answer to that one. 

Somehow, in the annals of history in this country, we at one time knew how to educate young people. My grandparents, back in the day, received only an 8th grade education. And yet, with only eight years of schooling, they knew stuff. How to do stuff. How to make a living. My parent's generation had mostly a high school education. Some were fortunate to go to college, but most had only a high school diploma. Again, they knew stuff, how to do stuff, and how to make a living. 

In my generation, getting a college degree was important to our parents. Some got worthwhile degrees, and others got "basket weaving" type degrees. Some graduated with some smarts, and others graduated as educated idiots. All of a sudden, our education system got turned upside down. More money, less results. In a world where information became available at the touch of a button, we graduated kids who did not know who we fought to gain our independence. Or who won the Civil War. Or how many branches of government we have. All that, for 3/4 of a trillion dollars a year.

Are our kids more stupid today than kids of yesteryear? No, but they are more ignorant. This learning thing has become a real puzzle. The teacher unions have not helped - maybe even accelerated this downward spiral we are on. Losing one day in five of learning mystifies those of us who are trying to solve this vexing problem.

Dumbing down the education system helps nobody - especially not the kids. Now, forget the four-day school week, and come up with a more cogent idea for success.