Dumb and Dumber (Nos. 20 & 21)
Watching the Education Apocalypse in Slow Motion
***This coming Tuesday, December 28, I will publish the next essay in my series on education and rights. Tuesday’s essay may very well be the most controversial of the entire series. In the essay, I will attempt to address the following question: What does it mean for a parent to say, “This child is mine” or “this child belongs to me”? You won’t want to miss it!
DUMB AND DUMBER (No. 20)
K-12 EDITION
THIS IS GOING TO GET UGLY—FAST. There is a solution to the problem: #JustWalkAway: “Why the Culture Wars in Schools Are Worse Than Ever Before.”
YOU ARE BEING NAÏVE IF YOU THINK THIS BATTLE IS ACTUALLY ABOUT EDUCATION—IT’S ABOUT POWER: “Does school choice need bipartisan support? An empirical analysis of the legislative record.”
THOUGHTS ON HOW TO TEACH ABOUT SLAVERY: “Teaching about Slavery.”
PRETTY SURE THE HEADLINE SAYS IT ALL: “Public Schools Are Broken - This Student Got a 0.13 GPA yet Graduated Near the Top Half of His Class.”
YES, AND WITH SOME REGULARITY:
NEVER FORGET: YOU SHOULD WATCH THIS VIDEO OF MELISSA HARRIS-PERRY SEVERAL TIMES A YEAR AS A REMINDER OF WHAT THESE PEOPLE WANT:
THE LOUDOUN COUNTY (VA) CLOWN SHOW CONTINUES. #JustWalkAway: “Virginia's Loudoun County Board of Supervisors votes to launch study considering reparations.”
MY FRIENDS AT THE FOUNDATION FOR INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS IN EDUCATION (FIRE) DO GREAT WORK: “The Exploitation of Young Minds: How indoctrination shortchanges K-12 students.”
HOMESCHOOL EDITION
NOT A FAD: “Homeschooling Is on the Rise. What Should That Teach Education Leaders About Families’ Preferences?”
Over the past 18 months, the rate of families moving their children to a new school increased by approximately 50 percent; hundreds of thousands of children who should have enrolled in school in fall 2020 did not; . . . .
While traditional public schools and private schools lost enrollment from 2019-20 to 2020-21, there were gains in public charter schools, microschools, learning pods and the biggest enrollment winner: homeschooling. Data suggest that approximately 1.2 million families switched to homeschooling last academic year, bringing the total number of homeschooled students to 3.1 million. According to the Census Bureau, Black and Hispanic families now have the highest estimated rates of homeschooling, at 16% and 12%, respectively.
HIGHER ED EDITION
DOES YOUR COLLEGE SUPPORT FREE SPEECH OR CENSORSHIP? Find out here: “2021 College Free Speech Rankings.”
DOES YOUR COLLEGE SUPPORT VIOLENCE TO CANCEL SPEAKERS? “Stunning number of college students OK with violence to cancel speakers.”
GULAG U: Coming to a university near you. “EXCLUSIVE: 'Action could be taken' against students using wrong pronouns at PPU.”
On September 13, the Office of Equity and Inclusion notified the student body of Point Park University (PPU) that "action could be taken" against individuals who do not use their classmates' preferred pronouns.
DO YOU REALLY WANT TO LIVE IN THIS WORLD? Screw it: “You may kiss the bride,” “You may kiss the bride,” “You may kiss the bride.” There, that feels better. Report me if you must. “FIU tells students to avoid saying 'husband,' 'wife,' or ‘you may kiss the bride’.”
The Office of Social Justice & Inclusion at Florida International University has released an “Inclusive Language Guide” on its website that urges the university community to cease using “non-inclusive” language such as “waiter /waitress” and “steward / stewardess.” . . .
In order to “avoid negating people’s existence and relationships,” FIU advises against “using heteronormative and binary language.”
Instead of saying “Husband / Wife,” the guide suggests “Partner / Spouse” and “You may kiss each other” for “You may kiss the bride.”
ADMIT IT: YOU SAW THE HEADLINE AND WERE WILLING TO BELIEVE IT TRUE: “Medical Schools Update Hippocratic Oath To Exclude The Unvaccinated.”
YOU STILL HAVE TIME—LITERALLY—TO TREAT YOURSELF TO A SUBSCRIPTION, OR, BETTER YET, GIVE A GIFT SUBSCRIPTION TO A FRIEND OR LOVED ONE BEFORE CHRISTMAS!!!!!