Just back from a five-day trip to Nevada. Lots of great stuff going on that I hope will one day lead to a genuine education revolution. If only half of what I have baking materializes, it will represent a Great Leap Forward in higher education.
Fyi: I have several more extended business trips coming up in the next month, which may temporarily delay or pause delivery of The Redneck Intellectual. I’m preparing a long-form essay for next week, but at this point I’m not 100% sure that it will be finished in time for my regular weekly delivery. Please be patient. If there is a wait, I promise, it will be worth it!
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DUMB AND DUMBER (NO. 79)
K-12 EDITION
NOTHING GOOD. Another great book from the always great Heather Mac Donald: WHAT HAPPENS WHEN SCHOOLS ABANDON MERIT
IT WAS A TOTAL DISASTER. Never—ever—try to teach kids how to read (or any other subject for that matter) wearing a mask: New Report Sheds Further Light On Devastating Consequences Of COVID-19 Pandemic On Students
OTHER THAN SEX ED AND HOW TO BECOME LGBTQ+ OR “TRANS,” CAN YOU NAME ONE ACADEMIC SUBJECT IN WHICH AMERICAN CHILDREN ARE EXCELLING? Students Lack of Basic Knowledge of US History and Civics Remains a National Embarrassment
WHAT’S THE DEAL WITH THE HUNDREDS OF FEMALE TEACHERS WHO HAVE BEEN ARRESTED OVER THE LAST TWO DECADES FOR SEXUALLY ABUSING MALE AND FEMALE STUDENTS? California school district to pay $2.25 million to sex abuse victim of teacher who gave birth to student’s baby.
GOVERNMENT SCHOOLS = GOVERNMENT IDEOLOGY. It’s that simple: 'Not only wrong but illegal': Many major school districts have bias in hiring
YOU’RE LIVING IN A FANTASY WORLD IF YOU THINK THE GOVERNMENT CAN’T CONTROL WHAT CHILDREN READ OR DON’T READ IN THE GOVERNMENT’S SCHOOLS. This meets the technical definition of propaganda: Canada’s bans on children’s classics reveals the authoritarianism behind woke censorship.
FACT #1: IT’S EVERYWHERE. Fact # 2: You can’t do anything about it. Fact #3: If you don’t want your children exposed to critical race theory you must #JustWalkAway and either find a private/charter school that explicitly doesn’t teach CRT or you must homeschool. It’s that simple: If critical race theory can creep into the classrooms of Missouri, it’s likely in yours. “The untold, ironic truth is that CRT is rooted in work by dead white European guys. White male German Marxists devised critical theory. . . . Sadly, these toxic Marxist beliefs were repackaged by Black Lives Matter, which rejects the ‘Western-prescribed nuclear family.’”
THIS IS A VERY BAD IDEA AND SHOULD BE OPPOSED. It will enshrine education as a fundamental right and it will be a dose of steroids to the government school system: “Proposed California Ballot Measure Would Give Parents ‘Legal Standing’ to Sue for Better Schools as Right-to-Education Efforts Spread.”
OUCH! Entirely appropriate, though: Cartoon depicting Dem governor taking kids away from parents evokes strong reaction
“REMOTE” LEARNING WAS A DISASTER FOR AMERICA’S KIDS, AND SO WAS TEACHING KIDS TO READ WITH MASKS ON. This story is from a couple of years ago, but we should keep it in mind as the lockdown people are feeling their oats again: “Remote Learning Lowered Test Scores in Every State; Minority Students Hit the Worst.”
HOMESCHOOLING EDITION
JOIN THE PARENT-DIRECTED EDUCATION MOVEMENT BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE: “Homeschooling Advocacy Group Reports Significant Increase in Parents Pulling Children out of School.”
HIGHER ED EDITION
THERE IS A VERY REAL SENSE IN WHICH THIS IS TRUE AT LEAST SOCIOLOGICALLY, BUT TO SPREAD THE NEUROSES TO PEOPLE OF COLOR IS JUST MORE COLONIALISM: Vanderbilt professor: Climate change stories ‘cater to the white consciousness.’
THE SERVICE ACADEMIES IN PARTICULAR AND THE MILITARY IN GENERAL IS NOW ONE BIG EXPERIMENT IN SOCIAL ENGINEERING: Students sue West Point over race-based admissions
HIGHER EDUCATION HAS BECOME SOMETHING OF A RACKET MEANT TO SERVE THE RULING CLASS. Ryan Stowers is helping us to think out way out of the Education Matrix. “How Post-Secondary Education Is Squandering Human Potential.”
FROM THE ARCHIVES: THOUGHTS ON AMERICAN HISTORY AND THANKSGIVING, WHICH IS FAST APPROACHING:
This is a sensible approach to studying history: “Trouble in the Time of Thanksgiving: How Our Fraught History Can Still Be the Source of Unity.”
Virtue Signalling as a way of life: “No, Thanksgiving Isn’t About ‘Genocide And Violence’.”
History is a complex thing if you’re actually concerned with the truth and actually being honest about it: Whose Land Did Native Americans Steal Before Europeans Stole It From Them?”
PROFESSIONAL SCHOOL EDITION
IDEAS HAVE CONSEQUENCES. Here’s how it works: Cal Berkeley Law EXPOSED: Class Credit to Aid the Revolution.
DUMB AND DUMBER (NO. 80)
K-12 EDITION
Dr. Orwell, please call your office. Do you see where this is going? Schools purging all books from before 2008 to guarantee 'inclusivity'
THIS IS A NATIONAL DISGRACE: ‘Educational Homicide’ Zero Students Proficient In Math At 40% Of Baltimore High Schools
OH, OK: Top Biden official rips parents 'acting like they know what's right for kids'
Related: the “coming” fascism: Education Secretary’s Comments About Parents Are Extremely Concerning.
ANOTHER WIN FOR THE GOOD GUYS: Dem Governor Grudgingly Allows School Choice Budget To Go Into Effect
KEEP FILING LAWSUITS: THESE ARE WINNABLE BATTLES: Parents File Lawsuit After School Board Shoots Down Red State’s Model Transgender Policies
LET THAT SINK IN FOR A MINUTE: San Francisco Public School Has 11 Students, Spends $75,000 On Each
REDUCED GOVERNMENT CONTROL IS STILL TOO MUCH. How ‘bout no government control? In the same way you don’t want even a bit of government control over grocery stores, why would you want any government control over education? “Superior Education with Reduced Government Control.”
SURPRISE, SURPRISE: “In-school study suggests children multitasking on different media harmful to mental health.”
FROM THE ARCHIVES: CRITICAL RACE THEORY IS DRIVING OUT GOOD TEACHERS IN ADDITION TO PARENTS AND STUDENTS. “Why I’m Leaving My California Teachers’ Union.”
FROM THE ARCHIVES: WHAT A DISGRACE! Apparently, you’re only a “good victim” if you’ve been raped by a white, Christian, conservative: “Canadian school district cancels speech by ISIS rape survivor, Nobel winner due to 'Islamophobia' fears.”
HIGHER ED EDITION
SOMETIMES YOU JUST HAVE TO LAUGH AT THE EMBARRASSINGLY STUDIP STUFF: Bryn Mawr College rolls out 59-point plan to combat ‘privilege, oppression perpetuated at the college.’
GRIFTER-IN-CHIEF IS IN A HEAP LOAD OF TROUBLE: Race Hustler Ibram X. Kendi’s Woke Center Lays Off Most Staff.
Have a great week!