The US education system didn't get any thanks at our table this year
Summary: It wasn't so long ago that many students and parents considered themselves lucky to have access to public education in the States. I'm afraid, though, that I'm headed into 2013 utterly discouraged by the system.
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| No One Loves Corporate Ed Reform except Money |
Thanksgiving Day was rather nice in the Dawson household this year. Local mead and cranberry wine flowed freely. I dispensed with cooking this year and saved myself the stress by just reheating an awesome meal from whole foods. My medicine cabinet was stalked with plenty of Zantac. The kids even sat briefly at the table and my 17-year old happily did some craft project involving leaves and glue that his mom dreamed up with his 3-year old sister. Oh yeah, and our area had been spared the worst of Hurricane Sandy, we were safe and warm, and did I mention there was plenty of wine?
The day before, though, was tougher. I spent a couple of hours helping one of my kids (currently a freshman in college) with his algebra homework. I'd love to say that we were working through advanced linear algebra concepts or some challenging combinatorics. Instead, though, this was homework for his remedial algebra class, designed to help students make up the difference between what they learned in high school and what they need for college. His school offers several sections of this course and they are always full.
A bit of conversation with his older brother (now a junior at another college) revealed that the