Do Public Schools, Umm, Suck?
Recently, my friend and IDEA colleague John Dubie, a high school senior, posted a personal, autobiographical blog entitled "Big Picture Saved My Life." John meant that statement literally. It's his story to tell--and I urge you to read it--but I was stunned by the aftermath of the piece, which was picked up, reprinted and dissected in a number of other blogs. I was especially surprised by those commentaries bearing titles indicating that John's life was saved by leaving traditional public school.
The irony? Dubie spent much of the blog describing the first eight years of his education in a Catholic school, where he was generally seen as a disruptive loser by the faculty. And-- the Big Picture Learning program he credits with making all the difference is housed in a traditional public school, in Burlington, Vermont, and very much supported by the principal there.
Because I'm the person who suggested John tell his story in public, this re-interpretation of his autobiography
The irony? Dubie spent much of the blog describing the first eight years of his education in a Catholic school, where he was generally seen as a disruptive loser by the faculty. And-- the Big Picture Learning program he credits with making all the difference is housed in a traditional public school, in Burlington, Vermont, and very much supported by the principal there.
Because I'm the person who suggested John tell his story in public, this re-interpretation of his autobiography