Recently, my son revealed the difficulty in observing his ninth birthday. Usually joyous occasions, this past birthday was mired in nervousness over the perpetual, coordinated assaults on American ideals of democracy. Just as he was finishing online class, government representatives over 200 miles away openly opined on election malfeasance on the US Senate and House floors to the delight of former President Trump’s glee. A few minutes later, the news reports would show the waves of insurrectionists cruise into this usually impenetrable building like knives through unrefrigerated butter. His stubborn parents shook off the nonsense to center him, even as, in the back of our minds, we worried whether the insurrection at the Capitol was the first of a continuous set of actions between that moment and the inauguration of President Biden.
He’s sitting there, smile in tow, brimming at another year around the sun even as he observes the world we’ve brought him into. What, to this nine-year-old, is a learning loss?
He’s learned a lot this year. He learned how to create his own school schedule, how to advocate for himself and his learning, how to flip between several different computer programs, how to use Zoom and Google Meet depending on the Department of Education’s policies, and how to work independently while his parents navigated their own set of works. He learned how to put on his own mask, wash his hands for 20 seconds, and stay physically distant from strangers who he senses do otherwise. He’s got a larger vocabulary and can read our expressions well. He’s got a way with puns and jokes beyond what I had at his age. His CONTINUE READING: Why I'm Opting My Son Out Of Standardized Testing (And You Can, Too) | The Jose Vilson
