November 19, 2020

Not much of an explanation in "N.Y.C.’s Schools Shutdown, Explained."

That's a very short article in the NYT this morning. Highlights: 
The mayor’s 10 a.m. news conference [yesterday] was repeatedly pushed back and finally began at 3 p.m. At a separate news conference earlier in the afternoon, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo shouted at a reporter who asked whether schools would remain open. 
While he was speaking, The Times reported that schools would close on Thursday.... 
Many parents depend on their children being in school for at least part of the week in order to work. Educators and parents had also criticized the city for not improving remote learning even though about 70 percent of children already take online classes full-time. Some students, including those in homeless shelters, have not received iPads or laptops from the city, and teachers have said that some students struggle to log on.

Where's the explanation of the shutdown? I went to that article because it's newer than this NYT article, which I'd already read and which gives the foundation for the questions I hoped to get answered and absolutely did not: 

Virus transmission in city schools had remained very low since classrooms reopened at the end of September, and the spike in cases does not appear to be caused by the opening of school buildings. 

“Our schools have opened and have been remarkably safe,” the schools chancellor Richard A. Carranza said Wednesday. 

Still, the city is choosing to end in-person learning while the state is allowing indoor dining and gyms to remain open at reduced capacity. Nonessential workers are also continuing to use public transportation to commute to offices. That dynamic has infuriated parents run ragged by fluctuating school schedules and has frustrated public health experts who have been pushing for more in-person instruction.... 

Across much of Western Europe, bars, restaurants and theaters are closed while elementary schools at least have remained open.... 

Mr. de Blasio had put school reopening at the center of his push to revive the city, and he has repeatedly said that remote learning is inferior to classroom instruction.... 

The mayor and the teachers’ union, the United Federation of Teachers, have faced intense criticism as the 3 percent closure threshold drew nearer. Mr. de Blasio has said repeatedly that the union had not pressured him to set the threshold....

The new article — the one promising an explanation — doesn't even mention the teachers union! It looks to me as though that 3% positive testing rate was arbitrary, but the union insisted on it and de Blasio bowed. Where's the science?! At least give me some political science. 

Just 2 days ago, the NYT ran an op-ed by a pediatrics professor — which I blogged here — "Schools Should Be the Last Things We Close, Not the First/Why do we keep asking children to bear the brunt of a lockdown?" The professor, Aaron E. Carroll, said: "Almost everything else should be put on pause first. This is what Europe is doing. No one can explain why, once again, the United States is choosing its own path."

No one can or no one will? I said (in that post): "My hypothesis would be that both Europe and the United States are putting the interests of adults first and the difference is which adults — parents or teachers."

Yesterday's drama in NYC strengthens my hypothesis. And I'm so irritated with the NYT avoidance of the subject as it's proffering "N.Y.C.’s Schools Shutdown, Explained." 

I went looking elsewhere for video of Andrew Cuomo yelling at a reporter. I want to read between the lines. What's his problem — coronavirus science or the political power of the teachers union?

89 comments:

Another old lawyer said...

Who wasn't criticized?

David Begley said...

The party of Science! ignores the science.

The party of the people ignores the people.

The teachers unions want this. That’s the reason, Ann.

Quayle said...

What’s his problem? Excessive and unchecked pride. It’s what’s done us all in, or will. If left unchecked, it will destroy our society because it’s what will prevent people from working together to solve problems. Every group where pride is rampant will break into sub groups, that start to fight each other. Every sub group will break into factions. Every faction will turn into tribes. Unity among prideful people is impossible.

Mark said...

In Wisconsin the Tavern League (and WI right to life) have sued repeatedly about every restriction ... and won.

It would be nice to follow the European model, but our WI courts won't let the Governor do that and the Assembly hasn't met for 8+ months.

David Begley said...

In Trump’s second term, he really should push vouchers. Big city schools have failed everyone but most especially minorities.

BTW, I heard John Sexton speak live last night. He’s the former dean of NYU’s Law School and NYU’s President. He went to Jesuit schools (except Harvard Law) and praised Jesuit education to the skies.

MayBee said...

Cuomo's press conference performance yesterday was AMAZING.

They're all turning to assholes.

Newsome at the French Laundry. Pelosi getting her hair done. And yet we Americans just sit home and watch our small business owners get told they can't open.
Even in Europe, they are protesting. Berlin had the water cannons out yesterday.

tolkein said...

In the UK, at least, the major parties agree that the negative impact on children of school closures is too stark, and the risks to teachers and parents too low, to justify closures. Teachers unions want schools closed, but they've been ignored.

Leland said...

Remember, we are supposed to believe that people voted in mass for this behavior.

Laslo Spatula said...

NYT-reading parents vs NYT-supported school unions.

It's like getting caught between the moon and New York City.

I know it's crazy. But it's true.

I am Laslo.

I Have Misplaced My Pants said...

Begley, we all know how much you love Jesuit education and Creighton but maybe give it a rest. Everyone knows the Jesuits are flaming SJWs who despite their name are pretty meh on the whole Jesus thing, and flaming SJWs in education are a large part of how we got into this mess.

gspencer said...

Q. "Where's the explanation of the shutdown?"

A. "We Democrats will be the ones asking the questions here. Yours is to STFU and do what you're told, chief of which is to continue voting Democrat"

"Yassum, Mastah"

Greg Hlatky said...

You need to continue paying taxes for the education your children aren't getting.

John Borell said...

What we are allowing to be done to our children is shameful, a disgrace we are all going to have to live with.

There is no science supporting closing schools. Yet those in charge of the schools do it anyway. This is happening across the country.

I say we are all going to have to live with this disgrace because we are not rising up against it.

As Glenn Reynolds says, tar and feathers.

But we don't do it. Instead we sit meekly by and let it happen.

gilbar said...

serious question what difference at this point does it make?
it's NOT like New York City schools are TEACHING anything
IF a parent wants their child to Actually LEARN something, they are NOT going to be sending them to New York Public Schools

Just let the kids run wild in the streets; It's what they're going to do for the rest of their lives... Might as well start now

exhelodrvr1 said...

Teachers unions are being good Democrats, and "never letting a crisis go to waste."

daskol said...

It's bah humbug stuff. Even schools that aren't (yet) closing, like most private schools, have plans to go remote only for two weeks after the Christmas break. With no such plans for Thanksgiving, and people intending to gather, this move puts enormous pressure on folks to cancel their Tgiving plans. Now it's "serious" again. Not only did the public schools and any private schools blindly following them close, but the parks dept has pulled all permits for sports fields. So all the kids gearing up for their football playoffs or championship games this weekend are grounded.

DeBlasio and Cuomo are arrogant, power drunk apparatchiks. They are transparently serving their actual constituency (teachers unions, large well-capitalized corporations) while rubbing everyone else's faces in it as they proclaims their own courage and perspicacity, as they demand we be grateful to them for their political sacrifice. They are stomping the life out of NYC, and they resent being asked about their rationale, because who the fuck are we to even ask. Excuse the violent ideation, but we're getting to where tar and feathers, or running them out of town on a rail, may be insufficient remedy.

Phil 314 said...

Tired of New York politicians yet?

Humperdink said...

We saw the product the public school cartels were producing in the early 80's. After the oldest spent one year in kindergarten, he and the subsequent children were educated in a private Christian school at moderate expense (about 1.5 car payments). Best money we ever spent.

daskol said...

"If they're closing the schools, we really shouldn't get together over Thanksgiving (and discuss the stolen election)."

Greg Hlatky said...

Tired of New York politicians yet?

They'll be the national model in Bidenstan

cacimbo said...

I have been fostering a ten year old girl with adhd for 13 months.There are just the two of us in the house.During the first shutdown the lack of socialization with other children resulted in terrible tantrums.Since September she has only been attending school two days a week under the ridiculous blended learning program.Now they are shutting down even those two days of in person instruction.With remote learning she logs on for three-25 minute sessions per day.So a big hour and ten minutes with teachers per day.What a joke.I have heard multiple tales of NYC teachers who are staying in FL,ME,CT.... Why would a teacher want to come to school when they can do 75 minutes a day from their vacation home.

A teacher friend said they hear parents cursing out children and even being physically rough during the meets.The child I am currently fostering was regularly physically beaten by a frustrated single father.It is a blessing she came into foster care before this shutdown began.Without the relief of school - who knows how much worse the situation might have become.

I am furious and frustrated.Tried getting her into catholic school, but her grades were not good enough.Now I am trying to find a local tutor for in person instruction. I could rant much longer, but thanks for an opportunity to vent a bit.

Birkel said...

This is a Republican plan to cause NYC to lose 3-4 House seats in the 2030 Census.

daskol said...

Until this year, I was pretty excited about my 8th grader attending one of the gems of the NYC public high school system next year, as that was part of the system that DeBlasio and Carranza had not, despite their attempts, fucked up yet. Now I'm reminded of Glenn Reynold's refrain, that sending kids to public school is tantamount to child abuse. That seems decreasingly hyperbolic. And like nearly all the measures taken since March, the remaining well-off people in the city will fair well enough. It's incredibly frustrating to watch this massive wealth transfer away from small businesses, from yeoman entrepreneurs, to the capital and debt-enriched balance sheets of well capitalized corporations, who are saving money on rent, and hunkering down to capture the entire captive market of NYC while small businesses close by the hundreds, or thousands, daily. Cuomo and DeBlasio are engineering something like an economic genocide of whole classes of people in this city.

carrie said...

The purpose is to continue to make Trump look bad. The country must continue to suffer from covid chaos, and overkill, until Biden gets sworn in.

daskol said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Humperdink said...

Hilarious to watch Sonny Corleone and Kaiser Wilhelm go at it.

daskol said...

cacimbo, assuming you're in NYC, you might want to look into citysmarts. they do a lot of test prep but also general tutoring and increasingly, they support at home education, and even have some subsidized programs (and their leaders will look for ways to help, if they are able).

tim in vermont said...

COVID is the windstorm and the public schools are the rotten tree. How do you deal with a rotten tree in a windstorm?

David Begley said...

Pants

You’re right. I’ll try to tone it down. My main point is that there is an alternative to public schools and it is better for students and parents.

And I do have some cognitive dissonance about the Jesuits. Yes, many are liberal but I mostly ignore that.

Temujin said...

Grooming the coming Idiocracy. I'm glad I'm the age I am.

Mark said...

Best laugh I have had all week, David.

Trump's second term. LMAO

alanc709 said...

Mark said...
Best laugh I have had all week, David.

Trump's second term. LMAO

Biden's "first term" will make us all weep.

Gusty Winds said...

Was there ever a real explanation for the shut down other that the BS from the teachers unions, "we want to open up, but we want to do it safely."? It's all part of the new normal and the reset Althouse has yet to accept. Still seems perplexed. It's tough when you've been living inside it for so long. Madison was reset to a severe degree decades ago.

But now the vision of Educators controlling the rest is now creeping into reality. But... at least the pensions are being paid.

mockturtle said...

For those of you who still believe the Great Reset is just a conspiracy theory, Justin Trudeau explains here what it's really all about: Pandemic is a Chance for a Reset

Tucker Carlson aired this and blasted him for it.

Unknown said...

At least schools were open in NYC for a little while. Here in Fairfax County VA, they’ve been closed since March, thanks to teachers unions and an all-Democrat school board.

Doug said...

NY voters are getting what they vote for, year after year. Stupidest humans on the planet.

NotWhoIUsedtoBe said...

Kids still get some education. Online school can work pretty well. I'd certainly have preferred it as a child. I've never bought into school as day-care. That's the worst aspect of it. It seems to me that if you are an online teacher you have to be more interesting since you don't have a captive audience.

I don't see how it's good for kids to have their parents or grandparents die. We know kids carry it. Why not reduce the number of vectors? I think any loss of education is offset by the retention of living relatives.

Jersey Fled said...

Hilarious to watch Fredo Corleone and Sgt. Schultz go at it.

Fixed it for you.

Wince said...

He should have tried, "I've got chunks of reporters tougher than you in my stool!"

iowan2 said...

Transparency

President Trump vs Cumo/DeBlasio/Newsom

Seriously, the dnc/propagandmedia created these leftist posers, the children are paying the price and its not the pols fault, its the dnc/propagandamedia that created these idiots and put them in office.

iowan2 said...

Concerning the operation of schools during covid.

What is the goal?

I cant get that answer, so I have no idea if those in charge are stupid, or dishonest. I do already miss President Trumps transparency, and he's not gone.

Dave Begley said...

Pants:

I write about Omaha because that's what I know best. The Omaha Public Schools actually used to be very good; especially Central High School. Warren Buffett and his three kids all went to Central.

Warren's daughter Susie has a Foundation and its number one mission is supporting OPS. She employs more people does then Dad at the Berkshire-Hathaway HQ.

Despite all the money Susie and taxpayers spend, OPS sucks by every metric. The three best Omaha Catholic schools had 2X the number of National Merit Semifinalists than all of OPS. And then OPS cancelled all Fall sports even though all the other Omaha Metro schools played. What OPS does to its kids is nearly criminal. The worst of it is that many parents and the entire OPS Board think they are great.

MayBee said...

cacimbo- bless you

320Busdriver said...

That city is dying........or is it dead already?

Sam L. said...

Ah, NYC! A "hive of villiany and corruption". Thank you, Obi Wan Kenobi.

I'm Not Sure said...

"Where's the explanation of the shutdown?"

Explanation? As the Reason magazine commenters would say, "FYTW".

jaydub said...

Pants, leave Begley alone. The more time he spends on the Jesuits and Creighton, the less time he spends on gratuitously polishing Althouse's apple. Lately, he seems to work one of those two obsessions into most every post, so for feminism's sake let it be the Jesuits.

JML said...

Before the latest lockdown here in NM, I was at a bike shop on a school day getting some work done, and overheard one of the repair technician telling someone that he loved working on bikes so much more than being a middle school teacher. I thought he was a former teacher...turns out he was still ‘teaching’ and working for the school district as a full time teacher. He would take an hour off at a time and teach on-line, then go back to his beloved bike repair. Your tax dollars at work.

Leland said...

The teachers want a week off for Thanksgiving. This is nothing new. Teacher's unions have been pushing for a Fall Break similar to Spring Break for years now. This year, they have a nifty excuse. But what will they do with this break? Are the ski slopes open?

alan markus said...

@ Lynch: I think any loss of education is offset by the retention of living relatives.

I am so ready for the next times we are presented with spending referendums for education, and we are guilted into approving them without question because of the mantra "it's for the kids."

Birkel said...

How about those at most risk make the decision for themselves as to how best they spend their own lives?

John Lynch wants some third party to make that decision for others.

Fuck John Lynch.

Dave Begley said...

jaydub

As to polishing Althouse's apple, you wouldn't be here but for her extraordinary talent and brilliance. Be honest.

Ann is not without fault, but some people here are unfair to her and I don't like it.

Big Mike said...

Educators and parents had also criticized the city for not improving remote learning even though about 70 percent of children already take online classes full-time. Some students, including those in homeless shelters, have not received iPads or laptops from the city, and teachers have said that some students struggle to log on.

@Althouse, you keep struggling to fit the Democrat Party of today with the idealistic party of your youth. Today’s Democrats not only do the kow-tow to the Teachers Union, they absolutely do not give a good God damn about families that do not have the money to spend on laptops and high speed WiFi for their kids. Food on the table or support the kids’ remote “learning”? Do you doubt that there are families faced with this stark choice? The New York Democrats don’t care about them. Trump does. Do you?o

Tim DeRoche said...

Alexander Russo, who covers education journalism for the magazine Phi Delta Kappan, has been on this:
https://twitter.com/alexanderrusso/status/1329212606410858497?s=19

I Have Misplaced My Pants said...

Begley,

I'm just frustrated and disappointed that the Jesuits are a false harbor. I want rigorous, Christ-centered education for my children and they used to offer that but now do not. They have been infected by the woke heresy.

The only option now for the parent who wants education rooted in a Christian worldview and strong logic and critical thinking skills is homeschooling or a Christian classical school and there aren't enough of those. Omaha has Trinity Classical Academy, but it's a hybrid model, and not all parents have the ability to participate in partial homeschooling.

Andrew said...

Watching Cuomo at the press conference yesterday, I had to ask myself, why are people voting for Democrats? The arrogance, insufferability, and hypocrisy are off the charts.

I'm surprised Cuomo didn't just say, "Do you know who I am?"

Achilles said...

Time for public schools to go.

Curious George said...

"John Lynch said...
Kids still get some education. Online school can work pretty well. I'd certainly have preferred it as a child. I've never bought into school as day-care. That's the worst aspect of it. It seems to me that if you are an online teacher you have to be more interesting since you don't have a captive audience.

I don't see how it's good for kids to have their parents or grandparents die. We know kids carry it. Why not reduce the number of vectors? I think any loss of education is offset by the retention of living relatives."

What drivel. And a super high bar "some edducation"

Curious George said...

"I think any loss of education is offset by the retention of living relatives."

Yeah, they can visit them at McDonald's during their break.

I Have Misplaced My Pants said...

And cacimbo - it's good that she has you.

I Have Misplaced My Pants said...

I don't see how it's good for kids to have their parents or grandparents die. We know kids carry it. Why not reduce the number of vectors? I think any loss of education is offset by the retention of living relatives.

This is a weird amplification of the danger.

hombre said...

The Democrats must have discovered another way to indoctrinate children. Embedded messages perhaps?

NorthOfTheOneOhOne said...

mockturtle said...

For those of you who still believe the Great Reset is just a conspiracy theory, Justin Trudeau explains here what it's really all about: Pandemic is a Chance for a Reset

Oh, I think they're going to get a Great Reset, but I don't think it's going to go like they planned.

DavidUW said...

“Because we can and fuck you peasants”. That’s the explanation. Courtesy of the teachers union. Followed with “what are you to do about it? Vote Republican? Don’t make me laugh, serf”

Jupiter said...

"... the spike in cases ...".

He means, "the spike in positive test results".

Jupiter said...

Cacimbo, look up home-school events in your neighborhood, on facebook or wherever (anywhere but Google, you don't want to get on the list). I am sure -- sure -- that there are home-school events at which your child would be welcome, which would give her an opportunity to enjoy the company of other children. They probably have some ostensible educational purpose too, if you're into that. Be warned, a substantial fraction of the kids are supposedly "on the spectrum". They are not usually a problem, but their mothers can be a handful.

hstad said...

We are treading on dangerous ground with these lockdowns. If we continue to listen to the so-called "Experts" we will destroy huge swaths of various industries. Many companies in these industries will disappear forever. Companies who survive will take decades to rebuilt. Millions and millions of jobs will disappear forever. Massive economic and personal damage will take decades to count. More people will die from lock-downs and economic stress vs. doing nothing. We must stop listening to the "Media" hyped pandemic porn.

A recent study, published in 'The Lancet' on strict lockdowns among military recruits could not prevent Covid vs. a no lockdown group who mingled normally.

This entire "pandemic" has been manufactured by the "Media" as a country and the World we are at an inflection point of no return. This will be the greatest 'man made' disaster in history. Why are we believing these "Experts" who have been wrong since the beginning. Yesterday, I put a down payment on a small farm outside of Yakima, WA. I fear for our Country and the World! God Bless All!

Jupiter said...

"We are treading on dangerous ground with these lockdowns."

Yeah, OK. Now go back a few millenia and try, "We are treading on dangerous ground with these "cities". They may be powerful economic engines, but the moral decay and rampant disease they foster will make them sinks of depravity and death, constantly drawing in more victims from the hinterlands to replace those they have ground down and consumed."

Perhaps what we are witnessing is the extinction of an evil that is no longer necessary.

Amadeus 48 said...

NY Dems: Why did we shut down NYC schools?

Because we can.

cacimbo said...

Thanks for the suggestions, I will investigate those options.

tim in vermont said...

Why lockdowns don’t work even if they “work.”

https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/covid-feedback-loop

Charlie said...

Remember when Cuomo was being "urged" to run for President? Good times!

Christy said...

Knoxville is using a hybrid approach with students, or rather parents, choosing either in person or remote learning. Kids have been provided laptops for several years already so that's not an issue. To date, online learning has shown twice the failure rate of in-class learning.

Sister, retired, teaches half days and has one in person and one online class. Her experience is that online students are more likely to tune out. Online students with little English will not say a word, even when asked direct questions. No one shows up at online office hours. In class she can see who's struggling and address their problems. Not possible with remote students. I should note that hers is the 2nd worst school in the county (but a sports powerhouse) with kids in really tough home situations. Your middle class school probably differs.

gilbar said...

okay, so; Teachers no longer babysit kids, and Schools no longer feed them
Learning (if there IS learning) will be done remotely, with no physical presence

Serious Questions?
Next time a School Bond issue comes up; should we vote YES? on more spending on infrastructure?
Next time the teachers ask for for higher wages (and lower student class counts)...
Should we try Hard not to laugh?
Next time the teachers go on strike... Will we even NOTICE???

Similarly... Tell me Again,
why we would pay more for State U online college classes?
than we would for U of Phoenix online college classes?

Biff said...

For as long as I remember, "for the children" has been a euphemism for "for the teachers' unions."

wildswan said...

Cacimbo
Try to identify interests because home schoolers have lots of groups creating society for kids with different interests. Sports and music in particular. And the groups are usually barely large enough to support a team or band so new members are interesting to them. Music teachers and coaches are a center for these groups.

wildswan said...

The risk is that covid might progress to SARS just as the flu risk is a progression to pneumonia. And who is at most risk for this fatal progression? It is not school kids or school teachers or young people at bars and restaurants so that shutting down the schools and restaurants is not needed. Public health orders are predicated on need and so unneeded orders based on hysterical fears are abuse of office and should be challenged. The legislature should meet and specify the guidelines for public health regulations by law and the penalties for publishing unneeded orders or misleading the Governor about risk should be severe because the damage done by these orders is severe. Such laws were not needed before but it should be evident they are needed now. I do not believe this is the last pandemic from China. And Fauci is also subsidizing an African Institute of Virology.

wildswan said...

The risk is that covid might progress to SARS just as the flu risk is a progression to pneumonia. And who is at most risk for this fatal progression? We now know that it is not school kids or school teachers or young people at bars and restaurants so that shutting down the schools and restaurants is not needed. Public health orders are predicated on need and so orders which in our greater knowledge gained over the last months we can now see are unneeded and which are issued despite being unneeded are an abuse of office and should be challenged. The legislature should meet and specify the guidelines for public health regulations by law and the penalties for publishing unneeded orders or misleading the Governor about risk should be severe because the damage done by these orders is severe. Such laws were not needed before but it should be evident they are needed now. I do not believe this is the last pandemic from China. And Fauci is also subsidizing an African Institute of Virology.

Jim at said...

Tired of New York politicians yet?

It's not just New York politicians. Jay Inslee's doing the same thing.
They're all thugs.

n.n said...

the flu risk is a progression to pneumonia. And who is at most risk for this fatal progression?

People who wear petri masks. The lockdown delays and prolongs exposure of the most vulnerable, while increasing collateral damage. This is exactly what happened with polio and other communicable diseases, where people ignored the science and forced intuitive, universal restrictive mandates.

n.n said...

Remember when Cuomo was being "urged" to run for President? Good times!

Planned Parent. Progressive. Forward-looking.

tim in vermont said...

"People who wear petri masks.”

It’s not that hard to clean or discard your mask n.n.

Jim at said...

I think any loss of education is offset by the retention of living relatives.

But it's not just education. It's everything else on top of it. And I mean, everything.

Just when does it stop for the retention of these precious living relatives? When they die of something else?

DavidUW said...

If you’re 80 years old you have a 5-6% chance of death from any cause, including if you get infected with the Rona.
You have a median life expectancy of about 8 years and more than a 60% chance of death in the next 10.

These lockdown assholes are on track to have stolen 10% of your life if you’re 80. Worse than if you took your chances living free and with the rona around.

A guaranteed loss of 10% of your life by stealing your freedoms versus a possibility of death that’s pretty much the same as it ever was.

Big Mike said...

Has anybody considered telling the teachers that unless they’re in their classrooms, teaching students face to face, then this year does not count towards their pension?

rcocean said...

So, are all these New Yorkers Hurt by this action going to vote out Cuomo or De Blasio? No. Its just sheep going baa, baa, baa. Same in Calf. Are they going to vote out Newsome? No. Just sheep making noise.

Quaestor said...

The explanation: Ignorant masses are easier to control, consequently New York's Inner Party is preparing a future society of drones and proles suited to grovel at the feet of a technocratic elite. Emmanuel Goldstein's book within a book is revealed at last.

Bruce Hayden said...

“Kids still get some education. Online school can work pretty well. I'd certainly have preferred it as a child. I've never bought into school as day-care. That's the worst aspect of it. It seems to me that if you are an online teacher you have to be more interesting since you don't have a captive audience.”

I think that I would have done better in school, esp in HS, if I had had the option of remote learning. A friend’s daughter was doing a lot of ski racing her last two years of HS, and was able to do the racing seriously with a combination of community college and in line classes. She was enough of a self starter that she aced everything, and is probably going to graduate from college with an engineering degree a year early. For me, it was boredom. I didn’t participate socially in HS, and found the social scene ridiculous. I was right - at our 20th reunion, all of the really popular kids, the top jocks, the cheer leaders, etc, were already losers. The ones on the road to success were the nerds. The lawyers, dentists, accountants, even the doctors (for Dr K). English and History always seemed to revolve around the female teacher and her circle of acolytes. Everyone else was superfluous. Loved that I scored >100 points higher on my verbal SATs than most of the girls getting the As. Those girls, of course, almost all ended up as teachers, so that they could all be queen bees with their own circles of acolytes. Mostly, it was just frighten boring. I could read the book for class overnight, then have to discuss it, kinda, saying dumb things about it for the next month. Much preferred STEM, because, back then, grading tended to be decently objective. I was proud that I could make National Honor Society, etc w/o ever bringing a book home. I would just do the homework in one class for the next one, listening somewhat to what was going on in the class. This was part of why we sent our kid to a private prep school - where they were taking primarily AP classes their last two years of HS.

But the flip side is maybe a bigger problem. It very much looks like those who struggle, who have behavioral problems, are just dropping out. No one is following them, or pushing them. The teachers apparently love it, because they only have to deal with their good students. And in some places, the word has gone out that they can’t be flunked. That ultimately means social promotion, and an even larger percentage of HS grads who are functionally incapable of doing much beyond selling drugs and having babies in this increasingly technological society.

hstad said...

Delete
Blogger Jupiter said..."...Perhaps what we are witnessing is the extinction of an evil that is no longer necessary..." 11/19/20, 11:28 AM

Not with you on this one? Shutdowns are not the same as 'Cities being a problem'.

Top Canadian pathologist Dr. Roger Hodkinson told Alberta government officials that the current coronavirus crisis is “the greatest hoax ever perpetrated on an unsuspecting public.” He further states - “Masks are utterly useless. There is no evidence base for their effectiveness whatsoever,” he said. Hodkinson remarked that “social distancing is useless because COVID is spread by aerosols which travel 30 meters or so before landing,” as he called for society to be re-opened immediately to prevent the debilitating damage being caused by lockdowns. Hodkinson said that the risk of death in the province of Alberta for people under the age of 65 was “one in three hundred thousand,” and that it was simply “outrageous” to shut down society for what the doctor said “was just another bad flu.”