You are pretty damn sensible, and funny too. Regarding education, I believe the biggest problem is not the educational system but the poor foundation for learning that children often receive at home. Child development experts have known for years, although it only recently received widespread publicity, that the most important stimulation a child receives occurs in their first two years. The neural network makes many more connections inside the brain if the child is intellectually stimulated at this tender age. This obviously involves extra attention from the parent(s), and many children are not getting enough.
As babies become toddlers, their educational future is also mainly determined by their parents. If they are not read to they generally don't develop an interest in reading on their own. Instead, Nintendo and television occupy their indoor time, and now computers. (I shudder to think that children are learning to read and write from the internet; as you've seen, there's a lot of bad spelling out there.)
Children that read regularly tend to have better writing skills and longer attention spans. They learn more and become better educated, whether or not they go to a high quality school.
I think that people should receive classes on human development in high school, as part of the mandated curriculum, and hopefully before the students have children of their own. Being a good parent does necessarily come naturally, and teaching young people why it's so important might help future generations.
I realize that I'm preaching to the choir; reading about your and Alexa's kids it's clear they have great parents. It bugs me that most Americans blame the "system" when it all starts at home, long before many realize it. Sadly, it's impossible to fully rectify mistakes made in a child's early development.
Standard disclaimer: I have no children and past performance is no guarantee of future results.
P.S. Congratulations on your husband's new contract with AMR. |
