Is there any other institution besides our public education system where the path of pursuing the end result has been turned inside out and upside down because failure to obtain Happiness is viewed as if one's civil rights has been violated?
Perhaps one answer may be the housing industry, where the "American Dream" of owning a house became the "American Right Without Qualification". And we now see where that is getting us.
Maybe the NFL should start giving points to teams for just showing up. Or perhaps the mechanic that fixes your brakes can get certified just by bringing in shop towels for the instructor. The lawn maintenance people only have to do half of your lawn because they show up every week for two months.
It seems that only in our education system, "rewards" are turned into "punishments". If everyone doesn't get a blue ribbon, then we either cut the program or change the rules so that everyone earns one.
Who wants to bet that in a few years, when everyone has a loophole to exempt final exams, the public school system will have to declare bankruptcy on final exam exemptions so they can renegoitate the contract?
Hillsborough schools rethink exam exemptions for good attendance - St. Petersburg Times:
"A decade ago, Hillsborough turned to exam exemptions to combat a dismal high school attendance rate, one of the worst in the state. School officials say the incentive works."
Looks like exam exemptions were done to make the HCPS look better. It wasn't about the kids.
In the above article, it looks like Mr. Otero sees the realistic picture:
"It's not a punishment for being sick, but a reward for being in school," he said. "I think that's what's gotten lost."
In the mean time, maybe we can work on making Prom night flexible so that anyone who is sick that day can still have a chance to go.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment