Public shooling: Then... and now.

[xbolt]

I just found this. Discuss?

Then And Now

Scenario: Jack pulls into school parking lot with rifle in gun rack.

1973 - Vice Principal comes over, takes a look at Jack's rifle, goes to his car and gets his to show Jack.

2006 - School goes into lockdown, FBI called, Jack hauled off to jail and never sees his truck or gun again. Counselors called in for traumatized students and teachers.

++++++++++++++++++++++

Scenario: Johnny and Mark get into a fist fight after school.

1973 - Crowd gathers. Mark wins. Johnny and Mark shake hands and end up best friends. Nobody goes to jail, nobody arrested, nobody expelled.

2006 - Police called, SWAT team arrives, arrests Johnny and Mark. Charge them with assault, both expelled even though Johnny started it.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Scenario: Jeffrey won't be still in class, disrupts other students.

1973 - Jeffrey sent to office and given a good paddling by Principal. Sits still in class.

2006 - Jeffrey given huge doses of Ritalin. Becomes a zombie. School gets extra money from state because Jeffrey has a disability.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Scenario: Billy breaks a window in his father's car and his Dad gives him a whipping.

1973 - Billy is more careful next time, grows up normal, goes to college, and becomes a successful businessman.

2006 - Billy's Dad is arrested for child abuse. Billy removed to foster care and joins a gang. Billy's sister is told by state psychologist that she remembers being abused herself and their Dad goes to prison. Billy's mom has affair with psychologist.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Scenario: Mark gets a headache and takes some headache medicine to school.

1973 - Mark shares headache medicine with Principal out on the smoking dock.

2006 - Police called, Mark expelled from school for drug violations. Car searched for drugs and weapons.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++

Scenario: Mary turns up pregnant.

1973 - 5 High School Boys leave town. Mary does her senior year at a special school for expectant mothers.

2006 - Middle School Counselor calls Planned Parenthood, who notifies the ACLU. Mary is driven to the next state over and gets an abortion without her parent's consent or knowledge. Mary given condoms and told to be more careful next time.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Scenario: Pedro fails high school English.

1973: Pedro goes to summer school, passes English, goes to college.

2006: Pedro's cause is taken up by state democratic party. Newspaper articles appear nationally explaining that teaching English as a requirement for graduation is racist. ACLU files class action lawsuit against state school system and Pedro's English teacher. English banned from core curriculum. Pedro given diploma anyway but ends up mowing lawns for a living because he can't speak English.

+++++++++++++++++++++

Scenario: Johnny takes apart leftover firecrackers from the 4th of July, puts them in a model airplane paint bottle, blows up a red ant bed.

1973 - Ants die.

2006 - BATF, Homeland Security, FBI called. Johnny charged with domestic terrorism, FBI investigates parents, siblings removed from home, computers confiscated, Johnny's Dad goes on a terror watch list and is never allowed to fly again.

+++++++++++++++++++++

Scenario: Johnny falls while running during recess and scrapes his knee. He is found crying by his teacher, Mary. Mary, hugs him to comfort him.

1973 - In a short time Johnny feels better and goes on playing.

2006 - Mary is accused of being a sexual predator and loses her job. She faces 3 years in State Prison.
Man, am I glad I'm homeschooled.

[rustyslacker]

My dad makes similar comparisons all the time. Times change.

[Pieter Enis]

Homeschooled as in you learn all the stuff we learn about at school at home?
I'd like to know if you're very social. Just some theory I'm working on.
I also read this some while ago, it's fun the way all things end up going to court nowadays. People don't seem to talk anymore and that's a real shame.

[xbolt]

I'd like to know if you're very social. Just some theory I'm working on.
Outside my neighborhood, not really. But my brother, and most of my homeschooling friends, are very social.

[FATAL]

People don't seem to talk anymore and that's a real shame.
I get annoyed if random people come blabbering to me. That is, unless they actually have something to say or ask.

[Nomad]

Haha. Half of those have nothing to do with school at all. Either way, they're pretty ridiculous. The part about the mother sleeping with the psychologist made me laugh--like no one ever fucked around in the '70s.

[Raptor Jesus]

I miss the good ol' days :(

[Pieter Enis]

I get annoyed if random people come blabbering to me. That is, unless they actually have something to say or ask.
Which, more often than not, is set at boolean parameter FALSE.

Outside my neighborhood, not really. But my brother, and most of my homeschooling friends, are very social.
Okay, thanks. I think it's safe to say that, in my opinion, school is better because, apparently, you get your social interaction that way and meet your 'to be' friends. School just provides much more possible interaction than homeschooling. But it could be I'm looking at some older version of the latter and it's become more of a 'small community' thing.

[xbolt]

Well, in my neighborhood, we have a homeschool group, where all the homeschoolers get together and do stuff. Me and some others are even making a movie together. (See website below)

Another good thing about homeschooling, is that you're usually getting a better education. On average, homeschooled kids score better on standardized tests (SAT, etc.) than public schooled kids.

(The only interaction I ever hear about in public schools is the bullies picking on the other kids. Now I know there is friendship to be found in public schools also, but that's all I ever hear about)

[Tchakkazulu]

1973 - Ants die.

Brilliant :P

[Pieter Enis]

Oh, xbolt, if that's all you hear about you should move here :p

Things over here are actually pretty nice and the only 2 fights I ever got in weren't really much. I wouldn't let the other guy live anymore if I ever got into a fight in the future, in fear he'll call his 'friends' and act all tough and try to beat me up with 6 to 1.

Public schooling is quite good around here in Belgium though.
And you meet lots of people, make new friends, lose old friends. Just about the same thing you have going on at your community, except for the fact that I wouldn't believe you guys hating one another. I'm pretty sure you all learned to live with eachother because you live so close by.
Two different worlds almost. But aren't you a tad scared of having to go to College?

[Raptor Jesus]

(The only interaction I ever hear about in public schools is the bullies picking on the other kids. Now I know there is friendship to be found in public schools also, but that's all I ever hear about)
Of course that's all you're going to hear about. Who wants to talk about how everyone is happy and friends with everyone? School is good to help you be social. That's about it. You can learn better in a more private setting. The kids who are smarter tend to not want to stand out as much and try to get lower to the average along with everyone else. The kids who are struggling keep trying to catch up but can never can and end up staying behind. I wish I was home schooled :(.

[Erpster]

Great point.There are sometimes more laws than true justice in the USA. But darnit, theres is just no other place I'd rather live.

[Nomad]

Canada looks nice to me.

[Pieter Enis]

Come to Belgium, ye n°1 country!
Personally, I'm bored with school. Always the same "Learn this and we'll ask you about it later"-trick they pull just to force you into learning stuff that has been written down.
Sure, it works faster, but I'd rather work a bit slower and be sure any calculations I make are actually correct than work a bit faster and later find a tower collapsing because I forgot to compare friction (or whatever)

I don't like school, nothing they give interests me but Physics. And that's beginning to bore me too. I'd rather be out there, experimenting, testing weird theories and probably risking my life sometimes (fat chance *owell*). I want to discover things instead of writing what has been discovered already down about 20 times to memorise it.

[xbolt]

I wish I was home schooled :(.
Why don't you tell your parents that? They might listen.

I can't very well move to Belgium. :p
I am a bit nervous about going to college, but not much.
You'd be hard pressed to get us hating each other, or even mad for very long. (We do get mad at on another occasionally, but usually only for less than a minute :D)

[+Acyclitor+]

exaggerated but funny. nice find.

but i have to say i enjoyed high-school. wish i could do it all over again, in fact. sure more than a few aspects of the school itself were ridiculous when they weren't outright pointless - but i miss the people.

[Pieter Enis]

Just as I thought, going to College will force you to meet people that don't live in your neighbourhood. But normally things will go swell. You'll probably be lone for the first few months, but if you don't try and squeeze inside groups of people and if the people you're going to eventually talk with are smart, they'll accept the fact you comment on one of their conversations and you feel the need to give your idea on the matter since you know much more about it, so it seems.
Most people here don't really care if I do anyways :p
Other than that, they'll eventually have to talk to you, if only by pure possibility. Chances are pretty slim you're never going to block their way or have cookies with you while one of them is hungry.

Ahh, the joy of getting to know new people.

Also, being mad at one another, yet not for long, is normal in any relationship, twit :p

I do think, personally, I'd only let my kids be homeschooled if they'd be able to outsmart me or get the same grades I did in my last year which was way below 60%, even though I got 70% the previous 5 years without doing anything close to what the others were doing. I was bored, a lot. Even slept in class most of the time. Thinking of skipping classes again and learn by myself since I'm sleeping in classes again.