In a message dated 10/27/2003 5:51:18 PM Eastern Standard Time, robertmacgrogan@xxxxxxxxx writes: > >ok..sorry...I"ll stop now...but if I could home school I would at this > point in life! I'm > >beginning to really hate public school for all its worth:( > > I know we're getting a bit off topic here, but I have to say this. I think > the fact that you are > beginning to hate public schools is actually the primary goal of the people > who have implemented > these kind of testing programs. They have a fairly creepy, not-so-secret > agend of undermining the > public school system, in my opinion. > > As a graduate of the Atlanta Public School system let me say that I considered my high school to be a numbing and opressive den of conformity and mediocrity. I learned in spite of my educational environment, not because of it and I never felt seriously challenged until I got to college. If conversations I've had with teenagers in the Atlanta and Dekalb systems are anything by which to go, then things have only gotten worse. I believe in the spirit and principle of public education, but it is woefully and painfully obvious that the folks running the show have no clue whatsoever. I absolutely relate to the recent story of the girl who was almost expelled from her school over a fictional story in her private journal. When I was in high school I was involved in an incident where I was reading a book during a particularly "Triumph Of The Will" esque pep rally for our so called football team and a teacher told me to stop reading and participate in the pep rally. I ignored this sage wisdom from my wonderful academic mentor and I ended up in the principal's office and was almost suspended because the teacher ludicrously claimed I had used some sort of racial slur. Marginal prog content: The only "uniform" I wore in high school was a rock band t-shirt (Led Zep, Floyd, Beatles or Yes usually), jeans with holes in the knees and a pair of Converse All Stars. Somehow, despite my lack of khaki pants and a polo shirt that matched my classmates, I miraculously managed to graduate from both high school and college. CH