Let’s be done with passive victimhood!
The Werkes works overtime to criticize the public schools here in Madison WI. Like many across the nation, they elevate diversity, equity, and inclusion above reading, writing, and that other thing. Especially under state school marm Jill Underly, who is up for defeat in the April 1 election.
Across Wisconsin, only 31% of 4th-graders can read at grade level, according to the National Assessment of Educational Progress. Madison parents are voting with their feet. They made 1,212 applications through the state’s Open Enrollment program to get OUT of Madison public schools while only 337 wanted to get in last school year. School choice vouchers and private school enrollments are up; public school attendance is down. Our racial achievement gap remains the highest in the nation.
Madison schools spend too much for what they achieve. Madison voters last year approved $607 million in additional spending. Can we expect $607 million in improved results?
Notice who we do not blame?
Teachers. We’re convinced that Madison teachers put extra effort so their more disadvantaged students achieve.
Today, the Werkes takes a different tack. Time to hold accountable the students and their families. Which is verboten to those indoctrinated in critical race theory, which trades on victimhood. Play the blame game all you want but that doesn’t change the equation: ultimately, the individual is responsible for his/her own failure. Hard knocks? Life ain’t fair. You’ll just have to work harder. (Just look at the kids in Special Olympics.)
Here’s what we would like Madison schools superintendent Joe Gothard to bark into the PA system at the start of every school day:
There’s learning to be had inside these brick walls, my peeps! Go get some of it! Or you’ll wind up like [name of most recent screw-up sent to juvie detention] — sleeping on a hard cot with one eye open. Today is the day! Stand and deliver!
We are inspired to give voice to these heresies by one Aleysha Ortiz, age 19. Young Aleysha has filed lawsuit against the public schools of Hartford CT on the grounds that, after 12 years of schooling, the poor dear is illiterate! Can no more read or write than Zippy the Pinhead. Alleges negligence on the part of the district. (Read & Weep.)
Blaska’s Bottom Line: Given the state of public education in America, the Hartford school district may well be negligent. Did they have to graduate the girl with honors! Complicating matters, Aleysha was a special needs student. Even so, a decent defense lawyer could have a field day. Did she do her assigned work? How many days were you absent without cause? This case has a whiff of “Do For Me, because I am a victim.”
Where was her inseminated person in all this?
16 responses to “Teach me because I don’t want to learn”
Tammy Baldwin was right – the solution to the schools woes is more single mothers (Eric Hovde is still ignorant).
If memory serves me right. Many years ago MMSD had a committee (many) to look into minority student low grades and graduation rates. One of the members was Anthony Nino Amato who had talked about the home life of minority students and was thoroughly raked over the coals for even bringing that up. If you are not going to look at all aspects of why students fail you will never fix the problem.
Educational Malpractice isn’t a new concept; with a veritable tsunami of potential, it’s surprising that Universities haven’t established separate Law School departments whose specific purpose is to regale One-Ls with its vast opportunity, while instructing them to fly lazy circles around certain…um…demographics who are prone to…er…sub-optimal performance.
“Time to hold accountable the students and their families.”
Try bringing up the responsibility of parent/s, or heck, even their whereabouts @neighborsnextdoor (THEY Report/YOU Decide!) and prepared to be pummeled with a torrent of one (1) of the following two (2):
*All working 2-3-4 jobs to prevent eviction, and/or
*Lift your hood, RAYcist, then you’ll see they’re suffering from Structurally Institutionalized Systemically Intersectional Fragility deliberately installed by a diabolical White Supremacist Patriarchy.
No mean feat when you consider the ideological/racial composition of the MMSD board and the MTI.
The Gotch
Maybe a bit off subject,but I read in the State Journal Tuesday that one reason that they gave for changing the name of Southside Elementary to Lori Mann Carey Elementary was that Southside was” too long a name for young students too remember.
Then why not rename it “School A”?
or, PS7
Not exactly. They discussed changing it to Lori Mann Carey Southside Elementary School and they said that name may be too long for a young kid to remember plus it wasn’t one of the four options the committee recommended.
Only a 80 to 100% turnover on the school board members yield an opportunity to save Madison Public Schools. Or perhaps a wavier for our new superintendent to ignore current board direction. Let’s give Joel an Opportunity to turn the racial achievement gap around.
Who would issue that waiver and what would Gothard do with it?
“Madison teachers put extra effort so their more disadvantaged students achieve.” That’s swell–but I’ll wager that extra effort put towards “disadvantaged” students comes at the expense of average or above-average students (i.e., the majority).
Then again, if current trends continue, every student who’s not an out-and-out genius will find him/herself among the disadvantaged–and therefore eligible for special treatment. The education system in this country, like every other institution, has been thoroughly reordered to align with the latest theraputic trends, which are premised on the notion that every negative human behavior (including assaulting a teacher) can be traced back to some sort of “trauma,” usually in one’s childhood–a reductive and simplistic view of human nature that demonizes the concept of personal responsibility. If Joe Gothard were to make the announcement you recommend to his students, he’d be sacked before the day was over.
Well, IMO, part of the issue, especially in middle and high schools, is the lack of discipline. Students roam the halls, when they should be in class, and staff does nothing. Remember the old “hall pass” that you needed to go to the can during class? “Smoking in the boys room” has gone to different “highs.” Tell your teacher to “get f**ked,” with no consequences? Not back in the day, when Boomer Harris would speak with the offender. I’ll quit now before someone calls me a r@cist, for pointing out the elephant in the room.
Always remember Boomer Harris. Most male teachers I had in middle and high school would be drummed out today.
” ‘Smoking in the boys room’ has gone to different ‘highs.‘ ”
Accompanied by generationally illiterate imbeciles making TikTok videos.
“Always remember Boomer Harris.”
Shout out to Coach Harris from here as well; Boomer (appropriately GREAT nickname!) was The Gotch’s O-line coach @JMM (GO SPARTANS!) in ’71-’72.
Will never forget the sound of his wingtip metal heel plates, created by an unmistakably determined stride, echoing in the hallways. If you were even thinking about f*****g around, you ceased immediately and at once!
The Gotch
“Most male teachers I had in middle and high school would be drummed out today.”
Therein lies a huge part of the problem—public schools have become feminized. Adolescent and teenage boys especially—who can otherwise be savages—need structure, discipline, challenge, consequences, and often tough love. And it often takes masculine qualities to provide those things.
I hope you weren’t attempting to use the phrase “masculine qualities” in a positive sense. If you were, you’re a misogynist, a dues-paying member of the patriarchy, and probably a rapist. From now on, use that phrase in its only acceptable way: with the word “toxic” in front of it.
Yes, been called those things and a few other adjacent ones by feminists over the years, sometimes to my face, for standing up for my gender. It doesn’t matter what men do; most feminists will still:
1. Hate men for being men
2. Perpetuate the lie that masculinity has no redeeming qualities
3. Refuse to acknowledge that femininity has plenty of inherent toxicity
4. Refuse to admit that men are still doing the lion’s share of the heavy lifting in this society, both literally and figuratively
5. Refuse to show any damned gratitude for #4