Buckle down

  Remember when we were told to "buckle down?" Is that something any of you remember or am I just that damn old? It's the advice I was given while in school when my performance wasn't as expected. It was pointed out that I was performing at a sub-par level. No gold star for me on the wall chart. Yes, there was an actual chart on the wall, your name listed and the results of your exam posted for the class to see. I recall gold, blue and red stars. ABC. Very simple, very basic , easy to understand. No star? You failed the test! 

 That came to mind this morning as I was listening to the news regarding the educational system in Baltimore. I listened as they spewed forth a list of statistics, trials and surveys. I heard about the 479,000 dollar salary the CEO of Baltimore city school earns. I listened as they all seemed baffled as to why the system was failing the students. I thought, wish I was there I would tell them to, buckle down! What they need to do is go back to the basics. If you want those students to "succeed" you have to focus on teaching, not all the extra-curricular stuff. You begin by holding the student accountable for their performance. That is best accomplished by actually giving them an honest grade. No excuses, you either passed or failed. If you do not teach those students the basics they will not succeed, simple as that. The simple truth being, some will pass and others will fail. 

 The biggest issue I see is this tying of funds to the performance of the students. Should be the tied to the performance of the teacher! That's right, and that is also for a simple reason, it is their job. This idea that there should be no standard testing is just ridiculous. Standards are required to measure progress. If you don't progress, you don't advance. I listened to the news as they explained the children can't read on grade level, or perform basic math problems. What has changed since I was in school? Accountability. If I couldn't read, do the math or anything else I wasn't promoted to the next grade. There were no big hearings, committees or interventional groups required. The proof was before me, I failed the test. But when that failure costs the one administering the test, the results may certainly be quite a bit different. It's the same as asking me, should I get a raise? 

 I hear figures of 18,000 dollars a year to educate each child. Where is all that money going? The schools are always complaining about outdated books, classrooms too small, and a lack of supplies. Well the thing is this, the basics haven't changed at all. Yes, history books need to be updated occasionally, once a decade should be just fine. As far as math goes, 1+1 still equals 2 and the function is the same. New math? No, just a different method of explaining the function, one that apparently isn't working nearly as well as when I was in school.

 Reading? Dick and Jane, along with their dog spot taught me how to read. Just a boy and girl playing with the dog, no adult themed stories about "assignments" or "gender identities" in any of that. After learning to read and comprehend the stories I could then think about that stuff. Yes, the purpose of reading was to understand the story, not simply be able to repeat what the words were. Emotions were evoked from understanding the story not because the teacher said this is what I should think or feel. The teachers' job was to teach me to read, not think. 

 I'm quite certain we have plenty of teachers that can do the job and do it well. What those teachers need is to be left to teach. The grades of their students should not be the sole measure of their performance. You can't expect every child to be successful. Yeah, there are some that are just not the crispest crackers in the box. Doesn't mean they can't be successful in life, have value and purpose, it means they aren't scholars. I've personally know a few that I wonder how they manage at all. Those same individuals were excellent at their job. I suspect that they were as aware of that as I was. Conversely I have known more than a few educated damn fools. Not a lick of common sense. 

 Now all of that left me with one thought, "America, we need to buckle down" Get rid of the distractions and focus on the basics. I realize that is upsetting to a whole lot of folks but it is necessary. To be successful you have to know and understand the basics. We could begin with, it takes money to make money. Yes, wealthy people are necessary for the economic growth of a nation. Or maybe we could teach that charity is a gift, not an entitlement. Yeah, you get what you earn for the most part. Or how about this gem, an employer will only pay you what you are worth to the business. Now there's a basic reality many need to learn. What you need to do is "buckle down" and make yourself valuable to your employer, not a liability. Just keep your nose to the grindstone. Back to the basics