Saturday, November 20, 2004

I love stories like this VIII

Some are furious. Lots more think it's a good idea. Poplar Bluff, MO, High School now requires all students to wear IDs in the halls for security reasons. This story makes me squirm but I'm not sure why. Maybe it's because of my general distaste for institutional public schooling. This high school has 1300 students and the town has just 17,000 people. One of the fathers pulled his two girls out because of the IDs. But so many think it's a good idea. All I know is that there's a weird dynamic of sheep-like behavior combined with raging hormones, poor manners, stultifying politically-correct regimentation, and monumental boredom in schools today. Our own high school in Neenah, WI, has 2400 kids in a town of a little over 25,000. Counting the teachers and administrative staff, that's 10% of the population in one building. Admitedly it's a large building: 3/10 of a mile long...I'm not kidding, it's three city blocks long. I know that if I were in high school today I would be driven stark raving bonkers. My ideal solution -- if we're going to insist on dumping so much money into government-funded public schooling -- is to break up that monster school into a couple dozen "theme" schools or "magnet" schools.

But IDs? I suppose it gets the kids used to wearing them in the modern corporation. Lots more security in those places these days, too.

No comments: