psci_kw on mon 11 aug 03
To be fair, it is NOT always the teacher's fault.
We visit a particular client once a week. This past week, her son was home
from college.
Brought six of his friends with him, after spending 8 weeks in Europe.
To his credit, he did work long enough to save his own money for the trip.
In his 5th year, going for his Masters in Engineering @ Univ. of Miami...
the bridge and building kind of engineering.
To our dismay, he also brought his 8 weeks of dirty laundry (gods!),
and so did his travelling companions.
While we were there, the kitchen sink clogged. No big deal,
turn on the garbage disposal, voila, clean and clear. Never having
to use it before, I couldn't find the switch (it was under the sink,
I had tried all the wall switches, but I digress.) Here is the actual
conversation, expletives deleted:
"Brandon! Where is the switch for the garbage disposal?"
"I dunno, dude."
"What do you mean, 'you don't know'??! How (blankin) long have you lived
here?!"
"Ummm, 21 years?"
"So where is the switch?"
"(Blankin) told you, I dunno!"
"So what do you do when the sink clogs like it is now?"
"Wait for one of my (blankin) folks to get home."
This is a graduate of a university, with a degree in Engineering, going for
his masters!
He maintains a 3.9 GPA, and is on the Dean's list.
These are the children who are going to be running things when we all
retire.
They will be our political leaders, the people working on keeping the lights
and water going,
our auto mechanics and computer repair people.
Gods Help us, every one!
Screw higher education, start teaching COMMON SENSE.
Wayne in KW
edited for space
If this was a hundred years ago, or even eighty years ago,
> I'd go and see their parents and work out something as for
> those five different boys...so they could spend time with me
> if they wanted. And I can tell you with a conviction borne
> of deep intuition, that, in a year, they'd have more
> vocabulary, more arithmetic, more knowledge, more self
> respect, better Reading Comprehension, more Reading, more
> practical skills of all kinds, more powers of observation,
> more calm, more pride, more interest in life than 99 out of
> hundred hi-school graduates.
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