Every morning when my alarm goes off, and whenever I’m in the car, I listen to Chicago radio. It’s a lifetime habit I can’t break, even though I left Illinois several years ago.
Chicago radio is overloaded with ads. Some of them are played over and over, so they must be successful. I assume whatever’s being advertised on Chicago radio is something that’s probably popular with a lot of people, since a big city usually has a good cross-section of the population.
Lately I’m hearing a lot of radio ads for a DVD series that teaches children to do math. If you knew nothing about public education today, you might wonder why advertisers think there’s a market for such a thing. But as the public schools continue their downward trajectory, more parents are seeing a need for math help for their kids. A DVD is something they can put in front of their children without getting too involved themselves, or so they hope.
Technology is slowly changing the face of education. Today’s kids have access to so much educational material on DVDs and the Internet, via tablets and laptops. More and more parents are realizing that their children can have a good education at home, without the distractions of the classroom, or the dangers.
Think I’m exaggerating about that last part? I wish I was, but it scares me to think about how easily and quickly I came up with these stories from just this month:
Teacher with child porn on FBI Most-Wanted List
Iowa teacher admits to sex with four of her students.
Utah teacher charged with raping student.
Illinois teacher pleads guilty to sex with student.
California teacher pleas “no contest” to sex with 14-year-old student.
Maryland teacher arrested with child porn.
California special-ed teacher fired for running porn sites on school computer.
Two married female NY teachers investigated for “inappropriate relationships” with student athletes.
Florida teacher’s assistant charged with aggravated child abuse.
NY teacher fired for kissing student, exchanging 1400 texts.
OK, that’s enough or I’ll lose my lunch. I find it especially depressing that most of the perpetrator teachers listed above are women. Ugh. Bottom line: today’s schools are definitely dangerous places for children.