how is it I've met some of the sharpest (but not educated) people who know HOW to get ahead; whereas some with PHd's and the like can't figure out how to program a DVD?
Ain't it the truth? I know people who fit those descriptions, too.
Yes, it is about a family's priorities -- no matter their income or status.
Absolutely. I can think of so many real-life examples where that theory held true, too.
Also, this talk reminds me of a study by Prof. John Ogbu: Source
From the article, "Rich, Black, and Flunking":
-SNIP-
The black parents wanted an explanation. Doctors, lawyers, judges, and insurance brokers, many had come to the upscale Cleveland suburb of Shaker Heights specifically because of its stellar school district. They expected their children to succeed academically, but most were performing poorly. African-American students were lagging far behind their white classmates in every measure of academic success: grade-point average, standardized test scores, and enrollment in advanced-placement courses. On average, black students earned a 1.9 GPA while their white counterparts held down an average of 3.45. Other indicators were equally dismal. It made no sense.
When these depressing statistics were published in a high school newspaper in mid-1997, black parents were troubled by the news and upset that the newspaper had exposed the problem in such a public way. Seeking guidance, one parent called a prominent authority on minority academic achievement.
UC Berkeley Anthropology Professor John Ogbu had spent decades studying how the members of different ethnic groups perform academically. He'd studied student coping strategies at inner-city schools in Washington, DC. He'd looked at African Americans and Latinos in Oakland and Stockton and examined how they compare to racial and ethnic minorities in India, Israel, Japan, New Zealand, and Britain. His research often focused on why some groups are more successful than others....
The professor and his research assistant moved to Shaker Heights for nine months in mid-1997. They reviewed data and test scores. The team observed 110 different classes, from kindergarten all the way through high school. They conducted exhaustive interviews with school personnel, black parents, and students. Their project yielded an unexpected conclusion: It wasn't socioeconomics, school funding, or racism, that accounted for the students' poor academic performance; it was their own attitudes, and those of their parents.
Ogbu concluded that the average black student in Shaker Heights put little effort into schoolwork and was part of a peer culture that looked down on academic success as "acting white."
-END SNIP-
That "it's-not-cool-to-be-smart" attitude isn't limited to one ethnic/racial group. I subscribed to it myself in high school, and I was a lousy student, as were many other "white" students with the same attitude. But, as you pointed out, I guess that attitude isn't limited to schoolers, either. I haven't met homeschoolers more interested in "being cool" yet, but I have no trouble believing that they're out there, especially with all the insecurities about "lack of socialization." I can imagine some HSers might overcompensate... lol.
Parents send their children to school with, most often, the same mentality. I'm sending my child to you to get educated. I give you money; you educate my child.
The child doesn't get educated, and the parents don't even notice. And if they do notice, they tend to not DEMAND accountability of the school.
Generally, many simply nod their heads over the school's or politician's "abuse excuse" the reason the child didn't get educated was because the school doesn't have enough money to educate the child. The parent says. Oh, okay. Yes, we'll force everyone (via taxes) to ensure MY child, next, election -- gets a better education.
No rational voter would ever simply wait for another election cycle to get their car repaired.
Children are living beings -- they are NOT objects. However, with the advent of "socialist" causes -- many parents, while very much loving of their children -- seem very unaware of a premise they hold that is tripping their child up.
Lessee.. 8:15 to 2:30 each day, 5 days a week tied up in a classroom learning.. what?
Snip from article you posted:
Ogbu concluded that the average black student in Shaker Heights put little effort into schoolwork and was part of a peer culture that looked down on academic success as "acting white.
end snip
Uh-huh. The ole' "Oreo" ad hominem. But really, when you look at the media and liberals: Oreos, according to their quotes, articles, coverage -- only exist in the Republican Party; ergo, the hidden mentality of the "Oreo" monicker: Don't become a Republican.
No big decoder ring needed to parse this one...
Back to the idea of sending kids to school to maybe get an education: Well, if you click on the remote, activate the TV, and the child has seen "Friends" -- they've seen "Friends". The corrollary logic appears: They've been in class 5 days a week for a tons of weeks; they should just naturally be getting an education. Education is run, owned, controlled by Democrats. They care about education.
Another faulty assumption exists about "education". But by golly gee.. just trying walking a died-in-the-wool Dem or Liberal through seeing the disconnect(s) in their assumptions about sending their children to schools; and the paltry education they are receiving. Oh NooOOO! The reason education isn't working, the myth continues, is because some Nasty Republican is hiding in the woodpile somewhere tripping up Dems in their education focus. uh-huh.