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I'm not seeing the connection 'tween literacy and maintanance or the purpose of posting an article 2 months after it happened.

This was covered over in DU land. this is how one poster saw it

This is the problem I see. As we start to understand how our brains and bodies are hardwired it becomes harder and harder to claim these are just "choices". We are starting to see biological explanations for homosexuality and addiction. Next we will see them for Pedophilia and serial predation. These are people who have little control over their actions. Because their actions are built into their systems, NOT by choice but by birth. This is what makes it all so sad. Most have very little control over the desires that force them into action. Before someone flames this as a rightwing Santorum rant tying Homosexuality to Pedophilia, it isn't. It is an attempt to understand this in a Biological framework. The same way we understand Mental Illness or learning disabilities or addiction.

No the problem is that people are sick and twisted weirdos that don't see past their own needs and come in line with what is common decency.

The culture of death indeed.

My mother has made it clear to me verbally and in writing, I am never to pull the plug on her ever. She swears she will come back and haunt me every day of my life.

I hope that I will be able to follow her wishes in today's culture of "doing what is good RIGHT now."

So according to the latest information, he DID bring it to school to claim it was cocaine and then to distribute it. The cover story about the science experiment was just that, a story.

Oh I agree whole heartedly about the push away from VoTech classes and that is a crying shame. It's as if the whole country is Lake Wobegone where everyone is above average. There is very good money to be made in jobs that don't require a college degree. HVAC techs, plumbers, electricians can all support families quite well.

I'd love to see a push back to allowing kids to concentrate on a real life skill rather than all college prep classes.

BTW, you do know that the teachers at KIPP have degrees and are also considered "professional teachers." They meet whatever standards are set by their community. It's not as if they pull random strangers off the street and tell them to teach.

So, you think most suburban parents would want their kids to go to a KIPP type school?

One more tidbit about KIPP. The KIPP DC Academy was established in 2001. Clicking on the teacher information buttons gives a short bio about that specific teacher. Not one teacher is mentioned as being there from the beginning. The majority are from 2003 or 2004. The burn rate on teachers must be fierce.

KIPP schools are successful. The teachers are indeed teaching.Of course the kids go to school from 7:45 until 5:00 pm every day, and Saturday school. In addition to the time spent in school they have 2 hours of homework and 30 minutes of reading a day--required. At night, they are expected to call their teachers for homework assistance.

These teachers take them away from their families for the majority of their waking hours. Which in the case of inner city kids may be a very good thing. But this type of school is not reproducible in the suburbs.

http://www.keyacademy.org/key/dayinthelife.asp

The above is a link to " A day in the life of...." to illustrate my point. Connected with this link are also test scores to compare how these kids do stacked up against D.C. Public Schools.

It is obvious that KIPP does a great job , but I would wager very few suburban parents would be interested in this setup.

My black lab/aussie shep loves greenies--one of her favorite treats. But we are careful to give her the right size for her weight. I wonder if that has anything to do with the problems?

How the heck can one have no ID? They knew the rains and floods were coming--it was on the daggone TV. Grab your wallet and run for heaven's sake!

It would be interesting to hear the science teacher's opinion on this. Maybe they were doing a chemistry unit and just the day before the kid asked "What would happen to powdered sugar if......" and she gave him the go-ahead to bring some in. On the other hand, if they are in the middle of a study of outer space and he had never said a word to her about sugar, well, that raises some questions right there.

Again, since the school system is required to be mute, the world may never know.......

Is there a legitimate science experiment for powdered sugar? I teach primarily language arts and history, so this is an honest question, not being cynical.

I attended Bob Jones University. There was no drug use going on anywhere near me.

The child was referred to the police for possesion of an unknown substance. The police charged him -- not the school.

I neither defend or condemn the acts of the school or police. I do think there is more to the story than is being told. Furthermore, it is amazing that people here completely believe every word out of the mother's mouth without question.

"Alleged teacher" Typical. When someone presents with a personal experience that is different from what is expected the next "logical" step is to attack that person and call them a liar.

The hard line truth is this

I attended Christian schools my whole life

I attended a Christian college

I taught in Christian and Catholic schools for a significant part of my teaching time

I have never used drugs or been around anyone who did

At no time in any training at any place have I been shown actual drugs. I've seen pictures and that's it.

Not all of us have the same life experience. Maybe some posters here have handled illigal drugs through out their lives for a variety of reasons. I have not.

Of course, you can now call me a liar, which is your right, but you would be wrong.

Innnnnnnnteresting.

Last month while trolling through DU, I ran across a thread titled "Let's think of a successor to * when we impeach him." After quite a few rantings, I posted that hey dudes---there is a succession written down in the Constitution. We don't get to pick. Then the thread switched to "let's get Cheney" first!

I wonder who is listening to whom there?

Yes, I troll through DU on occasion. Gotta have an idea of what the other side is planning.

Yes, the cops tested the substance and then found out it was not what it was initially claimed to be by the 12 year old boy.

Just like the oregano vs pot scam. I've never seen pot, I have no idea if it looks like oregano or not. I've read that it does, but I don't know by my own experience.

You've got your "they's " mixed up. The school did not know what the substance was. The police tested it. The school did not have the power to arrest or charge the child. The police have that power.

He was not charged for having cocaine. He was charged for claiming to have cocaine and presenting a look-alike substance.

I will agree with Old Student. I would not know the difference between cocaine, powdered sugar, corn starch, or baby powder by looking at the 4 different substances. You tell me that you would know the difference and I can't challenge your belief. I'll take your word for it. But in return you have to take mine that I would not know. I've never handled cocaine or been within 10 feet of it knowingly.

It's also not up to me to make that determination, nor is it the school's responsibility. No school has that type of testing equipment sitting around.

Maybe the best solution would be for the government to stop acting like the father of these kids and require the real dads to man up.

My younger dated a boy this fall from a broken home. Ugly divorce, one of the worst I'd ever heard of. Both parents playing the kids against the other parent, cheating, etc. I gritted my teeth and said nothing, but they didn't last long. He was so insecure that she would dump him for someone else, that eventually, she dumped him. She know understands that he didn't know what a secure relationship looked like and altough she did like him, he wore her down.