Brent Simmons writes about high school:
I envy the people who had a nice time at school. For me it was a struggle against stupid, unfeeling power the entire time. I truly hated it. When I wasn’t in trouble, when I was actually sitting in class, I was just watching the minute hand on the clock, begging it to speed up, minute by minute. By my senior year I was the person in the school who skipped entire days the most. I stayed up late and slept way in lots of mornings.
Eventually I got suspended for smoking a cigarette without having filled out the paperwork.
Well. This is just to say that I preferred being at home, where I was reading and writing and writing computer programs. Like now.
There are young people who desperately need school for very practical reasons: food, warmth, sanctuary.
There are young people who thrive when they’re in a classroom learning from teachers and fellow students
And there are young people who don’t need school at all, who find it a toxic, frustrating, counterproductive activity.
As we’re building a system for COVID-learning, why not see if we can find a way to liberate these students from the tyranny of needing to buy what we’re selling.
