Debbie Schlussel: Declining America: Bribing Kids to Go to School
In Montana, a school district (which includes Dick Cheney's high school alma mater) is giving kids $28,000 Chevy trucks to go to school, AP reports.
Is that what it has come down to--Bribery to get kids to do basic things? Incredible.
If that's the motivation, they'll be at school, but they won't necessarily learn. What's next--Porsches for washing your hands after going to the bathroom?
While the Casper, Wyoming school district has a 29% dropout rate apparently due to the booming gas-and-old industry (kids can make $15-$17 an hour), other school districts around the country are giving vehicles away for attendance, too: Hartford, Connecticut; Pueblo, Colorado; South Lake Tahoe, California; and Wickenburg and Yuma, Arizona.
Shame on them. Material carrots shouldn't be part of the approach to get kids to want to learn. The desire not to be a dummy and the promise of future opportunities should be the motivator.
No wonder we are turning out so many dummies from the American public school system and falling way behind in the sciences and math. The only math these kids seem to be concerned with is their chances of winning a Chevrolet Colorado crew cab in read, with an MP3 player.
Posted by Debbie on December 1, 2006 11:28 AM to Debbie Schlussel