Iowa City West High School has an average ACT score of 26. That's pretty good for an average. Almost every year they have at least one student get a perfect score. You'd think they must be reading the classics with great classroom discussions that teach them how to think independantly and objectively or that their math and science classes are being taught by teachers who know what the scientific method is and how to actually apply it. Instead, my boys are watching movies like "Star Wars" to look at examples of heroes or "The Day After Tomorrow" to discuss the impacts of mankind on the environment. I've expressed my concern to both teachers and administrators who then refer me to the Iowa State School Board approved cirriculum. Movies are actually an approved method of teaching. Now, I don't mind the boys watching an occasional movie or more appropriately, a documentary but it is getting stupid. Instead of reading Shakepeare, they are watching movies of Shakepeare's plays. This has been quietly boiling for a couple of years until just recently when I looked over Dan's shoulder at his homework. He was doing a work sheet for his American Humanities class on the movie "Platoon". I have never watched "Platoon" because it is rated R and would never allow my children to watch it either. I quietly asked Dan where the permission slip was and he informed me that he wasn't given one. In short, the teacher informed me that he sent home a letter at the beginning of the school year with the list of readings and movies he planned on showing and that he expected the students to give that to their parents. I of course never got that letter and was obviously unaware that he was showing R rated movies to his students. He claims that the movie is academically relevant and that there is nothing gratuitious in the movie. We are politely arguing that point back and forth by email at the present time.
It seems to me like our teachers are abdicating their responsibility to teach our youth to Hollywood. Daniel has been very influenced by this class this year and not in a good way. I am disgusted by the overall lack of respect parents get from educators.
It all started with Michelle Lewis from Ohio, and Jason Clark from California. We met on a bus in Chicago in January of 1992. This is a blog that documents our crazy life.
