Category Archives: Education (K-12)

Courtesy of Fairfax County Public Schools

by James C. Sherlock

Hard to sweep this under the rug.

Pat Herrity of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors yesterday released on his Twitter account this picture of a teaching aid used in a Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) classroom.

There is no indication yet of the grades in which “privilege Bingo” is being offered, or of the rules of the “game.” We know for sure which kids are the losers. All of them.

The kids who check the most boxes are singled out as privileged, thus not responsible for their success.  Perhaps they are oppressors.  We’ll need to find out exactly what was said.

The kids who check the fewest boxes are humiliated in front of their peers.  Whatever may be the words coming out of the teacher’s mouth, those kids are learning false lessons:

• that the world won’t work for them;
• that they have little chance to succeed no matter how hard they try;
• that personal agency is a myth; and
• that school is a waste of time.

The common threads in this “game” for all children, that privilege at birth is destiny and that personal responsibility and effort play only minor roles in success, are as devastatingly false and hurtful as anything one can tell a kid.

Virginians demand a fair investigation. If a violation of a state-granted license or licenses is found, we will demand accountability.

I note that division superintendents are licensed by the Board of Education https://www.baconsrebellion… should that prove the source of the problem in this case.  Continue reading →

School children wearing masks outside at recess. Courtesy of Albemarle County Public Schools

by James C. Sherlock

Virtually all parents pay close attention to their children’s report cards.

That is, however, a fruitless exercise if the grades do not reflect actual learning.

I spoke the other day to a senior school official who related to me his own story. One of his children, a second grader, brought home straight A’s in math.

Yet this parent, with a Ph.D. in Education, and his wife, herself a second grade teacher, knew for a fact that the child did not yet understand math at her second grade level.

Another friend with credentials similar to those parents reminded me today that teachers test what they teach. In her experience, the teacher likely did not mislead on purpose. An alternate explanation is that the teacher was not testing to the state standard, but rather to her own.

Those two parents had the education and professional experience to recognize and address the issue with their child. Many parents do not.

It is time to find out how extensive this problem is in Virginia. Continue reading →