I recently read an article in the paper about some high schools in California (and elsewhere around the United States) who are cutting their Honors programs in English and Social Studies in order to promote greater equity. There weren’t enough black or brown kids taking the classes, so those in charge assumed that simply having… Continue reading Cutting Honors Programs Will Not Lead to Greater Equity
“Culture wars” has become one of the latest buzzwords in the last few years. It first came to my attention in 2020 when the “wars” were mainly centered around the Covid pandemic and all the disagreements about masks and shut-downs. However, according to this article on Politico (“How the ‘Culture War’ Could Break Democracy”), the… Continue reading Culture Wars are Truth Wars
One doesn’t have to exert much effort to look around our country and notice it’s laden with conflict and turmoil. Political battles are simmering every which way. Violence and drug abuse are on the rise. Students in classrooms cause more disruptions by the day. And everyone’s arguing about what to do about it all. At… Continue reading Our Problem with Authority
The past few months have been fraught with political ads, campaign slogans, and headlines promising progress from one side and destruction from the other. Frankly, the rhetoric can feel overwhelming and draining at times. It can be tempting to want to push it aside and say, “I’ll just focus on other things.” That would be… Continue reading Election Season + Proverbs
Do you ever get extremely annoyed by the extremes to which extremists overuse the word “extreme”? In our current cultural rhetoric, it seems like any time something happens that the other side doesn’t like, it’s blamed on “the extreme right” or “the extreme left.” Do the extreme right and extreme left exist? Yes, unfortunately they… Continue reading If Everything is Extreme, Then Nothing is Extreme
Last year, I set some specific goals when it came to reading. I challenged myself, not just to read more than I had in recent years, but also to read a variety of books to educate myself on different topics. I wanted to continue that challenge of reading various types of books this year, but… Continue reading The Books of 2022, Part I
The country feels like it’s at war with itself again. The last two years have seen no shortage of issues that cause people to be angry, and they feel the need to shout about it—either online or in a public square waving a sign. While my own heart rejoiced and sighed with relief to hear… Continue reading Now Is the Time
Recently there’s been a push by conservatives to ban certain children’s/young adult books from libraries and school libraries. And of course, the left is pushing right back, saying kids and teens need access to these books. If you haven’t heard of some of these books, you can read about the top ten most challenged books… Continue reading It Does Matter What the Children are Reading
Have you heard the phrases, “You just need to cut toxic people out of your life” or “You need to get rid of that kind of negativity and do what brings you peace”? I’ve seen these kinds of things on social media, and I’ve also been one of those people who’s been deleted (most likely… Continue reading Don’t Delete Those You Disagree With
I meant to post the next third of the books I read this year in September, but who was I kidding—I should have known that with school starting, I wouldn’t have had time for a book post then. So now that the year is ending, I figured it’s time to tell you about the rest… Continue reading 2021 Reading Challenge, Part 2
The Vintage Girl 