A healthy public school system is like a healthy human body. Think about it: The brain is the head honcho. It makes all the decisions about which organ, tissue or cell is going to do what, when and how. Our education department does the same. State Ed. is the designated leader. They create the ideas and plans and then make sure that these plans are implemented for the benefit of the student body.
Now let's look at the spinal cord. The human spinal cord is actually an extension of the brain. This long stalk of nerve tissue is protected by the vertebrae and travels down the length of the spine. The cord is carrying vital information for the health of the body. I would compare the spinal cord to administration within a public school district. Think about it: School administrators receive their orders from the head honcho, the state education department. The school superintendents, principals, vice principals and heads of curriculum relay this vital information to the staff.
Coming right off the spinal cord are the spinal nerves. These guys transmit the information, created by the brain and relayed by the spinal cord, to the entire body. These vitally important nerves carry this information to the heart, liver, lungs, spleen and every other tissue in the body. And if all these cells receive and do as they are told, the result is one very healthy human body. The public school teachers are like the spinal nerves. Plans made by our leaders are expected to be implemented by the teachers. We are to teach the young people of America what they need to know so that they will grow up to be self-sufficient, well-educated and able to take care of themselves in this difficult world. Our young people, of course, are represented by the organs, tissues and cells of the human body.
Okay, so let's get into it because there are plenty of sick and ailing people out there, so what is the problem with health and for that matter, public education? What kind of interference are we dealing with?
In the human body the brain is totally encased within the skull. The brain is well-protected and its scope of control is unquestioned. I suppose the same thing can be said for the Department of Education. The spinal cord too is protected to a lesser degree, yet still pretty safely encased within the vertebrae and the discs. The nerves? Well, these guys are out there traveling throughout the entire body and their protection is often severely limited.
Is anybody beginning to get my analogy?
Here's an example: Inside the discs is this little ball of tissue called the nucleus. This nucleus is composed of the same tissue as the spinal cord. Sometimes this little guy sneaks its way out from inside the disc and settles on the sciatic nerve. The result is lots of pain!
Unfortunately, leadership in public education is guilty of doing the same thing. Instead of just staying in their area of expertise, (which I suppose is, well; I don't really know what State Ed. is good at!), they have wandered out like the nucleus in a sciatic attack and their painful interference has settled upon the teachers of America. The teachers, just like the nerves, are attempting to inform the students of vital information. When the kids receive, understand and implement this teaching into their lives, the result is a person whose life is now on the right track. It can be compared to a physically healthy body. But what if the human brain began to hand out instructions that were far too difficult for the heart, liver, lungs and spleen to handle? That is called stress and stress kills! So if the State Ed. Department does the same thing, expecting teachers to teach information which is too difficult for their students, wouldn't the undue stress kill their young spirits and shatter their self-confidence? What about all these tests the kids are being asked to take and expected to pass? An unhealthy body awaits the Grimm Reaper. A bone out of place in the human spine creates interference to health. The stress of all these state exams creates interference to the emotional, psychological and developmental well-being of our youth. Is all this testing good for our young people?
I don't think so.