We have been discussing the decline of public education as more families are seeking alternatives in home schooling and voucher programs. Public school boards and the teachers unions are killing public education by lowering standards while pursuing social and political agendas. Those issues have come to the forefront of a “Woke Kindergarten” program in the San Francisco area. Glassbrook Elementary in Hayward, California, spent $250,000 in federal funds, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. After two years with “Woke Kindergarten,” students’ scores declined but a quarter of million dollars went to this controversial group.
“Woke Kindergarten” is headed by Akiea ‘Ki’ Gross who markets herself as “an abolitionist early educator, cultural organizer and creator currently innovating ways to resist, heal, liberate and create with their pedagogy, Woke Kindergarten.”
Gross has long been an advocate for extreme views. She has declared that “I believe the United States has no right to exist. I believe every settler colony who has committed genocide against native peoples, against Indigenous people, has no right to exist. Y’all the demons. Y’all are the villains. We’ve been trying to end y’all. Get free of y’all.”
She has also declared that “When I think about a world free of state violence… I think about a world free of the U.S. empire. I think about a world free of Israel.”
She has even advocated the elimination of schools: “I think about land back to Indigenous peoples globally. I think about the fact that we would not have to participate in these systems, because none of these systems would exist. That means kids wouldn’t have to go to school because the world would ultimately be their classroom,”
So the California teachers and administrators selected this group to teach in schools that were already failing their students by not teaching basic subjects like math and English. According to the Chronicle, less than 12% of the students can read at their grade level and under 4% are proficient in math. It fell even further after giving them the indoctrination material with Woke Kindergarten.
Educators like Glassbrook Elementary teacher Tiger Craven-Neeley raised concerns over the material but they were ignored.
Hayward Unified School District Superintendent Jason Reimann actually defended the contract and insisted that it was successful because attendance has gone up almost 20%.
So it seems that kids are attending more classes and learning less.
This is why states are moving toward offering alternatives to parents. Faced with school boards and teacher unions resisting parental objections to school policies over curriculum and social issues, states are on the brink of a transformative change. For years, boards and teacher unions have treated parents as unwelcome interlopers in their children’s education.
That view was captured in the comment of Iowa school board member Rachel Wall, who said: “The purpose of a public ed is to not teach kids what the parents want. It is to teach them what society needs them to know. The client is not the parent, but the community.”
State Rep. Lee Snodgrass (D-Wis.) tweeted: “If parents want to ‘have a say’ in their child’s education, they should home school or pay for private school tuition out of their family budget.”
Many are now agreeing with figures like Snodgrass and taking their kids out of failing public schools and seeking more classic educations for their children. What is remarkable is that years of failing public schools, declining scores, and flight of families makes no difference for boards or unions. They are still spending public funds on programs like Woke Kindergarten. It is still career enhancing for these administrators and teachers to support social and political agendas even as their schools fail.
The result is another lost generation of students who are being processed out of public education without basic skills. Of course, there is apparently a fortune to be made if they want to replicate the curriculum of the Woke Kindergarten.
I will try one more time to get this to post. Notice how Miss Gross is making excuses for poor performance of blacks in general – “Y’all the demons. Y’all are the villains. We’ve been trying to end y’all. Get free of y’all.”
My first thought, then hop on a plane and go to Africa! Be a Shining Beacon of Hope there. By people like her never will because the “feel guilty and give us money” grift won’t work there. Also, as Eric Hoffer noted, in 1959,
““The crucial question is whether the [African American] will ever give up his alibi of discrimination. You do not give up the imperishable advantage of an alibi for the short-lived exhilaration of achievement. There is trouble ahead. For the less justified the [African American’s] alibi, the more passionately will he cling to it, and the louder will he voice his grievances.”
OK, I figured out the problem. Word Press does not like the word “knee grow”. Which is the word Eric Hoffer used. That is why it blocked my earlier comment. Anyway, the thing I like best about the quote is the prediction over 60 years ago, that the less reason to blame racism, the more they are going to blame racism. That was a brilliant insight, I think. That is why we get The 1619 Project, and slavery, and the whole indigenous peoples blah blah blah.
Witness in Akiea ‘Ki’ Gross, the living example of the danger of a poor education. With such a poor education, the only relevant history is that which they know from their own limited experience and it results in the type of behavior you would expect from your pet hamster; statements and actions without any appropriate human historical context. It is the type of limited experience that fascists/communist and any autocrat wishes to capitalize upon. Is that what you want for your kids and our country?
Akiea ‘Ki’ Gross may be a self declared “abolitionist early educator, cultural organizer and creator currently innovating ways to resist, heal, liberate and create with their pedagogy, Woke Kindergarten.” who believes that “every settler colony who has committed genocide against native peoples, against Indigenous people, has no right to exist. Y’all the demons. Y’all are the villains. We’ve been trying to end y’all. Get free of y’all.” And thus thinks that “the United States has no right to exist.” But saying thus, she only reveals her own fundamental lack of knowledge. As in, for example, the Songhai Empire’s acts against “native peoples” and associated slavery.
And thank you State Rep. Lee Snodgrass (D-Wis.)!! It is not every day that an elected politician openly states they are the equivalent of a fool as he “tweeted: “If parents want to ‘have a say’ in their child’s education, they should home school or pay for private school tuition out of their family budget.”
California is the hemorrhoid in the rectum of the USA…..the west coast states.
Two additional points to add.
First, our government/union schools operate as a cartel and substitute far left policies to cover the demonstrable fact that they are failing their primary duty to prepare students to have an opportunity a productive life. Case in point, the majority of California high school graduates are functionally illiterate.
Second, teacher union, education bureaucrats and democrat politicians have joined together to protect their failing enterprise by fighting any option that would allow parents to pull their children out of these failing indoctrination mills.
The only answer, literally the only answer, is universal school choice where all education funding goes to parents allowing them to select where and how to have their children educated.
The only answer, literally the only answer, is universal school choice where all education funding goes to parents allowing them to select where and how to have their children educated.
Amen brother! There was a time where it made sense for the state to establish a standardized public education system. That was of course before progressives decided on reengineering our culture through that system. The existing public education system should have to compete for the privilege of teaching our children. The mantra should be “My Children, My Choice.”
$250,000 of Taxpayer money for In-your-face Communist indoctrination American five-year-olds. California parents need a Glenn Youngkin moment……
@skyraider
Honestly, as far as that goes, the only solution is for CA to finally fall into the ocean. There a great many elite enclaves there, in fact, it’s most of the state, and they simply don’t care. The truly über wealthy are in fact NOT leaving the state. Why would they? Things are great for *them* there. It is classic aristocracy, and the state is big enough (and it is massive) they feel like their own country; it is incredibly easy to be insulated from anything much at all when you combine massive wealth with massive land mass. Their children just grew up thinking this way.
That these people would like to create two more states is ridiculous; classism is a real thing, and it’s something we are going to have to address if we do not want to end up being a caste society, but wokeness has blurred the real issues beyond recognition due to youth indoctrination. The people that founded this nonsense school are rich and bereft of actual challenges in their lives, and I guarantee you they don’t do charity or service work for its own sake in places that are ugly to them, where people might actually need a leg up. It’s a symptom of a problem alright, but the average American needs to decide that they are not Beyonce because they have 1,000 followers on Instagram and a part of this ‘club’. They aren’t. You aren’t, if you fit this description and think you have 1,000 ‘friends’ or ‘admirers’. There is plenty of guilt to go around.
What today’s kids really need is work ethic, problem solving and empathy education. Not talking about child labor abuses but maybe give kids college credits for a summer job or part-time job.
Ironically, many rural and farm kids get a real life education in physics, science, finance and work ethic that many city and suburban kids never receive.
Even if your kid pursues a white collar career, they still need to understand how to hire and evaluate contractors, etc. does any kid today really understand a small business’ gross revenue versus net income?
For example: a big rig truck driver (or contractor) may gross $150,000 revenue per year but only make $20,000 in net income. Is that contractor rich or poor? Many of today’s kids have no clue how the real world works.
The blue-collar workers built the cars we drive in. They built the universities that the college professors sit in. They built the airplane that the elite fly around in. On many levels blue collar education is better than most education kids are receiving today.
These kids are the next generation of doctors, lawyers, airline pilots, military leaders, CEOs, Congressman, lawmakers and entrepreneurs but have no education in real life.
Why not give college credits for summer jobs, part-time jobs and more apprenticeship programs like some European nations have?
I am going to partially dissent. Under Fitzgerald’s criteria, Ms. Gross may have a first class mind. She can simultaneously believe that the United States has no right to exist and accept $250,000.00 in federal funding. Brava.
Come on everyone, call it what it truly is, Rachel Wall is showing us in simple words that the public education system has the mindset of communists. This is pure communist indoctrination of our youth and parents are forced to pay for it with mandatory taxation whether they agree with the indoctrination or not.
Steve,
Absolutely!
Single and unmarried taxpayers (without children) pay a higher tax rate for education than married couples with kids.
If married couples with kids weren’t subsidized by single unmarried taxpayers, most of us couldn’t afford to educate our children.
Nationwide, the average public education cost (per student) is somewhere between $5000 to $10,000 per year. A married couple with 4 kids would pay $20,000 to $40,000 per year just for education not including other taxes.
Do agree with you about the extreme topics some districts are teaching kids these days. U.S. Supreme Court rulings are a good guide. The very conservative high court has ruled that LGBTQ-Americans have equal rights to the rest of us, so that is not a WOKE topic for any school district (whatever WOKE means).
Factual, but meaningless.
The People set the structure up. Singles are free to change the funding, or eliminate public education all together
If I didn’t have to pay taxes for the things I don’t use, I’d be very very happy.
Really, it’s institutionalized child abuse being perpetrated by clinical narcissists. It’s about them, not ‘helping’ the kids. Nothing good comes from such terror at the prospect of a world one can’t control. These people are not well, they need help, and you need to keep your kids as far away from them as possible. No one appointed them the gatekeepers or stewards of what society ‘requires’.
JUDGE SMAILS WAS RIGHT:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=eiRGRvE_Wqg&pp=ygUcSnVkZ2Ugc21hbGxzIHRoZSB3b3JsZCBuZWVkcw%3D%3D
This nation and most of what had been the nations of “Western Civilization and culture have been infested with a foreign ethos, progressive ideologies and socialist recycled claptrap and until we purge ourselves of this infestation we will never have a peaceful existence until they are totally removed or we have totally succumbed because, – just like the islamist jihadis – there is no compromise with them – they want total world domination or they will die trying. When will the average adult look into the eyes of these ranting wokesters/econuts/alternative gender types and not see the same fanaticism as you saw in the eyes of those 19 jihadis who crashed those planes into our nation?
She has declared that “I believe the United States has no right to exist. I believe every settler colony who has committed genocide against native peoples, against Indigenous people, has no right to exist.
How does she explain the march of homo sapiens across the globe, save for one group colonizing another?
Iowan2,
The question I have is, is she not the product of colony expansion? If she is not an Indigenous person, she is here, then does she have the right to exist?
Follow Florida’s example free choice schools for everyone funds transferred from state schools.
Sean, Iowa has started the stepped process of all the Tax dollars for education, following the Students.
Public education has the mass to smother all private education. But the powers in Education insist on going to war with their customers. But, the Customers have laid down their arms. Surrendered the fight, and relocated to private education. The elites in Academia are still attacking failing to notice the highest performing students are gone. All that is left is the parents too worn down to care.
The good news is that these school boards and teachers unions are putting themselves out of business. Eventually enough voters will eliminate these school boards as superfluous and will get on to educating their children in a coherent manner. Similar to what higher education in colleges and universities are doing to themselves.
Of note, the state of Massachusetts just reclassified state jobs in such a manner that less then 10% of state jobs now require a college degree. Jobs are now to be allocated and filled with skills testing. This is an executive order by the Governor, reportedly to improve diversity. One wonders what the result will be. Will this all just become a game to discriminate against certain majority or minority groups or will there be solid criteria for the skills assessments so they can be quantified and compared. It could make college degrees less needed but might be just a dog whistle to let people be hired on subjective rather than objective criteria. Times will tell.
AI bots do not have college degrees…
We need teachers’ unions for those who cannot teach and need a job.
That is it, really. Public education is largely a public works project imagined by evil people willing to sacrifice your kids’ potentials so an ‘average’ person can get healthcare and pay into social security.
The real blow-up happened when they started moving those idiots, er average people, into administration. Then the death knell was, of course, the obamma administration’s arne duncan bending over for soros and his disparate impact bullcrap. Reminds me, whatever happened to martin o’malley? Does he earn a living or does he live-off his father-in-law’s pet project, daughter-judge?
Public education is a sh!tshow and has been for decades. Tragic.
By the way, I saw a clip of these little children marching around their little classroom with signs and chanting (words they didn’t even understand) “no Donald Trump,
A previous post by Turley today mentioned an actor that accurately recounted history, that the German Govt first got the people to hate Jews, then it was possible to execute the mass genocide, with the approval of the people. This is one of the lefts agenda items. Isolate and attack your adversaries. Kind of like the lawfare being employed against President Trump.
Our host continues to document what you support when voting for ANY Democrat.
The nation is accelerating in self segregation between the educated (Red States) and the uneducated (Blue States)
@9:08 is me. Forgot to log in
I think there is a word press glitch on this one. Either that, or the author of The True Believer is not welcome.
Iowan2,
That is what I have been calling for for some time now. Two parallel societies that shall never meet.
One will produce educated students that can read, write, do math, understand history correctly in context, know what real science is and go on to be productive members of society.
The other will barely be able it at all, read, write, do math, understand history only through a woke lens, same goes for science and be a useless eater with the emotional maturity of a six year old. And be seriously conflicted about their sex or gender. Likely requiring serious mental health and Rx drugs.
“Our host continues to document what you support when voting for ANY Democrat.”
You’re right. I would much rather have a convicted sexual offender as president. Someone that spends upwards of $50,000,000 per year on lawyers defending his many actions.
Bummer that the court ruled that as president he can’t kill his opponent and anyone that dared to impeach him. Would have made for a very interesting country.
Look at Bill, advocating for suing a person for acts that cant even be attached to a specific calendar year. You go Bill, soon the rule of law will be dead, and the govt will lock up or murder your grand kids.
Bill G, I hope some woman accuses you or your son of raping her 30 years ago and you can then defend your own good name.
Trump spends $30 million while biden gives Iran (and Hamas)many more billions than that. I would rather Trump spend his money defending himself against far left lawfare then having my tax dollars going to kill Americans and Jews. But hey, that’s just me.
This far left insane group has our government giving them $250,000, we have Fani Willis in GA blowing a government funding gift of $500,000 on things actually stipulated as being against what the funding is for. We have Mayor Adams in NY giving 53 MILLION dollars to illegals with some getting $1,000 a month. Just imagine how much federal and state TAX DOLLARS are being spent on programs that the TAX PAYERS hate.
Hey folks, your tax dollars are going to a woman that says we need to abolish America and Israel (of course they never want to abolish China, Cuba, Venezuela or Iran). Who hired this radical? Who decided she is what is needed when coming up with programs for 4 year old kids?
By the way, I saw a clip of these little children marching around their little classroom with signs and chanting (words they didn’t even understand) “no Donald Trump, no Donald Trump”. This is their two minutes of hate being inculcated into them by young women who have basically been brainwashed themselves.
HullBobby,
What kind of sick and twisted person brainwashes their child like that?
Nazi youth.
That is what the Nazis and Hamas do, even if the child does not understand what they are being taught, they are being taught to hate.
That is right Upstate, but they are taught to hate the people and things the left wants them to hate. The ironic thing is that many times kids rebel and end up hating the opposite of what the indoctrinators want them to hate.
HullBobby,
That is a good point about those rebel, rising up and overthrowing those who forced the indoctrination upon them.
Case in point, the Romanian revolution of 1989 and the death of Nicolae Ceaușescu and family by shooting squad.
Many of those who revolted were subject to indoctrination by his regime.
Upstate, sadly today’s youth and professors would have supported Ceausescu because he was a communist.
China can’t stop laughing when they read these stories. Self-destruction of the most powerful nation on earth unfolding in front of our eyes.
Birmingham, I honestly believe that a lot of our ruinous actions are being promulgated by the CCP and being foisted upon us by the leftists in academia, big tech and Hollywood.
The left wants us to crumble because a capitalist, white western nation has no business being the leader of the world. This is why they want to make America a more brown country??? I saw a clip of Joe Biden from 2015 saying that “in 2 years (2017) he will be in the minority as America is no longer a white European stock majority nation, and that will be a good thing.” Why is that a good thing? I am not saying it is a bad thing, but why would someone, anyone hope for the day when they are in the minority? Has being descendent of western Europe been bad for us? Has western Europe not been a shining light culturally for the world? Has western Europe not had art, literature, music and all other metrics of a successful culture? If you think not then please tell me what society has done more for the world than what western thought has given us.