4 ms·

I would argue that a child has a right to a certain number of years of education. The best school which I attended divided classes between academic and social

I would argue that a child has a right to a certain number of years of education. The best school which I attended divided classes between academic and social --- the latter were attended with one's age peers (so homeroom, social studies, PE, &c.) while the former were attended at one's ability level (with a cap of four years through 4th grade, so I was in 4th grade but taking 8th grade science, English, and history classes) and for older students, some teachers were accredited as faculty at a nearby college, so it was possible to take college courses while still in high school --- it was even possible to earn a college degree (or even multiple degrees) at high school graduation. There was also a trade school track for students so inclined.

ericd 3mo ago
Sounds great, if you don’t mind sharing, what school was it? We have a couple of young kids that that seems like maybe a good fit for.
- WillAdams 3mo ago
  It was a school in rural Mississippi which was next to an Air Force Base and filled primarily w/ children of base personnel --- apparently it was changed away from that shortly after my father retired, I had thought because of legal challenges, but that was from the uncertain organic memory of 10 year old me of half a century ago.
  - ericd 3mo ago
    Dang, ah well. Thanks for answering, anyway.
    - WillAdams 3mo ago
      With the wide variety of charter schools which were set up, I'm surprised it wasn't tried --- I would really like to see this educational mechanism revisited and re-tried --- seems like a good fit for remote learning (remote classes are academic and done at ability level, in-person classes are social and done by age level w/ peers.
      - ericd 3mo ago
        Yeah, good point, especially at the higher levels. Our public high school offered differential equations as the level after calc only because they randomly had a really exceptionally capable math teacher who was a teacher as a passion project after he'd made his money elsewhere, but most schools don't have access to that sort of capability. Remote learning could offer that sort of headroom in every subject. I guess local colleges sometimes offer that ability. Maybe some charters do, I'm definitely not an expert.
        WillAdams 3mo ago
        One of the big regrets in my life is that the tiny rural county school system I graduated from couldn't find a math teacher qualified to teach calculus for my junior or senior year, which precluded applying to pretty much every college I was interested in.
        ericd 3mo ago
        Agh sorry, but yeah, great example of the problem of the variance in access.
  - selimthegrim 3mo ago
    Was this Keesler by any chance?
    - WillAdams 3mo ago
      No, Columbus.
bitmasher9 3mo ago
> I would argue that a child has a right to a certain number of years of education. I would also argue society is better if its people are more educated.
- quacked 3mo ago
  I admit this leans into pedantry, but I think it's important not to conflate "amount of education received" with "amount of knowledge possessed". In the US our people are more educated than they've ever been, but I wouldn't say they're more knowledgeable than ever. I completely agree that the more knowledgeable a society is the better off it is, but if the education industry is allowed to prop itself up with the widespread belief that more years of education necessarily result in a better-off population, you get the military-industrial-style propagation of institutions, loans, debt, and wasted time that we're familiar with today.
  - ndriscoll 3mo ago
    To that point, how many university educated American adults have actually read, say, Locke? It's been freely and easily accessible for decades, e.g.: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/7370 https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/7370 How many university (liberal arts even) educated Americans have read the Federalist Papers? The Declaration of Independence? The Constitution?
    - WillAdams 3mo ago
      Those texts were a standard part of grade school social studies when I was young, and my children read all in the course of a typical public education long before graduating.
      - ndriscoll 3mo ago
        They might be part of the curriculum, but apparently ~half the country doesn't know what we just celebrated[0], so I somehow doubt they actually did their reading. It's pretty easy to pass or even do well in classes without really engaging with the material at all, even at the university level. Like I got an A in a philosophy course by just reading the professor's notes on exam morning and spitting them back out on an essay. I've still never gone back and actually read Grotius. [0] https://www.npr.org/2026/07/03/nx-s1-5881451/cato-institute-250th-july-4th-constitution-declaration-of-independence-poll https://www.npr.org/2026/07/03/nx-s1-5881451/cato-institute-...

ericd 3mo ago

Sounds great, if you don’t mind sharing, what school was it? We have a couple of young kids that that seems like maybe a good fit for.

WillAdams 3mo ago
It was a school in rural Mississippi which was next to an Air Force Base and filled primarily w/ children of base personnel --- apparently it was changed away from that shortly after my father retired, I had thought because of legal challenges, but that was from the uncertain organic memory of 10 year old me of half a century ago.
- ericd 3mo ago
  Dang, ah well. Thanks for answering, anyway.
  - WillAdams 3mo ago
    With the wide variety of charter schools which were set up, I'm surprised it wasn't tried --- I would really like to see this educational mechanism revisited and re-tried --- seems like a good fit for remote learning (remote classes are academic and done at ability level, in-person classes are social and done by age level w/ peers.
    - ericd 3mo ago
      Yeah, good point, especially at the higher levels. Our public high school offered differential equations as the level after calc only because they randomly had a really exceptionally capable math teacher who was a teacher as a passion project after he'd made his money elsewhere, but most schools don't have access to that sort of capability. Remote learning could offer that sort of headroom in every subject. I guess local colleges sometimes offer that ability. Maybe some charters do, I'm definitely not an expert.
      - WillAdams 3mo ago
        One of the big regrets in my life is that the tiny rural county school system I graduated from couldn't find a math teacher qualified to teach calculus for my junior or senior year, which precluded applying to pretty much every college I was interested in.
        ericd 3mo ago
        Agh sorry, but yeah, great example of the problem of the variance in access.
- selimthegrim 3mo ago
  Was this Keesler by any chance?
  - WillAdams 3mo ago
    No, Columbus.

bitmasher9 3mo ago

> I would argue that a child has a right to a certain number of years of education. I would also argue society is better if its people are more educated.

quacked 3mo ago
I admit this leans into pedantry, but I think it's important not to conflate "amount of education received" with "amount of knowledge possessed". In the US our people are more educated than they've ever been, but I wouldn't say they're more knowledgeable than ever. I completely agree that the more knowledgeable a society is the better off it is, but if the education industry is allowed to prop itself up with the widespread belief that more years of education necessarily result in a better-off population, you get the military-industrial-style propagation of institutions, loans, debt, and wasted time that we're familiar with today.
- ndriscoll 3mo ago
  To that point, how many university educated American adults have actually read, say, Locke? It's been freely and easily accessible for decades, e.g.: https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/7370 https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/7370 How many university (liberal arts even) educated Americans have read the Federalist Papers? The Declaration of Independence? The Constitution?
  - WillAdams 3mo ago
    Those texts were a standard part of grade school social studies when I was young, and my children read all in the course of a typical public education long before graduating.
    - ndriscoll 3mo ago
      They might be part of the curriculum, but apparently ~half the country doesn't know what we just celebrated[0], so I somehow doubt they actually did their reading. It's pretty easy to pass or even do well in classes without really engaging with the material at all, even at the university level. Like I got an A in a philosophy course by just reading the professor's notes on exam morning and spitting them back out on an essay. I've still never gone back and actually read Grotius. [0] https://www.npr.org/2026/07/03/nx-s1-5881451/cato-institute-250th-july-4th-constitution-declaration-of-independence-poll https://www.npr.org/2026/07/03/nx-s1-5881451/cato-institute-...