Skip to main content

Posts

Showing posts from March 27, 2011

We be different.

I am quoting from J. Loewen's book, Lies My Teacher Told Me : "Teachers may try to convince themselves that education's main function is to promote inquiry, not iconography, but in fact the socialization function of schooling remains dominant at least through high school and hardly disappears in college. Education as socialization tells people what to think and how to act and requires them to conform ." (p.350) I have always found it interesting that I can spot a home schooled person with little difficulty. There is an air about them, a something that distinguishes them from other public or privately schooled students. I am not trying to say that home schoolers are better ; I've known many intelligent and well-educated people who have gone through the public school system. But there is something that sets them apart, and I think it is that we were never required to conform . I can see it in my daughter's behavior: she does not act like the kids who are in a

Bataan Death March

This will be my 1, 070 post. I find it hard to fathom that I've written that many posts. Onward and upward: The Bataan Death March. Occurred during WWII, horrific experience, thousands died. Watch "The War" by Ken Burns. It has lots of pictures and descriptions of what happened. In 1989 NMSU's ROTC decided to create a march commemorating and honoring the men who had been forced to participate. This year over 6,000 people participated, and my dad and myself were among them. We did the Honorary 15-mile march rather than the 26.2-mile march, but I'm determined to do the full thing next year. It was an incredible experience, and I'll get to the details soon. First, though, I have to tell you about the Bataan survivors we met. Every participant gets a certificate, and we were advised to get the survivors to sign it. We did, and my dad bought me a book written by Col. Frazier (I think that's his rank, the book is in the bedroom and I can't go get it because