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john taylor gatto

post #1 of 12
Thread Starter 
wow. i have been toying with the idea of hs, then i found my way to "dumbing us down", and it was really interesting, particularly since i taught public school for a year and my mom is a public school teacher.
then, i checked out "the underground history of ps education" OMG. mindblowing cause you know it is all true. it makes perfect sense. i mean, all those times when i have read a newsarticle that has "man on the street" info (political polls, etc) and i have wondered, how can so many people be so stupid? yep, here's why. doctors always think i am a medical professional cause i know what benign means, or what patikia is, i always want to say, no just educated. and i wonder, "wow, are people that stupid, that they don't know what that stuff means?" yup, here's how.
its just incredible, and i know it is all true, and i don't really have anyone to talk to about it, cause i don't know anyone else who has read it. and until you read it, it really sounds conspiratorial. but you read and realize it is true and terrifying.
post #2 of 12
I've only read Dumbing Us Down, and had my eyes opened up for sure. Now I feel so awful that my boys are in PS, instead of here with me. I want to change that though.

I'm amazed at the stupidity in the world as well. If you've ever seen Jay Leno's "Jay-Walking", you will know how stupid some people are.
post #3 of 12
Reading his stuff was one of the earliest things that convinced me to homeschool.
post #4 of 12
I remember being 16 and having my gyno hand me a pack of birth control telling me that "it doesn't protect against any STDs or AIDS" and I just looked at her and rather bluntly said "well duh, it's not preventing the semen from entering my vagina. Do people actually believe that?"
Oh, and being in the 9th grade and taking an academic English course (because I didn't want all the extra bullshit of honors English) and actually having a lesson on what a noun was and what a verb was ... and half the class getting it wrong
Oh wait, this is my favorite. We had a required a course for "Personal Resource Management" for the 11th grade, but I didn't take it until 12th bc it didn't fit in my schedule. We spend a week learning how to balance a check book (which I learn in five minutes .. from my bank) and then our teacher told us we had to figure out how much interest we were earning on a given amount with a certain interest rate over a year. Her method for finding this number? Find the interest gained in one month, multiply that by 12, add it to the given amount originally put in the account ... ummm ... yea ... but the interest would keep adding so you actually have to use a formula to figure that out. No one else in the class caught that and neither did the teacher. I was told to just let it go. "This is how we do it" :

That right there, is why I will never send my child(ren) to public school. Oh, did I mention I went to one of the best public schools in the state? With more college placement courses than any other school around? With a valedictorian with a GPA of 5.2? With every IVY League school representing in my graduating class? Yea .. I can only imagine what the other schools would teach my child(ren).

BTW, I never heard of this book, as I haven't really been researching books to read for h/us yet. So thanks for the recommendation!
post #5 of 12
I've been reading through his stuff - truly mindblowing!
post #6 of 12
I love reading John Taylor Gatto.
To me, it feels like confirmation of everything I always suspected about government systems of mass education.
I first heard of him through the David Guterson book (which I also enjoyed). I've been trying to get my hands on a copy of An Underground History, but its so difficult to find!
post #7 of 12
Thread Starter 
i am surprised that i found it in my library system. but it is fun to discuss with my mom who is a 15 year veteran schoolteacher and our discussion goes " hey mom, what do you think about this...." "uh, yeah, that's about the same as my experiance."
post #8 of 12
Quote:
Originally Posted by sogriffin View Post
I've been trying to get my hands on a copy of An Underground History, but its so difficult to find!
You can start reading it on his website until you can find a paper copy:
John Taylor Gatto - in fact, he sells it through his website. Lillian
post #9 of 12
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lillian J View Post


You can start reading it on his website until you can find a paper copy:
John Taylor Gatto - in fact, he sells it through his website. Lillian
Thanks Lillian. I'm going to read what I can online now...I'm going to have to wait until my birthday though before I spend $35 on a book. I'm so spoiled by the library...
post #10 of 12
I LOVE John Taylor Gatto's writing and outlook. I saw him speak a few years ago where I used to work and he is a fascinating man with a true passion for education. I always wish, when I re-read his books, that I had had the good fortune to be in one of his classes when he was a teacher!

Whenever someone asks me why we're homeschooling, I ask "have you heard of John Taylor Gatto?"
post #11 of 12
Quote:
Originally Posted by sogriffin View Post
I'm going to have to wait until my birthday though before I spend $35 on a book.
$35?! Wow. If you can't eventually get it through the library, you might look on some of the used homeschooling supplies sites - like vegsource or something... Lillian
post #12 of 12
Quote:
Originally Posted by sogriffin View Post
Thanks Lillian. I'm going to read what I can online now...I'm going to have to wait until my birthday though before I spend $35 on a book. I'm so spoiled by the library...
SOGriffin, I have a copy I'd be happy to lend you through the mail so you can take your time reading it. It's so much information, I found myself re-reading passages again and again trying to take it all in. I don't know if I would have been able to enjoy reading it online.

Send me a PM with your address and I'll pop it in the mail!
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