Mind Jumbled

“He who would learn to fly one day must first learn to stand and walk and run and climb and dance; one cannot fly into flying.” ~Friedrich Nietzsche

I had a couple different novels written for this post and chose not to publish it for fear it
would cause one hell of a hurricane for myself in the teaching world.

To sum it up, I subbed in an Alternative High School in my home town yesterday. I left feeling
angry, abused, disheartened, upset, frustrated, guilty, and just flat out depressed.

Not because of the kids. Let me repeat that… NOT because of the kids- they were fabulous.

To me, alternative does not mean incapable. It does not mean give up. It does not mean no hope or no future. Alternative does not mean unintelligent. It does not mean unsuccessful. It does not mean any of those things, if the right steps are taken and being laid down for the future generation of this country in attendance.

To me, there is a HUGE difference between an alternative education and no education. Providing opportunities and providing empty promises. Having expectations and allowing a
free for all. Promoting progress and success and actually attaining it.

It breaks my heart to even have to question and ponder which is being provided for those
students whom I had the pleasure of meeting and getting to know yesterday and
the many others possibly in the same situations.

A high school diploma means nothing to me, but an education and the chance to achieve do. No
matter what school one goes to, they deserve an education and a chance at life,
not JUST a piece of paper to be counted towards a statistic of “progress.”

End of story.