The Hub of Politics

Submitted for your consideration, we have three stories - all from today's issue of the Boston Herald - all offering commentary on the state of public education in the Commonwealth.

Story 1:

Three Methuen eighth-graders will face felony charges for sexually assaulting a classmate aboard a school bus, police said.

Eighth-graders - groping a fellow eighth-grader - on a school bus. Only bright-spot: a 4th eighth-grader stepped-in to break-up the assault. I expect this 4th student will soon be getting his butt kicked when no-one is looking.

Otherwise, the story speaks for itself - read it.

Story 2:

Shrewsbury school officials are defending a sex survey passed out to 11- and 12-year-olds as a vital way to stay informed of health risks.

How about this for "informed health risks" for 11- and 12-year olds: don't do it.

But the father of a 12-year-old student said his daughter is too young to be asked how many oral sex partners she's had.

"This is not something for the schools,'' outraged dad Mark Fisher said.

Sorry, pop. Aren't you aware that you're not responsible for raising your own children anymore? Heck, if some people get their way, soon your 12-year old can go off and get an abortion without you even knowing about it.

School committee President Deborah Peeples said parents are allowed to view the survey ahead of time, but are not able to take a copy home to review before their children answer it.

"It might be misinterpreted or misunderstood or they could use it to direct their children's responses,'' she said. "The responses we get here are very accurate.''

Can you just hear the condescension dripping from this woman's words? Explain to me again, you self-righteous bitch, why parents of these 5th and 6th grade kids should not be allowed to review a survey about their sexual behavior ahead of time? Because then they may actually talk about sex with their own kids - cannot have that now, can we?

Finally, story 3:

Randolph High School students who protested having to retake part of the MCAS due to a teacher's gaffe won't be penalized if their makeup answers weren't as good as their original ones.

The 24 10th-graders, who had to retake the test because a faculty member mistakenly left their original tests sitting unattended in a classroom instead of sending them to the state, signed a letter to education department head David Driscoll.

MCAS is our "high-stakes" test that kids need to pass in order to receive a High School diploma. Naturally, the local teachers' unions hate it - cannot have accountability in public schools, you know. After all, teachers who cannot even follow simple instructions regarding the conduct of such "high-stakes" exams cannot be held to account for their performance in the classrooms, right?

Remember, this is just today's paper!

Such is the state of public education in the People's Republic of Massachusetts.