REACTION: Conservatives Debate Liberals on US Education System

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VICE has hosted another debate panel, this time on the topic of education. This one features my PragerU colleague CJ Pearson and another friend of the show, Kali Fontanilla, on the conservative side. This should be interesting, let’s get into it!
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0:00 - The Team Is BACK!
1:13 - What's the Purpose of Education?
4:12 - Who Should Decide What's Being Taught?
29:13 - Which School Is Best: Public, Private, or Home?
47:46 - Why Would Home Schooling Be a Good Option?
51:37 - What Do You Lose in the Home School Environment?
53:41 - Amala Answers SUPERCHATS

[@Honeycoupe]

This was actually a surprisingly healthy debate. No one was really talking over and personally attacking each other. I’d love to see Part 2.

[@JoeBidenIsMyDaddy]

how many calories?

[@the2ndcoming135]

Gay teacher destroyed bro tho🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@gayajay]

man or woman, gay or straight..., bottom line is that a teacher, especially in elementary, has no business wearing makeup or looking handsome or pretty. I am a gay man and I would take my own child out of aby class where the teacher resembles a clown.

[@Nomad-Rogers]

Children should be thought how to think not what to think.

[@screamingopossum7809]

Critical thinking isn't taught in schools anymore, especially when these same kids are glued to their phones 24/7. Then these kids turn into adults with no critical thinking skills because they've been taught to believe the internet is a real place.

[@aglusci]

I remember in 5th grade science thinking to myself "I've been lied to my whole life. Heaven isnt real, i will never see my mom again."

[@timothyspory6475]

If they’re taught what to think they’ll know how to think. They have to have a framework to shape their thinking. Giving them no direction leaves them vulnerable to manipulation.

[@vikkidonn]

@@timothyspory6475 the current system is a manipulation though. A religiously taught child goes to school and is told that not only them but religious people are stupid or delusional. As the previous comment said. So you do have to be careful. Especially when the conversation surrounding creationism is still currently happening. So unless you’re also going to be including those arguments by the people making them so that the child is able to actually hear both sides and figure it out then this is by definition indoctrination. For instance I was a high school graduate before I ever heard about tower 7 during the 9/11 attacks. The evidence of inside job was never brought up we were really just told it happened and we weren’t really told how many people even died. That’s a problem. I was introduced to this historical even with many things omitted, or blatantly lied about to reinforce how I should view that event. As an adult on my own I’ve had to look into it and I disagree with what I was told in school. The idea though isn’t that I’m a thinking adult it’s that I’m somehow brainwashed or crazy because i disagree with what is taught narratively in schools. That is indoctrination. American education was by design meant for propaganda. So to ignore that is ridiculous. We are now living through the consequences of that. If you didn’t go to a specific college for a specific degree you can’t have any thoughts on that subject. Regardless of how accessible the information is and regardless of you actually having a degree in it. The argument is then Harvard is better than NYU so you must be stupid even though you do have a degree. This is an issue caused by the education system and how we view education. It’s steeped in classism. The idea of a framework should be naturally rooted in reality and fundamentals. Mathematics, language, history, and science are all the same thing in practice. Science relies on math, history is comprised of the impacts of science and math, the study of language is based in science and math. For instance 1+1 =2 isn’t actually as true as you think. A man having multiple children with a woman means 1+1= 0-13(based on history of families having up to this many children) so without the context you can’t answer this question. Numbers are symbolic in nature but also have legitimate value scientifically speaking. Me asking this question in math in 5th grade resulted in me being Reprimanded for overthinking….. but in highschool this is exactly what I was taught when they introduced letters and symbols…. But by then I was already programmed to ONLY see 1+1=2 . This caused me and many other people to struggle as we advanced. So the framework isn’t correct. It tells children they are overthinking if they ask questions of things that don’t make sense to them and are then told they must be stupid if the don’t accept it and come to another conclusion.

[@theleists9146]

Please do a part 2! I’m currently considering homeschooling and would love to hear more discussion and opinions

[@ChronicallyofflineRavenclaw]

I’m gonna be homeschooling once my son is old enough 🙌🏻🤍

[@somethingsomeone9498]

​@@everyhandleiwantedwastaken Hi ! I would love to homeschool my future kids (if I ever have them) but it feels like they will miss out a big social aspect of their life ? Like interacting with other kids their age, how was it for you ?

[@mads3969]

@@everyhandleiwantedwastaken my sister homeschools her kids and every one always says social aspect! She has some of the most out going friendly children who have a endless friends. I feel like the only social aspect that homeschooling takes away is the chronic bullying since you are only taking in person classes a few times a week.

[@danirichey8313]

@@somethingsomeone9498 Kindergarten homeschool mom here! There is a homeschool community (Christian classical education) that my son goes to twice a week, where I get to meet other moms and my son gets to socialize with other kids. If socializing is your only concern, look into sports or classes offered during the day to enroll your child of. We have a gymnastics gym that offers classes for school age kids. My son also goes to Jiu Jitsu everyday with a lot of other homeschool families. And we also do one other seasonal sport per season (football during fall, surfing during summer, etc.) The main difference being, I know who my son is hanging out with and I know their parents and I know that my son is not going to be exposed to something that I won’t know about. Also, I know the material I’m teaching my son, and I know areas that he’s going to need help in. My sons only in kindergarten, but he can read and write(ish) and we’re learning addition and multiplication. Plus, we travel a lot (family in Hawaii, Samoa, Texas, and Australia) and I love reading books to my sons about different cultures and ideals, but I get to discuss those ideas to him in a healthy and loving environment.

[@violinda.]

Retired homeschool mom here. It's a great lifestyle/adventure!

[@bossyspaghetti]

You CANNOT have this conversation without Kali Fontanilla. So glad she was included in the debate.

[@TheKatarinaGiselle]

Same!! I love her!

[@RealKaliFontanilla]

This is such a sweet comment, thank you! They edited me heavily in this debate but I did a full reaction on my KZbin! ❤

[@chloedemure]

Agreed!!! 😊

[@azayzelderegis1655]

She didn't even know that "a hit dog will holler" is an expression and she called a black woman "racist" for using that expression! That's the woman we want to hear from concerning education of students?? Someone who doesn't even do the research before jumping down someone's throat?

[@LM_357]

@@azayzelderegis1655 I'd take her over that gay joker lookin fool any day.

[@christinastokes3984]

My daughter's teacher reinforces some of the same principles that I teach at home. She can't get away with lying, being lazy/ refusing to work, or trying to get her way through other manipulation tactics at home OR at school. It also helps that I'm communicating with her teacher and/ or principal nearly every week.

[@innocentbystander3002]

My daughter home schools her child. Her husband works and they live with us in a multigenerational home to make it work. Their child struggles with ADHD. She is able to structure his day to his needs. It also keeps him from disrupting the eduction of his peers as happened when he was in the public school. His public school was excellent. Not far from Carmel high school mentioned in the video. But parents need to have the freedom to choose the best option for their child.

[@thatrugreallytiedtheroomto4537]

Your energy is so refreshing, Amala! Much thanks 🫶

[@Dragonladyrvrr...]

100% Do a part two on this. I like the fact that everyone was talking with each other not screaming over each other.

[@PuffinPsychologist]

I’m not a Christian or religious but if a child is not allowed to bring a Bible to school… Then why are they allowed and even encouraged to explore, recognize, & participate in Gender/Identity studies…? 🤔 🧐 🤨

[@rebeccaleanne22]

Definitely do a part 2! I loved this panel!

[@skycae]

Stoked for part two! Loving the education talk

[@WhizzingFish12]

As a lifelong educator I present on these topics regularly. The data are completely clear re outcomes: Homeschooled students outperform any other group, followed closely by independent (private) schools. Public charter and magnet schools do great, but overall, public schools trail all other models by some distance. While suburban schools do fine, urban and rural public schools lag far behind (due to lack of resources and pathologized home environments).

[@genevievec.8002]

Can you expand on what you mean by 'outperform'? Are we talking in academic testing, college or university acceptance, career outcomes, or general quality of life indicators in adulthood?

[@WhizzingFish12]

@@genevievec.8002 Thanks for asking (and great name!). Disclaimer: I have worked in both public and private education, and am currently an independent school administrator. I present on these topics all the time as part of my job and base my position on data. So to answer your question, home shcooll students statistically outperform other groups in several metrics: 1. Standardized test scores (which are a proxy indicator but one of the few measurable ones we have) such as the Stanford, SAT/ACT, etc, 2. MUCH lower levels of psychological distress symptoms (anxiety, depression, eating disorders, etc). 3. MUCH higher rates of self-reported efficacy and agency (the inverse of #2), which makes sense as they need to be relatively self-driven to be successful as a home-schooler. This in turn relates to overall happiness, optimism, and purpose. This is a powerful predictor of future success. They typically do NOT attend super elite schools because their background does not translate well into the type of students that such colleges want (minority/"underrepresented" populations, legacies, wealthy potential donors, etc). They are much more likely to attend state schools or smaller colleges, which is just fine. Other than a few select professions, where you go to college has very little bearing on life success. That's a whole other rant. 🙂 It's interesting how little most people know about home-schooling. Everyone thinks that it's for religious nuts or something (and religious families ARE relatively highly represented among home-school populations), but it is also for those who want to keep their kids away from toxic youth culture (and it IS toxic beyond words - I see it all around me every day) and woke culture in general, for high-achievers who are too slowed down by institutional education, for high-performing athletes who travel a lot, etc. It's the fastest growing segment of education - in 1999 only 1.9% of students were homeschooled, but by 2022 it's almost 7% - almost 4,000,000 kids! It's also almost never a hovering mom sitting beside the kid all day like people think - it's overwhelmingly adaptively digital now, where students can learn at their own pace and from a MUCH wider range of course options than a physical environment can provide. See the Global Online Academy for one such example - you will be boggled at the options available. And re the old "the kids will be socially stunted" argument, that's completely untrue - there are collaboratives/networks in almost every area of the country where home school students get together for social events, parties, dances, have sports teams, compete academically, etc. See #2/3 above. If you wonder why it's so relatively unknown, there's one easy answer: Students = $$$ for public schools. They argue against it for the same reason they dislike private education - they do NOT want to give up enrollment revenue (or frankly the ability to socialize young people into their preferred worldview). Sorry for the long answer, but I wanted to respect your question.

[@nateh3441]

And how are we measuring "outcomes" in terms of future life success? Where is the data that says that kids who are homeschooled are more successful later in life than public school or private school kids?

[@lindasteinbrenner8065]

Yes! Please do a part 2.

[@cryinginstyle]

I actually understand why desmond’s offended. His words were “if a kid asked me why I’m wearing makeup, I’ll say because i like to wear it” but his words were misinterpreted as him bringing gender theory into it. Like he’s just existing as a feminine man, I don’t really think it’s as political as the conservatives were making it out to be. Also desmond was cancelled by tiktok for not being liberal enough so I think he feels like neither side understands him. Just food for thought cause desmond grew a following on tiktok for being SUPER nice and friendly to conservatives and people who didn’t understand lgbt

[@Honeycoupe]

I’ve noticed Vice always typecasts someone as the “villain” on every one of these panels. Pearl on the feminist panel, Purple/Vince in the Asian panel, and CJ on this panel.

[@tylerj7298]

I know some private school kids who are the worst. Arrest after arrest, drugs and so much more. It's not just a public school thing. It's a certain humans thing.

[@nicoleangel7916]

30 seconds in and I just have to say..WE SEE YOU WITH THE ASHES ON ASH WEDNESDAY ✝️🙌 Praise God!

[@JohnGramer06]

I've been home schooled all my life, and I admit I was very sheltered until sixth grade when I joined a middle school track team. I was shocked to find out that middle schoolers swore so much, I thought that was just in in high school and college. And I was still a little bit sheltered until fall of seventh grade when I joined my cross-country team. And, though it took me a little while to get used to being around public school kids so often, as I also only went church and homeschool co-op, both Christian environments, I am grateful I wasn't raised in and that environment like that I saw in my sixth grade track team. I'm a sophomore in HS now and taking more classes outside of home at other co-ops (Amer.Lit,Hist&Gov @ a co-op called South Heights in the TC MN) and even at a community college

[@samanthamcgraw2675]

Do you like, or at least find value in, south heights? I'm in TC, my son is only in 1st grade yet but I'm trying to set up a really good plan to propose to his dad for homeschooling and I'd love to know how some of your firsthand experience there. BTW, I said like OR find value in because I went to a private school and I did not like it, but realized years later how crucial it had actually been. Maybe you can see that way before I did lol

[@Tsalgood]

I would like to share my experience with homeschooling as I think I came out fine. I know some homeschooled kids that are very anti social and I am a bit shy and have a hard time saying my piece but I had time to do a lot of extra curricular activities and there were a bunch of activities at my church. I would also like to say that because of my homeschooling, I am slightly head of other students in public schools, in fact, I'm 17 but I'm doing college classes through dual-enrollment and I've almost completed my associates degree due to the fact that I was homeschooled and was able to get jumpstarts on classes and assignments. Now to be a good homeschooling parent, it takes a lot of hard work as my mom is constantly looking at new books, teaching styles, and learning experiences. She works tirelessly to make sure we have a good education and she does it well, as many of the curriculums she has found allow here basically do what a teacher does, read the lesson, explain the assignments, give assignments to the kids, and then help if a kid gets stuck or doesn't understand.

[@salti_kitten1700]

I wish all parents were like this, but unfortunately many aren't. Good on your Mom for being absolutely amazing. 🙃

[@genevievec.8002]

Good to hear. I definitely believe that homeschooling or public schools are not a one experience/one outcome fits all type thing. My personal concerns with homeschooling are socialization (I was very poor at socializing with strangers, until late high school, even going to public school, and can't imagine how much harder uncomfortable social interactions would be if I hadn't had to figure it out in my teenage years). In my experience, it's very easy to be "ahead" of the curve at schools if you get certain benefits - whether taught or naturally learned, learning HOW to learn being one, getting good elementary education, and having an interest in learning. It sounds like your mom has done a good job of making sure you have those benefits, but it's certainly possible to get at a public school.

[@alex-iana8366]

Glad you had a great experience with homeschooling. I would just like to add that public school kids dual enroll as well. I did it and a lot of my peers as well.

[@CR-mn2bd]

Definitely loved to see a part 2

[@Stonergaymer420]

Thank you for giving me a better understanding of what’s going on in the world 😀

[@mfndz7162]

Def do a part 2!

[@saralouise9341]

Yes please I would love to hear a part two as a homeschool mom myself

[@feelingdangerous1139]

Thank you Taylor for your insight it definitely helps I don't have an Instagram. But I can try make one when I have time but thank you.

[@GiaGRitter]

People don’t understand that parents aren’t the only ones teaching the kids at home. We hire grad students, professors, and diplomats in the peak of their field along with language teachers and have trips to the museum with geologists, chefs to teach them to cook, agriculture experts to grow, etc.

[@jammies8075]

If they can afford it or have access to those resources.

[@GiaGRitter]

@@jammies8075 Yes, homeschooling styles differ and aren’t one type for all which is what people assume.

[@genevievec.8002]

I think that's definitely the key - it depends on the person, their education, mentality, resources, and reasons for homeschooling. I have folks in my family who've been "homeschooling" their daughter for a few years. She's supposed to be in 7th grade and can't read. I honestly don't even understand how they get away with their level of 'homeschooling'. My family certainly wouldn't have been able to home school me - they lacked the finances (sure as heck aren't hiring tutors if you aren't paying your electricity bill consistently) and they stopped being able to help me with homework once I hit about 3rd grade - not a high level of education. They also worked, so there was no time for them to give me that kind of attention, and I think a lot of families use school as basically free daycare. For folks who actually put the time and effort into teaching their kids, I can see how it could give them a much better education. Making sure they have good resources, the time is spent on it, and that they are given plenty of opportunities to socialize with other children.

[@GiaGRitter]

@@genevievec.8002 Neglecting one's children in the ways you mentioned are a form of child abuse. From my experience, the kids I know who were homeschooled are wiser than the average, not addicted to the latest trends everyone else has, and speak like adults rather than using crutch words as 'like' or slang.

[@machidraws1]

THE INTRO ALWAYS GETS ME HYPED WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

[@Sandzi_bar]

To the first question I'm surprised nobody said anything about teaching kids to be critical thinkers. That's what i believe education should be all about.

[@breelee4362]

Yes yes yes. Critical thinking is vital to a healthy functioning and free society. I'm surprised only one guy mentioned it I believe. The purpose of education is to teach critical thinking skills and I also think life skills. Like how to take care of yourself and how to survive in this world, like Financial education. If it's not teaching those skills what is the point?

[@vikkidonn]

@@breelee4362 that’s the point. Western education especially Americas was never intended for critical thinking. If under Jim Crow laws you have dark skinned blacks from poor families teaching themselves to read and write and then traveling to other countries for school why would it change and be trusted? Critical thinking isn’t the goal. I remember being told many times that my not understanding of the material was because I was just slow at learning…. I had to go after school to be told how to do things using formulas I didn’t understand the math behind. Me questioning the methodology of what I was being taught for me kicked out of class many times. I remember asking a teacher how I got an answer wrong on a test when we went over it as a class. She asked me to first explain why I picked my answer and when I did she became confused. Flipped through the answer sheet and reread it. Told me that I was absolutely correct and my logic was sound. That she wasn’t sure why they would have put two correct choices or rather two where one was more accurate. She told me that even though I was technically correct she still would count it as wrong in accordance with the answer sheet because every other student picked a different answer. That’s when I fell out of love with education for a while. It also was the start to me being ostracized by the other kids who saw me as a know it all nerd that asked too many questions. I was called pretentious for thinking I could question people who spent years studying to become teachers…. I mean if I’m an advanced language class and the teacher can’t answer simple grammatical questions what are we doing? If I’m being told I’m right but will still lose points because the school board can’t write questions correctly what are we doing? If I’m punished for asking too many questions about something that doesn’t make sense then what are we doing? If the information being given has purposely redacted and omitted parts for no real reason what are we doing?

[@AAviatrix]

Please do a Part 2 of this Education debate. It seemed like not only were the participants allowed to speak (finally), but there seemed to be a few more Reps from the "right" this time. Thanks for covering this topic more in-depth. I love your content and appreciate all of the hard work that you and your team provide!! ps- Looking forward to the merch!

[@cpisarek4284]

Yesss please to part two!

[@karapedersen4642]

This was fascinating, a part 2 please!

[@mayboy128]

YES to a part 2!

[@shekinahbliss8154]

My school actually did a type of a values system, it was called RAWR it stands for (can't quite remember the r) I think it was for Reward good behavior, having a A plus attitude, being Respect and Responsible. It really help my time in middle school and even high school even though we didn't practice it anymore.

[@rc.98]

I finally got it🤣 it was from ash Wednesday that Scott has on his forehead. The whole time I was thinking what is that? A birthmark? Or? 🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@gaeaw8189]

what happened to teaching the basic skills of education. Reading, writing, arithmetic. Then add in real life needed things like home economics, basic car repair, home repair. no one know how to do anything because they are raised that someone else can do it for you.

[@ramosel]

I'd add American History and Civics. Far too many today have no since of history or patriotism... And the liberal teachers all seem to know what their rights are... but don't really have any sense of responsibility.

[@JoeBidenIsMyDaddy]

cool story. go vegan

[@kaitlanparks8061]

3:50 OMG I love her and her channel!!!

[@smallsignals]

These videos aren't available in Australia so thanks for doing in depth reactions to them.

[@Drisco757]

Great analysis! I actually enjoyed being on this panel. Though it was edited they did a good job keeping the meat in the discussion! 🙏💯✨

[@cozmolocke]

I forgot it was Ash Wednesday when Scott popped on cam I got scared lol

[@xvicevx2]

Would love to hear more on this.

[@moxavenger]

You guys get better and make more sublime arguments every show.

[@KatlynG34]

Hoping for a part 2 🤞

[@anton18901]

One of, if not the best teacher I've ever had, addressed questions that weren't school related after hours. He openly stated when asked that he was on school time, but if the student needed to talk to someone about an issue, he would have an open door after 2:30. In this case he helped me understand and grow in Christianity. I think organic inquiry is something to embrace, but too many teachers are "leading the witness" when it comes to controversial issues.

[@P1gP3n69]

Watching this Friday forgetting you did this on Wednesday lol. (Ash on his forehead lol)

[@tashacooper1753]

This was nice seeing people hug at the end going I would trust my kids with you

[@alliethecat1895]

I find that you did this topic today ironic. I had a lady come into my 12th grade ENGLISH class and give us a presentation on what her pregnancy center does, giving us information on fetal development and also options that a woman has once she is pregnant. As much as I hate english class, that topic didn't belong in that class. No heads up what's so ever to either parents or students. We were graded based on our engagement with the speaker during that class. Least to say my family wasn't happy when I told them about what happened in that class today

[@SuperMelrose1]

I’ve been asking about that dang opening song for so long lol

[@elizabethandrade8865]

This was refreshing

[@MigueltheMogul]

Yeah def do a part 2 please

[@k.v.u.2]

Pt 2!

[@lex9666]

Part 2 100% ❤️

[@chifuyumatsuno6497]

As a 16 year old teenage girl who has grown up my whole life in a public school, and as a part of the lgbtg+ community (Pansexual) who has friends who are also in the community I agree with alot of the things said here, especially the fact that we should leave it to kids to socially find out who they are what the lgbtq+ community is and that teachers shouldn't teach it but if a lesbian/gay campaign came in to conversation that the teachers shouldn't go to far into it, but very briefly explain that the two (biological) genders and have feelings for the same gender. And that if they want to go far into the community they should do it in high school were kids already have some what of an idea of what the community is about, so that younger kids aren't forced into the ideas, of transgender or gayness I am currently in 10 grade and I've never went into a huge discussion about gender or sexuality with anyone other than friends and other students, I'm in history with 9th graders this year since last year I wasn't in one, and this year I had ('had' cause they moved to a school closer to where they live) a non-binary teacher, they let us call them by their first name since they didn't use Mr or Miss, we weren't forced to or anything and they only taught us about US history, like going more into depth about the indigenous people aka who we thought were the Indians, trail of Tears, black history in the US, and other stuff that happened around that time in US history. We never went into depth about pronouns and gender, and no one asked about it, cause everyone socially new about it. And im even friends with students who aren't in LGBT community and don't agree with alot in the community. I believe it should be up to students to discuss these concepts, but if bullying happens then teachers should discuss with those involve that you shouldn't bully those with different views. I know this was alot, when in the mood I tend to write alot. I didn't write everything I wanted to say but this is really the basis of what I believe should and shouldn't be discussed as someone who never gone into a deep discussion with any of my teachers throughout my 16 years of living about the lgbtq+ community. Hopefully you all have a nice day regardless of gender identity or color of skin, I hope the best of luck in the chaos the world has been in the last few years and the next few to come

[@zma8080]

How much is that cord you need? My shout 🤣🙋🏽‍♂️🥲🤦🏽

[@shannonm.4632]

As an unschooling mom of 4 kids with college degrees, we went out in the world and did many different things, each according to their interests and challenges, as opposed tothe idea that they would be forced into an unhealthy relationship with 30 kids and a surrogate parent teaching everyone from the same set of materials with no personal variation and no stake in success except being rewarded witb more school. They ate when they were hungry, went to the bathroom when needed, slept when needed, and went swimming or biking or outside. And af age 15, they decided to go to college, prepared for entrance exams and went. Learning is life.

[@casualviewer_]

I always heard "got a problem with the woooo" for the intro song 🤣

[@mooglepompom3758]

It's very simple: Schools should teach ONLY facts. Anything that can be considered an opinion shouldn't be allowed.

[@kingdiv2926]

This shit fire, I promise y'all imma be yo favourite rapper this year. Manifesting it into reality fr

[@AariannaGonzo]

Part 2 please!

[@PossibleBat]

Amala, these braids look gorgeous on you ❤

[@JoeBidenIsMyDaddy]

that’s her real hair dambass

[@VariantAEC]

@@JoeBidenIsMyDaddy Real hair... can be braided. OP said Amala's real hair, in those braids, looks good on her.

[@Ghesthar]

The homeschooling argument: 'I want my kids to be smarter and better than me, so I would never homeschool them' - doesn't that presuppose that teachers are actually.. smart? Or smarter than parents? A lot of my teachers were not the sharpest knives in the drawer, and the adage 'those who can't, teach' exists for a reason. If this is the goal, shouldn't we just apprentice our kids to the most successful/smartest people we can?

[@lynnbabe678]

The comments kept asking, lol, so for anyone interested, here's a wall of text: Ash Wednesday. It's the beginning of the Catholic Lenten season. A few different Christian denominations also celebrate it. It is the first of many things done to prepare for Easter. Ash Wednesday marks 40 days before Easter. They take the palms from the previous year's Palm Sunday (The Sunday before Easter), and burn them to ashes. You go to mass and the priest rubs the ashes in a cross shape on your forehead saying you came from dust, you will return to dust - it's the life cycle and a reminder of your mortality and of repentance. You leave it on all day, so Scott still had it there. It always falls on Wednesday since Easter is always on Sunday. But not always the 22, since Easter changes based on calculations every year. Cheers!

[@moxavenger]

Much how the philosophy "you learn more from your mistakes" is true, you can also learn much from interaction with bad influences in school. Home learning can really stunt social skills learning.

[@mynameismeii]

Hey Amala, could I ask you to review a topic? Or give your opinion? I agree with almost everything you say and I’m so glad someone is out here saying it. I also love your energy. Could you do whitewashing and black washing in the art community? This is a very controversial topic, and I’d like to know your opinion on it.

[@BS-hammer]

Yes on part 2 please

[@sweetkilla22]

I will say when we had forced lockdown and forced homeschooling my 2 kids forgot how to be social and have normal interactions and it took forever to get them back to being somewhat normal with their social skills

[@michellethompson6255]

Please do a part two

[@S3CT10N31GHT]

We did inherit the wind as a play in my senior year in HS. I definitely agree that this is similar

[@williamholder2020]

What is never talked about is there is alot of money going into the school system. Why don't they ever ask where is all this money being spent?

[@katemarie1993]

I'm a conservative mom of 3 and I am in the thick of it 7 weeks in with twins. I will 100% say that if you're even slightly on the fence about having kids don't. What I'd love people to talk about is that the "village" shouldn't be friends and family helping with household chores rather than a variety of influence to pitch in the growing of skills and views for the child. We have several friends that never want kids but I find so valuable for our daughters that will help in ways that I can't. Not sure if I'm making sense, but I think if more people considered how special that can be, we would have way more well rounded kids.

[@genevievec.8002]

I get your point. I was raised in a few households (all family, just different combinations and sizes of them) and being around a lot of adult viewpoints as a child felt very helpful. Even people who are terrible losers now taught me different perspectives and approaches to things. Variety can offer a more robust world view.

[@abbyallcox8825]

I think when it comes to school choice ideally the open market creates an environment where public schools need to become competitive. This isn't to say public schools can't get funding but it will incentives them to create better curriculum hire better teachers in order to be competitive. In a perfect world this will then allow for better education of student in public schools who do not have parent advocating for them. While I'm not 100% certain this will be how it plays out , I do think the current system is failing so badly that can trying something new really be worse?

[@eehlohluell]

Similar to what you said, I think school choice and public schooling can and should coexist. Public school needs to be reformed and be geared to kids whose parents are not participating in their kids life and equipping them with a basic understanding of world history with a focus on the country's history, as well as policies and major world movements that have had a lasting impact on the world and the country specifically. English in terms of reading and writing, basic financial literacy, basic legal literacy, as well as reading culturally significant authors/books from the English language as well as translated from world significant authors; using these literacy works for encouraging critical thinking and teaching students how to intelligently engage with ideas and encourage thoughtful/critical commentary and expression of why someone does or doesn't agree with any ideas expressed in a constructive manner.Mathematics and economics in terms of understanding arithmetic and problem solving, but also application in the real world, at least in terms of personal finances and the basics of currency and what kind of economic systems exist be it cryptocurrecy, stock market, supply and demand, banking options, etc. There's so much more I'd want improvements in the public education system for these kids who don't have engaged parents that could be improved on to be more tangible and important to students or included into education.

[@arts9812]

I was homeschooled for most of my schooling years, and my mom was only my teacher until around 5th grade because that's as far as she felt she could do it well. After that we had home-schooling teachers. You usually sign up for a homeschooling program and often have tutors. For many grades I would have one day a week where I would meet with other home-schoolers and have the usual class environment. There are a lot of ways to homeschool, and it's doesn't necessarily mean your parent is your teacher.

[@sophielesher8002]

part 2 please!!!

[@imrandomperson5957]

I have been going to a school of choice (charter school) my whole life and I absolutely hate it. This year we haven’t had a homeroom teacher, the last one lasted only a week.(we are not getting a proper education) And due to the students that are there you can’t state your opinion, last year a girl got bullied so much she had to leave the school and I’m talking about broken bones and bruises bullying. (she died her hair blue and put it in braids apparently that’s racist?) I can’t wait till next year where I’ll be going to public school. :D

[@Njliz723]

So sorry for your experience 😢

[@imrandomperson5957]

@Loni I have some reading disabilities that wouldn’t make that easy to do I also have a hard time dealing with isolation (I don’t live in a neighborhood so no one to talk to) 🥲

[@cassandrachilds6266]

​@@imrandomperson5957 I myself have dyslexia and i now homeschool my children. I research stuff for fun half the time in what i am interested in. I also went to public school it sucked and was subpar.

[@zetataylor1550]

Working in a public school when charter schools started the more involved parents went to the charter and private schools making the public more like remedial schools which became more dysfunctional and had to focus more on behavior than education.

[@curkrogers2857]

Part 2!!!!

[@Mtlit1080]

In my school a lot of my teachers were parents of my peers K-12. They knew boundries of students and teachers. Small town America and we still knew little of teachers personal or political lives. Eventhough I'm sure our parents knew where our teachers stood, we had no idea.

[@titanblade3706]

I’m in the middle. Both sides brought up great points.

[@WhizzingFish12]

Amala, I'm your school choice guy! I've worked in public and private schools for almost 30 years as a teacher and administrator, and can state with 100% confidence that school choice is the single best thing we could do to transform our abysmal public schools. Make them compete for "customers" just as every other area of life. The US spends more than any other nation in the world per pupil (except Norway if I remember correctly) and we have horrendous outcomes. I hate to say it but if we "fail" half as many students as we do now, it is still a positive direction.

[@Charlene-1988]

I do agree, this is a more healthy normal debate.

[@Loakley1998]

Amala, I would love to hear you deep dive into school choice.

[@Loakley1998]

Or have Amala moderate a debate between a school choice advocate and a person from the opposing viewpoint

[@genevievec.8002]

Just saw a ton of comments from people who were homeschooled talking about how great it was (also, if you are still in high school or earlier, I'm happy that you are enjoying your time, but my personal concerns would be with how you handle certain interactions in adulthood depending on how well your parents did). Figured I'd go the opposite route. I went to 4 physical high schools, and 1 online highschool, and more schools between elementary and middle school (the only 'good' school was one I went to briefly in Wisconsin, the rest were in Nevada, California, or Michigan) First, homeschooling would have been TERRIBLE for me, my family could not do it. Not only did they work, but I remember the day I asked a family member for homework help in 3rd grade, and they were so obviously confused and wrong that I knew it was past the point where I could reach out to them for help any longer. Despite all this, I've always done well in school, and as an adult, in my career. I was very hungry for knowledge in most of my school days, which I think helped a lot. Oddly, I believe moving and going to multiple schools was highly beneficial. Trial by fire, you figure out how to learn information a new way, because this teacher does this thing differently than the last who did it yet another way, so you must learn how to learn. It also taught me multiple perspectives and approaches to different topics I found helpful, and let me find the best way for me. Probably more importantly, at home I was an absolute chatterbox, but at school I was practically mute. It wasn't until later in high school that I developed social skills, particularly when it came to interacting with strangers. Being forced to interact with strange kids was a major hurdle I had to overcome and has helped me immensely as an adult.

[@paesch1312]

Shoutout to CJ. Ive been watching his videos for years. Hes a very intelligent young man.

[@christinastokes3984]

We chose to put my oldest in public school specifically for the socialization and influences. My middle child is severely autistic and my youngest is autistic and on a feeding tube. Public school is the ONLY way for my daughter to have neurotypical experiences and examples. We're in close contact with the teacher and principal, and she's on a 504 Plan because she is also autistic, but I feel like this is a time when she just needs to be in school away from home each day.

[@Thegoodneighbor_]

Did it ever become apparent that perhaps your genetics were carrying a predisposition for autism and did that ever influence you thinking about not having more kids? I'm not asking as an asshole asking for genuine curiosity! My sister has three children, two with a different father and both of those have severe eczema. I'm hopeful about having my own children. But terrified of any genetic dispositions I or my partner may have that could alter my children's lives from the "ideal" normalcy I'd want for them. Have you had to navigate these thoughts, can you attest to the struggles? In the end, do you feel like it's worth it to try regardless, that children really are that beam of light? Thank you for any input you may have!

[@latoyiamoore5956]

As a homeschooling parent my kids learn from many others and we discuss hot topics which would be what is being debated in the world. Also with homeschooling you teach your child how to learn...the process of learning. How to research and challenge yourself.

[@Curiousandfearless]

In my large Canadian city, our school board provides many "alternative" public schools -- small class sizes, sometimes "theme"-oriented, like special music or drama or science programs. If your wealthier citizens paid higher taxes, you'd have better educational options without taking anything away from the less fortunate.

[@Berryations]

CJ is so good!!!

[@nancyjohnston7528]

Reading, writing, arithmatic, science, history, problem solving, how to research. As you move through the grades, more complex subjects are introduced. Parent teacher associations are where the parents have input and teachers can discuss the subjects being taught. I'm not sure that resource is used to its fullest potential. But then, I came from a different era of schooling and what it meant!

[@gIac1er]

Does Scott know he literally has a black smudge on his forehead?

[@lolam4066]

They are ashes from Ash Wednesday, it’s on purpose. You go to church get ashes rubbed on your forehead from a priest, fast on that day and it’s the start of the Lenten season. 40 days until Easter.

[@trevnfred]

In my world, public schools have more resources and options than private ones. My son has Spina Bifida and we as a community of teachers and his parents developed an ARD for him. My daughter has a mild case of dyslexia, she was set up with her own ARD schedule. Taylor made learning plans are not common in private schools around us. My wife is of mostly private school / home school background and I am of public school education. We both agree, through much trial and angst, that public school is a better option for our children, simply because of resources and options offered. My daughter was an outstanding Jr. AF ROTC officer after her 3rd and 4th year of ROTC. Not an option at private schools. Lastly, let the teachers stick to the basics of education. When a classroom discussion takes a tangential and extra-curricular turn, then the core subject matter loses its due exposure. When kids are talking about queer / lifestyle issues with their teacher, then the established curriculum doesn't get adequate coverage. Our nation's test scores are proof.

[@biblicalworldview1]

If these conversations (LGBT, systemic racism, etc.) are not happening at home, that is the parents perogative. It is not the school's job or a teacher's job to teach these things. Teaching that these things exist cannot be without bias from a teacher's perspective. The parents get to decide period.

[@TigerRoseable]

School voucher programs give EVERY family the opportunity to send their child wherever they want. Every child gets the same amount of money per voucher. Basically they're taking the state-allocated amount per child and allowing EVERY FAMILY to choose where to utilize those dollars. There IS NO DISCRIMINATION in this process unless, as Taylor said, the child's parents choose not to send their child to a better school.

[@withlove6973]

Part 2 please

[@orla8006]

The school system is not a place for "social issues." ESPECIALLY for any student under the age of 18. That's something to be talked about with family and friends, it's WAY too easy to push your own opinion as a teacher. School is there to prepare you for a career, nothing more. It is not a teacher's place to speak on social issues or to bring them up in class, you have no idea what the parent wants in that situation. You have no right to influence or indoctrinate someone else's child on what you think is right.

[@JROB447]

Tell that to Ruby Bridges

[@JROB447]

were the civil rights movement, chinese exclusion act, irish and italian immigrant discrimination not social issues?

[@Cloud19399]

School is supposed to teach you about navigating the world - social issues absolutely belong within their scope. They have the right to teach that.

[@TennSingtsuan9697]

You look amazing!

[@dreamweaver1603]

They never had these problems when I was in school. Teachers could be political, they could talk about politics. But they always knew there were some things they wouldn’t talk about. Not that there weren’t the outliers with teachers being inappropriate with students, but for the most part a parent could feel that their kids would go to school and get an education that wouldn’t be totally divergent from their own values.

[@bluesky5384]

Refreshing debate, especially after seeing the feminist "debate" lol. Really love that educators like Kali exist, because it's hard to find as a teacher.

[@logann-mackenziefroste563]

I agree with Amala in that if parents have a say in the education it has to be all the parents involved and not just one small group of parents who only want what their beliefs are.

[@Natalia-09]

Florida actually has school of choice. It was done more as a first come first serve type situation but did have preferences for kids who’s older siblings were at the school and kids within the same county. Honestly I haven’t noticed anything too different expect for having a choice. The only thing I really saw was sports teams being stacked at one school because all the talented players would choose to go to the same school. I don’t know if it’s just my area where the school’s actual quality is about the same before school choice.

[@tvtvtfan3767]

My high school had more than 4000 students. We had about 10 buildings as well as a couple of trailers and pod trailers. Our building were label as this 100 building , 200, 300 and so on. I live in a blue state in the sound and in a small town. We are really close to the city though. We had a mix of really rich kids, to middle class, and lower class. There was also a thing call the career that was connected to other schools in our county where you take even more classes other AP class or specialize class, foreign language not offer at your home school, maybe a trade class so you would also meet other kids from other schools.

[@jayg7435]

Real quick, the teachers on the left wanted to through that Ideology in as if it necessary for children to know. No one cares that a male teacher is wearing makeup. If a kid asks, the teacher should say, " Because I like to wear makeup," and continue doing your job!!!!

[@CommonSense14537]

That's what Desmond said. He said the kids don't know about his sexuality because he's there to teach curriculum. If a parent asks about the makeup he says "because I think it's fun." I think the same answer would be appropriate for a child asking that question. If the child continues along a path outside the curriculum is where any teacher (no matter their beliefs are or whether they're right or left) should be saying "You know, that's a great question! I'd love for you to have that discussion at home when your parents/caregivers have time to answer it more fully than I can right now. At the moment, we're learning about math, so we need to focus on that."

[@JROB447]

Did you watch the video or do you just want to argue

[@just_blumpin_off]

“Intelligence and character” the problem is you can not teach intelligence. Education and intelligence are not the same