Back to blogging

Finally back in the saddle after a nearly-two-week hiatus from blogging. Robert and I returned to the States for our 20-year reunion from graduate school. It was weird and wacky and head-spinningly wonderful. But all the soft-focus reminiscing and revelry made me fuzzy and vague when I returned. My edge was gone, for a minute --

[Section removed at the request of the Jakarta International School.]

This is a middle school English curriculum that I don't understand. That's not good for any parent -- but it's especially bad news for a parent who, before moving to Indonesia two years ago, taught 9th grade English literature at a large high school outside of Chicago. I know all too well what's coming down the track, and it looks like a train-wreck.

Luckily, my daughter reads voraciously on her own, loves to write because she thinks it's fun and challenging, and probably will survive any curriculum thrown her way. But I worry about the other kids -- both the ones who struggle, as well as the really gifted kids who languish. What happens to them?

So I'm getting back on the blog-horse. JIS' work to put the curriculum online is a good step, and I'm optimistic about the efforts and focus of our new adminstration. I think the school is making some great steps. But I'm wondering if we can't do more for the students right now. We don't have another year to wait for huge curricular holes to be plugged. Dialogue is good, and I'd love for someone to explain to me why I've got it all wrong. But until that day comes, I'll keep blogging away.