June 16th, 2008
Quote of the day: Accomplishment before adulation
“You know, sometimes I’ll go to an eighth-grade graduation and there’s all that pomp and circumstance and gowns and flowers. And I’ll think to myself, it’s just eighth grade. . . . Let’s just give them a handshake and tell them to get their butts back in the library!”
– Barack Obama, Father’s Day Speech, 6/15/08
Paul Warloski on June 25, 2008
As a seventh grade teacher who has watched a lot of 8th grade “graduation” ceremonies, I fully agree with Obama. Yes, we need a ritual to mark the ending of this time of “childhood.” But it’s just part of the larger picture of a kids’ education process.