Through three kids grown to adulthood, I've anxiously awaited notification from the schools that there is something "wrong" with them that the school would "help" us address. Not that I expected anything - I didn't. My kids were all well-adjusted, well-liked, extremely well-behaved, and academically performed well above average.
I was anxious because I don't trust the school system in general, even though all indications are that we are in a relatively conservative school district. Nightmare stories of busybodies interfering in health care, parenting, etc., are too prolific to ignore.
But those notifications never came. My oldest three all made it through without raising any of the "red flags" that might set off a chain of events leading to confrontation with the school. And had any administrator or teacher approached us with a demand that we put our child on Ritalin or psychotropic drugs, or try to force us into interfacing with the state or county, believe me, there would have been a confrontation!
I still have a little one. She's in 4th grade. So far, there has been no indication that her experience is any less acceptable than it was for my older daughter and sons. But I realize that our state; our schools; our education system in general; are all morphing rapidly.
I don't worry about her. But I definitely worry about the school. She's of Chinese heritage. Will we run into a liberal busybody who believes we are not "culturally sensitive" because we teach our child to love America, and don't enroll her in Mandarin Chinese classes, or steep her in Chinese cultural events? Not so far. But as always, I anxiously await...
