Anarchy 43/High School U.S.A.

268

High School
U.S.A.

JANICE GREER and PEG BLOSSOM

It is time for us to come to grips with the fact that we are the ones re­spons­ible for creating the viol­ence that is present in our so­ciety, and that we can do some­thing about it by real­is­ing what we’re doing. Psychi­atry has laid bare the fact that we af­fect the child in in­fancy and child­hood. But once we put the child in the schools we stop prob­ing. Can’t we con­tinue the search and find out what con­di­tion­ing in the schools fosters so much hatred in adults? The very methods we are so virtu­ous about in the schools are not giving the re­sults we think they are, but are creat­ing an anger and re­sent­ment that lasts the whole of our lives. At the High School level this con­di­tion­ing reaches its peak. The fol­low­ing reaches its peak. The fol­low­ing notes on High Schools are the re­sult of dis­cus­sions between con­cerned parents.

  Schools create life and death pres­sure to suc­ceed, but to suc­ceed into what. High schools pres­sure kids at a Col­lege level for the school’s glory, and parents sit on the side lines and root them on. We take ad­vantage of the fact the chil­dren want to please the parents and teach­ers. They do a lot against their own grain for the parent’s ap­proval (love). The parents ex­ploit this. The students should please them­selves. High School should be a time for self dis­covery, and for sampling at the student’s own speed. In­stead they are taught tech­niques, not how to think. The students should please them­selves.