I keep hearing arguments about the current condition of our educational system, and I see the results at the checkout line of stores where young adults are lost at making change without electronic devices informing them what the change should be.

I believe that somewhere along the line, society has tried to make education too easy for children. I remember when I was a high school senior, forty-nine years ago, how appalled I was when an English teacher assigned each of us to do a Literary Comparison paper. My assignment was to read OF HUMAN BONDAGE by William Somerset Maugham and THE CITADEL by A.J. Cronin. Although I started my reading feeling I would endure torture, I soon found myself enjoying the books. Writing a good paper… partly to prove to the teacher that I read the books… became a challenge and fantastic learning experience. From this one assignment, I developed a passion for reading and for writing.

Although I am not an educator, I believe our public schools would do well to demand all teachers challenge their students rather than concentrating on results of government mandated tests. This challenge needs to cover all subjects. We need to remember that the educational system of the 1960s worked, and I contend it worked because students were not allowed to skate. Teachers demanded performance, and most students performed.