Now more than ever, parents are in charge of their child’s learning

Imagine being THIS Governor. Just a few weeks ago she was touting all manner of new government programs as part of a downright Orwellian “cradle to career” proposals.  Today this same Gov. Lujan Grisham canceled one of the supposedly core functions of state government (provision of an “adequate education” is in the State of New Mexico Constitution) for the rest of the year.

The order doesn’t impact virtual charters schools like New Mexico Connections Academy (full disclosure, I’m on the board of that school), but I have two kids in traditional public schools, so my wife and I are about to become full-fledged teachers.

In fact, this shut-down exposes the reality that, while we pay a great deal of money (more than $18,000 annually for APS) the reality is that (no matter their education levels) parents are ultimately responsible for their child’s learning. The good news is that there are more options for students than ever before. Schools are supposed to provide resources, but Khan Academy is great. There are numerous other options here.

If you live in an area that doesn’t have great Internet service, that can be a challenge. Hopefully you have books and other reading materials and textbooks.  These are not easy times. It would be great to see a more diverse, market based education system ultimately operating outside of state control that could come up with innovative solutions to these challenges. But, for now, we are all home schoolers.