Passability

Recent events make me think of this old joke:

Q: What do you call the guy who graduated dead last in his medical school class?

A: Doctor.

Funny, of course, and sad at the same time. When you interview a physician (if you even do interview a prospective new physician) you probably don't ask him his rank in his medical school graduating class. He's got the certificates of higher learning right there on his wall. You assume the possession of those credentials automatically raises him over a certain bar of excellence. Right?

Maybe.

What about extrapolating downward to lower levels of education? My son passed 7th grade English, with a 66. He is now qualified to go on to the 8th grade English curriculum, and he's happy with that because he got over the bar or under the limbo pole or however he looks at it. And he's plenty smart, but completely unmotivated with these unexciting kinds of challenges. In contrast, my older son, the classic overachiever, wouldn't have been happy with anything under a 95, and wouldn't have settled for the standard curriculum -- he needed to challenge himself in the honors class. Both passed English. Both achieved at least a certain level of competency. Right? But which would you rather see help a struggling ESL pupil? No contest.

Now I must say, in all fairness, that my soon to be 8th grader has creative talents up the ying yang: art, out-of-the-box thinking, uncanny ability to relate to small children, and more. But if he wishes to become an art student, elementary school teacher, Phys Ed instructor, marketing consultant, etc. he will need to attain some level of education beyond high school. And it sure would be nice for him to have his choice of institutions, rather than accept the one semi-awful offer extended to him if he does get the high school diploma but continues to squeak by in his core subjects. (You're right if you were thinking that the grades in math, science, and social studies weren't much better.)

Am I being unnecessarily dramatic? I hope I am. But the first 13 years of the young man's life have gone by at what seems like lightning speed, and the next five: I have no reason to suspect that it won't be more of the same. When I was growing up as a young adult in the early eighties, jobs were plentiful and one could earn a great living if willing to work hard. Not so today. People with great work ethics and multiple college degrees are sweating over who'll be chosen for the opening at the local CVS because they can't pay the mortgage. Why should we think it won't be tougher five years from now?

Little light bulb, shine. Please. Pretty please. We're talking about my kid.