A.P.A.T.H.Y.

For the 2024-2025 school year, I transitioned from homeschooling to teaching in public schools again as I enrolled my children. I was excited to return after several years away, but I also felt anxious about my children making the shift from four years of homeschooling to a traditional school environment.

Unfortunately, what I've encountered has saddened me. Many inner-city students seem to have developed apathy toward learning; they don't understand the purpose of being in school. While behavioral issues can be managed and poverty alleviated through programs like free lunch, addressing this apathy proves to be incredibly challenging. Schools are ill-equipped to tackle the problem of apathy.

The main problem with apathy is that it can only be addressed with inspiration and the revival of dead and broken spirits. This can come from inspired teachers, but that has not been a significant focus in education for a long time. As long as a teacher can produce students who pass state tests, the need to be inspirational is often overlooked.

I long for the day when a generation of K-12 students once again believes in the value of learning and embraces their roles as students. Until then, many schools will continue languishing with dullness and a lack of inspiration among students. And it does not have to be that way; there is hope. But we must find a way to address the apathy.