Austin American Statesman this week profiled a "preschool" that celebrates letting kids "learn about the uglier side of life" by giving them a chance to roll around in mudholes, run around in their underwear, never say "please" or "thank you," and have disco parties. Disco parties? Yes, they were ugly. Shouldn't inflicting disco parties on innocent toddlers be some kind of crime? Even in Texas? Anyway, the school's director also is resolutely against teaching kids their ABCs. One more example of the school of thought that learning and establishing limits on kids' behavior are painful. There are lots of folks out there who believe that. (And from the article it appears that many of them are professionals.) But why does the press have to repeatedly buy into it? Shouldn't reporters at least seek out an expert in child development who might take a different point of view? Shouldn't they be willing to simply state what the folks at Columbia conclude about what kind of curriculum is most appropriate? (See next post.)

The story got quite a reaction. It was posted on a site called "FreeRepublic" and immediately generated 30 comments--about two-thirds of them negative.