Y’all are a smart bunch, so I bet none of you ever think about school the way I did, wondering: “Do I really need this knowledge? Is this really going to help me when I get into the real world?” In case you ever do have those thoughts, the answer is: YES, you DO need to know grammar, geography, comparative politics, the periodic table, and how to figure a sine, among other things. Bad things could happen if you don’t; bad things, man.

The following examples are real newspaper headlines:

“How To Speak And Write Like a Colleg Graduate” Headline, Norfolk Virginia Pilot

“Are Young Americans Be Getting Stupider?” Headline, Corvallis (Oregon) Gazette-Times

“Illiteracy Is Still a Poblem Among Mississippi Adults” Headline, Hendersonville (Mississippi) Times-News

“Everything You Wanted to Know About High School But Was Afraid To Ask” Flyer sent to parents by a Long Island, New York school

“Why is he not learning or leaning so but so little, with my help. How comes his past teachers have been passing him from grade to grade without he progressing or advancing academicly. I will like to know what is causing the mental blockage.” Student evaluation written by Brooklyn, New York elementary school teacher

Study hard, or it could happen to you.

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