What is the Value of Life, Pt. 6: Education

Summary: One of the most astonishing news stories of the past couple of weeks is the large number of people taking an animal dewormer, ivermectin, in an attempt to cure or prevent COVID-19 without taking an FDA-approved vaccination. The problem is so widespread that the <a href="https://www.fda.gov/consumers/consumer-updates/why-you-should-not-use-ivermectin-treat-or-prevent-covid-19">FDA released a lengthy statement</a> about why ivermectin shouldn’t be taken, especially in the doses intended for horses and other large animals. The lack of logic here is astounding. There are three drugs, all administered as vaccinations, approved for the treatment of COVID-19 in the United States. They have been tested, vetted, and the Pfizer vaccine has full FDA approval. Making things even better, they’re free. You don’t have to pay for them. Just show up at your local pharmacy in most cases and they’ll be happy to give you a jab. So, if an approved medicine is available for free, why would anyone take an unapproved drug that is proven to be dangerous? This is just one of a growing number of incongruencies that lead us to question whether our secondary school <a href="http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/education/2013/11/science_education_in_america_why_k_12_students_fall_behind_in_science.html">science education is failing</a> and the <a href="https://lbj.utexas.edu/news/2012/decline-american-education">decline of the whole education system</a> in the United States. What’s wrong? Every child in the United States is required by law to attend school, regardless of where they live, what their economic or family situation might be, their religion, their gender, or their presumed capacity for learning. If everyone is going to school for at least twelve years, then why aren’t we, as a nation, smart enough to not take horse medicine? Researchers, teachers, and pundits offer <a href="https://hechingerreport.org/third-indication-u-s-educational-system-deteriorating/">plenty of excuses</a> for this problem. Everything from decreasing school funding, excessive emphasis on standardized testing, child and family poverty, the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/heres-what-no-child-left-behind-got-wrong-2015-3">No Child Left Behind Act</a>, and plenty of other factors have a part in explaining why a high school education in 2021 is less valuable than, say, a high school education in 1975. Not that 1975 was infallible, mind you. The American educational system has a long history of bias and underserving particular populations, such as <a href="https://www.brookings.edu/articles/unequal-opportunity-race-and-education/">people of color</a> and children from <a href="https://theredroad.org/issues/native-american-education/">indigenous families</a>. What has become evident, though, <a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2020/03/19/pandemic-shakes-worlds-education-systems#https://www.hrw.org/news/2020/03/19/pandemic-shakes-worlds-education-systems#">born out through the challenges of the pandemic</a>, is that our education system has some pretty severe flaws. Equally disturbing is what seems to be <a href="https://www.studioatao.org/post/understanding-anti-intellectualism-in-the-u-s">a rise in anti-intellectualism</a> in the United States, further devaluing not only the education system but those who appear to be well-educated or in some fashion smarter than others. Anti-intellectualism isn’t new, historian Richard Hofstadter took a deep look at the problem in his book, <a href="https://www.google.com/books/edition/Anti_intellectualism_in_American_Life/32rnqpOdlxQC?hl=en">Anti-intellectualism in American Life</a> all the way back in 1963. Devaluing education is a uniquely American thing to do. For far too many people,

What is the Value of Life, Pt. 6: Education

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