My memory, like my father’s, is occasionally creative. I remembered a someone writing that England’s public schools were dedicated to the idea “…that Tennyson would never happen again….” Then, recently, I started re-reading a Wodehouse book.
“…It was almost as if these [English public] schools, founded in the 1830s, had it for their main objective that Shelley and Byron would never happen again….”
(Introduction by Wilfred Sheed (1975) to “Leave in to Psmith”, P. G. Wodehouse (1924))
That both corrected my memory of the passage and, along with something my oldest daughter showed me, started me writing this post.
I’ll get to that, after a clarification or three.
- “Public” Schools, Puritans, Progressives, and Attitudes
- My Year as a Teacher
- Making a Difference
- America’s Founding Ideals, Ongoing Efforts
“Public” Schools, Puritans, Progressives, and Attitudes
Thomas Nast, Harper’s Weekly magazine. (November 8, 1873)
English public schools aren’t “public” the way American public schools are.
In England, “public” schools will take students from anywhere: provided that their parents pay them to process the kids. Over here, we’d call them “private” schools.
American “public” schools are government entities, with a convoluted history going back to colonial days.
Basically, they started with New England Puritans and got a boost in the Progressive Era, so you know they’re a wonderful idea.
Or not, depending on how closely one looks at my country’s history: and, of course, individual viewpoints.1
I think learning to read, write, do basic arithmetic, and getting introduced to various crafts, are good ideas.
I even think that giving the children of recent immigrants, not-so-recent immigrants, and folks whose ancestors made treaties that weren’t recognized until my youth, a ‘This is America 101’ briefing is a good idea. Or could be.
But as the sort of person ardent promoters of American public schools saw as a threat, I’m not a huge fan of the system. Not as it developed.
The year I spent trying to teach in one of these processing units affected, I’ll grant, my perceptions and opinions.
My Year as a Teacher
My first, and last, teaching job was in Dunseith, North Dakota. Then, as now, a few hundred folks call it home.2 Urban amenities like traffic jams and gangs were in short supply, but I liked the town and my neighbors.
The high school: I don’t know what was going on there.
Teachers were, I think, trying to teach their subjects. So was I: English, journalism, and something else I forget.
The folks running the place: again, I don’t know what was going on. I do know that anomalies encouraged me to start a journal, which I later turned over to folks involved with the teacher’s union.
And yes, I was in a union: my first and last experience with that American institution, which is another topic for another time.
The only oddity that stayed in my memory was being told to stand watch outside another teacher’s classroom and report undesirable behavior. I am not making that up.
At the end of the school year, the school administration didn’t renew my contract. I also learned that I was, ostensibly, responsible for the school’s woes — the last half-dozen-plus years of them.
Folks I’d gotten to know there told me that the accusation was, I’ll be polite, a lot of hooey. And standard practice for labeling new teachers who failed to win approval.
At that, I fared better than the school counselor.
The Curious Case of the Vanishing Counselor
He was, ethnically, like many of the students: someone whose ancestors had been here since long before Vikings, and then other Europeans, got interested in this continent.
Part-way through the school year he disappeared, showing up later several states over before coming back to his office.
My guess is that he knew more about what was going on than I did, took what was happening to the kids far more personally, and decided that his sanity would benefit from an unscheduled break in routine.
I hope that unofficial sabbatical helped. I liked him, and think he took what should have been his job seriously.
A Student Newspaper and ‘Problem’ Students
My time there wasn’t all bleak.
As part of teaching journalism, I had the class put together a school newspaper.
They did a pretty good job, and I think they enjoyed what they were doing. Partly, I suspect, because I told them, after sketching out how the publication could be organized, that I was around for any technical questions they had, and that it was their paper: the content was up to them.
There was some sort of dramatic presentation, too, but I don’t remember much about that.
Another high point came as my wife and I were packing, getting ready to leave. A small group of the ‘problem students’ came to apologize for being the reason I was leaving.
I assured them that we were okay, and that they weren’t the problem. I hope I phrased it well enough.
Seriously: they were ‘problem students’, and had attitude in abundance. But, when it comes to that, I have attitude. And I wasn’t facing more time in that institution.
They were — okay, and I was okay with them. I’ll leave it at that.
Making a Difference
Our oldest daughter was very young when we lived in Dunseith. We lived near the school, and near a Dunseith landmark: the Wee’l Turtle, a massive sculpture made of implement wheels, if my memory serves.
She loved that turtle.
Fast-forward about four decades. I remember the turtle, but she doesn’t. She does, however, remember my talking about the school, the kids, and my concerns.
Last week, she shared this with me:
“Hey! Just got this response to a comment I made ranting about your old teaching job:”
‘I’m Crow and my aunt is a retired teacher. I just wanted you to know that there are now many college educated Crow Indian teachers. My cousin’s daughter is a Principal at a small school on the Rez. My cousin is being encouraged to apply for the Principal position at another small town school. My ex teaches Crow Language for grades K-8 at an academy on the Rez. Maybe your Dad taught my cousin or my ex. He made a difference. Let him know.’
(From a Discord chat with my oldest daughter (December 3, 2025)
Following that person’s recommendation, she let me know.
Reading it was a real comfort.
The degree to which I made a difference, that’s something I still don’t know. Not for sure. But it’s reassuring to hear that some good has come out of a situation I was briefly part of.
America’s Founding Ideals, Ongoing Efforts
Finally, the usual links; this week, how I see America’s ongoing efforts to act as if our founding ideals matter — and living in a country where some citizens don’t approve of people like me:
- “Building a Civilization of Life and Love, One Mind at a Time” (November 15, 2025)
- “Principles, Priorities, Politics: and Being Catholic” (September 21, 2024)
- “Independence Day, 2024: America and Context, a Short Ramble” (July 4, 2024)
- “My Church in Sauk Centre, Minnesota: Vandalized” (September 24, 2022)
- “History, Viewpoints, Narratives and Ancient Rome” (July 2, 2022)
- Historical Narratives (Considering Custer, viewpoints, and details)
1 An author, two poets, English “public” schools, and (briefly) schools in America:
- Wikipedia
- My admittedly-biased view of the Progressive Era and Puritan perspectives
- “Couney’s Baby Incubators vs. the Progressive Era” (February 8, 2021)
- “Spiritualism, Attitudes” (June 1, 2018)
2 A small town south of the Turtle Mountains and a special place:
- Wikipedia
- Dunseith, North Dakota
- International Peace Garden
- Turtle Mountain (plateau) (AKA Turtle Mountains)
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