The New York Times has just published an article on recent efforts by not-particularly-enlightened legislators to “help” students learn by punishing their parents. It’s titled Whose Failing Grade Is It?

Here’s a Diane Ravitch quote from the article:

That is not surprising, said Diane Ravitch, an education historian and the author of “The Death and Life of the Great American School System.” Yes, parenting can be “taught” Ms. Ravitch said, but not this way.

“If we could just find the right person to punish,” she said of the philosophy behind too many education reform plans. “Punish the teachers. Punish the parents. It’s Dickensian. What we should be doing instead is giving a helping hand.”

I’ve written about several of these misguided efforts in the past, and you can read those posts here.