Do teachers tell lies?
Dr. Wallace: Our science teacher told the class that smoking cigarettes leads to taking drugs. We had a big class discussion on the subject. The entire class disagreed, but the teacher said that we were wrong and that he was right. I went to our principal to complain, but he said that the teacher “must know what he is talking about because he is a very smart man.”
I smoke cigarettes, my parents smoke cigarettes and so do my older sister and my best friend, but none of us take drugs and none of us plan to start. How can teachers get away with telling lies? I thought they were supposed to tell the truth all the time? — Bernie, New York, N.Y.
Bernie: What your teacher should have said was that the great majority of drug users started out by smoking cigarettes, but that many people who smoke do not use drugs.
Dr. Wallace: I’m 18 and the guy I’m seeing is 19. I met him at a party and we’ve been dating for about six months. Whenever he is with me he’s really sweet and a total gentleman. But when he’s not with me he’s a troublemaker.
Already I have found out that he’s been in jail twice and arrested several times for semiserious offenses. I also discovered that he has two children by two different girls and that he doesn’t pay any support money. I just recently found out that he beat up his last girlfriend so bad that she had to be hospitalized, but he didn’t get into trouble because she wouldn’t press charges.
All of my friends are telling me to get rid of this guy before he does something bad to me. He has admitted the bad things he’s done are true, but he says he loves me and would never hurt me. I really do care for him and I believe him because he is always a sweetheart when he is with me. What do you think I should do?
ROBERT WALLACE
— Nameless, South Bend, Ind.
Nameless: Regardless of how he treats you now, he is a good-for-nothing louse who should be locked up for a long time.
Get rid of him immediately, if not sooner! This guy is a total loser and you have no future with him.
Teens: Who says parents aren’t role models for their children? If you’re planning on going to college, chances are at least one of your parents has a college degree. According to a report by the U.S. Department of Education, 82 percent of those students whose parents earned college degrees also enrolled in college after high school graduation. The rates were 54 percent for those whose parents were high school graduates but not college grads, and 36 percent for those students whose parents did not have a high school diploma.
Actually, these figures are rather encouraging. But the report does suggest that educators should focus on getting all students to begin thinking about preparing for college while they are in middle school. No student who has the desire to attend college and the ability to succeed should be denied the chance to earn a bachelor’s degree.
My parents both immigrated from Ireland and neither graduated from high school. In fact, they both left school after completing seventh grade. I only mention this to show that a college degree is obtainable for those who place a high premium on education.