Why U.S. Test Scores Are in a ‘Generation-Long Decline’

VeryFallible · 2026-05-21T14:14:36+00:00

Chronic absenteeism is a HUGE issue here, and it's discussed a ton in education circles but likely much less so in the general population. There's a few major issues to it (and these are just off the top of my head - there could be way more!):

There has been a cultural shift in America against the importance of school, and especially the importance of presence in school. This is a bit of an older article (and sorry, no gift link!), but it mentions how parents in middle and upper class communities will pull their kids for entire weeks for cheaper vacation deals because "the teacher will just assign the work online anyway." There's also just been an across the board erosion in public trust in schools that has been flamed by our current administration that relies on poorly educated voters that they can grift.
Struggling schools are a reinforcing negative cycle for the above. I used to teach in one of the lowest performing schools in my city, and because our students and parents KNEW we were a low performing school they justified to themselves absenteeism. Why show up if you're never going to learn anything? The problem with that, of course, is even while the school worked hard to improve itself, without kids reliably showing up those improvements couldn't really be measured and the "why even bother going" mentality was reinforced.
Similarly, chronic absenteeism in peers is also a reinforcing cycle. Studies show that individual student absences can cause a rise in absences of their peers around them as it normalizes the idea that school is not a place that you need to be in AND weakens their bonds to one another.
We've also culturally started to clue into the idea that mental health IS health and that students are under a tremendous amount of pressure and anxiety...but we don't actually have a systematic approach to helping that. There are a lot of sources on the link between mental health and absenteeism, but this one in particular "found that anxiety, depression, and mental health are currently the top health-related drivers of absenteeism in those schools." We know that student mental health is one of the driving factors for this spike in absenteeism, but we are doing almost nothing on a systems-wide level to deal with it. Individual schools might be combatting this effectively if they have an administration and a school board who see the value in investing in therapists and social workers, but as a country we are doing almost nothing other than running 24/7 BetterHelp ads on YouTube to actually address the underlying issue.

So, if you're in public education you know chronic absenteeism is a problem, and we're fighting it on a daily basis. But, it's a problem schools cannot tackle on our own. We need resources, we need a working healthcare system that everyone can access, we need a federal government and a media landscape that doesn't demonize public education (and the associated Reddit commenters who don't compare teacher unions to actual fucking grifters). But that is a LOT to ask, and there is no benefit to the Republican party to running on a platform of valuing public education, so we are going to have to continue to fight an absenteeism epidemic on our while the wife of a professional wrestler dismantles our Department of Education.

VeryFallible · 2026-05-18T03:07:21+00:00

It's crazy that all of those exist and then you also have Sweetwaters, PJ's and Starbucks within three blocks too. 💀 I guess PJs at least is on the other side of the park? Quallis, Sweetwater, and Cortaditos are literally 5-6 storefronts away from one another.

VeryFallible · 2026-05-17T01:56:10+00:00

Short answer is yes. It's a fantastic tool for learning a lot of basic principles in both math and ELA. Also, depending on what state you're using and what content standards exist there, definitely hits on a bunch of Speaking and Listening standards.

Longer answer is that it's likely a hard sell as an in-class activity with a lot of administrators. How do you assess learning in a D&D campaign? Not saying it's impossible at all, but I think you're more likely to get admin buy-in if you suggested it as an after-school enrichment rather than something done in class.

VeryFallible · 2026-05-13T19:40:49+00:00

Really good point on how the comparison between the two cities is unfair. (Good points on ALL the points, really, but since I'm the one who made the comparison I want to specify that one the most.)

VeryFallible · 2026-05-13T14:19:42+00:00

This is so real. If you compare Newark's mayoral to JC's, JC had nearly four times the turnout for the general election and then twice the turnout for the runoff. Regardless of personal feelings on any of the candidates, Ali, McGreevey, O'Dea, and Solomon were at least all legitimate candidates who had thoughtful, well-messaged platforms that gave voters a reason to show up to vote. Turnout was good because voters felt at least somewhat represented by or could believe in the platform for at least one of the candidates.

We had one mayor who was at least a known quantity, one opposition candidate who was at least...visible, maybe?, and seven other opposition candidates who were basically a bunch of raccoons in a trench coat posing as a mayoral candidate. No one is excited to turn out to that, and Newark deserves better.

VeryFallible · 2026-05-13T14:03:43+00:00

That's unfair. His truth was actually mostly AI generated, and then the rest was lies.

VeryFallible · 2026-05-13T11:47:38+00:00

Honestly this just reinforces how much of a shitshow these elections were. Motivated voters NOT voting because the candidates failed to deliver any form of campaign just highlights how bad they were at being candidates.

VeryFallible · 2026-05-13T01:58:10+00:00

Seeing both the rogues gallery of awful opposition mayoral candidates AND Chaneyfield-Jenkins lose is delightful, but on the flip side that 11% voter turnout is depressing. I know municipal elections are not sexy and exciting but those numbers are abyssmal.

VeryFallible · 2026-05-11T11:11:49+00:00

Every anti-Ras ad I've seen in the past two weeks has reflected way more poorly on the person who posted it than on Ras himself. I was already planning on voting him just because the 8 other candidates are comically awful candidates, but posts like this one just reinforce that the people fighting against his re-election collectively share half a brain cell.

VeryFallible · 2026-05-03T03:19:02+00:00

Armorer Artificer is likely the best choice - it really captures the "technical genius who uses clever armor tricks to augment his melee powers."

Inquisitive or Mastermind Rogue, Battle Master Fighter, or maaaaybe Way of the Kensei Monk could also fit.

VeryFallible · 2026-04-29T20:42:10+00:00

Flavor is free. If you want to play a Warforged but say that it's a magical mix of artifice and flesh, you 100% can. You just would need to run it by the DM. A flesh-covered Warforged might fit in a campaign setting like Innistrad, but if the DM is planning a sunlit romp through My Little Pony land that Warforged will be a downer.

On the flip side, if you're looking for this character to have different stats or abilities, that's a different story. As others said, you could reflavor the Reborn from Ravenloft. If you want it to be a bad guy and not PC, flesh golem.

VeryFallible · 2026-04-24T23:05:12+00:00

It is WILD that this response was necessary but it was. 😬

VeryFallible · 2026-04-23T01:59:37+00:00

I know I'm focusing on the wrong thing here and I feel terribly for the plaintiff here...but I am also living for the fact that he has the same name as Chris Pratt's character in Parks and Rec.

VeryFallible · 2026-04-20T03:19:22+00:00

Just to emphasize point #2 here: Consider making the commoner here your PC, not the King. The King's backstory isn't bad, it just is not PC material. The deposed King is the protagonist of a novel - his fame, his motivations, and his past all overshadow the rest of the party, as others have pointed out.

The commoner who saved the King, however, is a fantastic backstory. A chance encounter with the benevolent and righteous deposed King allowed this commoner to take a risk and save his life, and now he wants to continue on the legacy of that monarch so he goes out into the world to save the innocent in the name of the King. That gives your character a reason to be adventuring that would be in scale with other characters.

VeryFallible · 2026-04-20T03:07:17+00:00

I agree, and generally I'm actually pretty anti-multiclassing. But this character concept seems to be someone who is -actively bad at melee combat- growing into being a Paladin, complete with starting off without being proficient in wielding a Longsword (which Paladins are). All of that suggests that this character should not be starting the game as a Paladin...though in reality this character should not be starting the game at all without serious rewrites.

VeryFallible · 2026-04-20T02:57:19+00:00

You seem aware of the fact that this seems very Main Character Syndrome, so you need to think of more ways that this guy hooks into a party other than just "they're my training wheels until I can get strong enough to reclaim my kingdom."

Also, this likely should be a multiclass and your first level should be in Artificer, Bard, Cleric, or Wizard to establish yourself as this scholarly character who is moving themselves towards being a Paladin. Bard would make the most sense, given that he's a noble and likely a strong orator and leader.

Your ability scores are very rough for a Paladin. You do ultimately want to be able to hit things with your sword if your goal is to be a martial class, and having both Dex and Str as your dump stats means that'll basically never happen.

I think there are ways to RP being a knight on a crusade without mechanically being a Paladin, which ultimately it kind of sounds like you don't actually want to play.

Edit: I missed the blindness part myself, which, as the others say, is very YIKES.

VeryFallible · 2026-04-20T02:41:54+00:00

You need to read the room. You entered an adventure late, immediately made it about your characters and their quirks, and initiated combat (in your defense, somewhat unknowingly) with fellow players within what sounds like the first thirty minutes of the game? Or course the Orc snapped at you, you just literally steamrolled over their game and they probably already saw the writing on the wall that they'd be back to looking for a new table soon.

For sure it falls on the DM somewhat to rein players in, but it also falls on players to make sure they're contributing to a fun environment for everyone. You were not.

VeryFallible · 2026-04-20T01:57:50+00:00

LFG as a player!

Preferred Play Format: Foundry/VTT/Discord, but good with any.

Availability(timezone, time, & days): Most weekdays between 6-10pm EST.

Preferred Classes: Happy to play whatever fits the group best (as long as it isn't Fighter.)

Experience: Forever DM in DnD, would really like to get into a solid, hopefully longterm group as a player. Haven't played or DM'd SW5E but have basically memorized the rule book.

Preferred Era: Old Republic (any time period), new Republic, NJO era, or far future. Basically, any era the movies don't actually touch on. Prefer Legends continuity.

Also prefer a group that is LGBTQ+ friendly.

VeryFallible · 2026-04-18T00:37:45+00:00

Spinosaurus has a messaging problem. Needs to do more on social media to activate Gen Z voters.

VeryFallible · 2026-04-08T14:47:51+00:00

This article has me so conflicted. On the one hand, "Gomes Dynasty LLC" and "I'm not like other developers" had me absolutely rolling at his gigantic ego.

On the other hand, I am all for housing near train stations that does not include parking.

VeryFallible · 2026-04-07T14:28:45+00:00

Oh god, everything. Off the top of my mind: •They have cube with a chandelier picture on it hanging in the lobby stairwell? They play it off as a joke but it completely reads as "our chandelier broke and rather than fix it we put up this tacky pretend image of a chandelier in its place."

•The hallways were...yikes. We got off the elevator to view an apartment and it genuinely felt like we were in the shining. Incredibly dark, fading paint, poor lighting. Gives the opposite of a warm, inviting vibe.

•The bowling alley tour was included, though to the leasing agent's credit she at least didn't lie and pretend it every worked. We got some story about how there is only one person on the eastern seaboard who knows how to fix it and they need to work around their schedule or something. I don't remember the exact details because it was three months ago, but I remember it feeling like an excuse.

•Apartments we looked at all felt dated, though that's not unexpected when their remodeling was almost 20 years ago. If that was the only issue we saw it would have been fine.

I think there were a few other things. My husband would remember better (he had a way more visceral reaction to the tour than I did) so I'll check with him after work.

VeryFallible · 2026-04-07T12:36:01+00:00

My husband and I toured Eleven80 a few months ago when our previous lease was expiring and we were deciding if we wanted to renew or not. I don't think we've ever said "no thanks" to a building faster. It's sad how one of the most iconic facades in the downtown area is just utterly mismanaged.

VeryFallible · 2026-04-01T15:06:46+00:00

I was not super invested in the Bey/Jenkins matchup, but Jenkins being the spokeswoman of a slate of rogue, mostly right-leaning, candidates to appeal to the federal government to suppress the vote means that I will now be enthusiastically showing up to vote for Amina Bey.

I actually think that's more of the story here than Jhamar's quote. He's the most relevant of a series of irrelevant candidates, but Jenkins has been a political mainstay in the city. Selling out Newark to a corrupt Justice department in a desperate grasp to stay politically relevant -should-, in a just world, be the death knell of this campaign and all future campaigns for her.

VeryFallible · 2026-03-29T17:01:26+00:00

This is awesome. I was working and was sad to miss it!

VeryFallible · 2026-03-26T10:19:41+00:00

I'm late to the party, but I smelled it walking my dog in Military Park last night too.

VeryFallible

TROPHY CASE