Throughout Davidson’s piece, one of the most consistent characteristics is her blatant and unapologetic bias. Though some partisanship should be expected regarding the iPod experiment, which she does acknowledge, it is her bashing of the education system as we know it which is far more noteworthy. She makes repeated references to how outdated America’s schools are and frequently compares them to the industrial era that occurred centuries ago. At one point Davidson exclaims, “Ichabod Crain lives!” (56) This makes reference to the lack of adaptation of the education system, comparing it to the kind of system that the 1820’s Ichabod Crain would have wanted. However, this is a clear exaggeration that demonstrates her reluctance to recognize the obvious advancements that have been made. Additionally, the use of this kind of rhetoric in a professional paper makes her come across as a bit childish and narrow-minded. Later, she writes, “As long as we define [students’] success by a unified set of standards, we will continue to miss their gifts.” (61). Her use of the word “gifts” is another indication of her bias. This word carries a positive connotation, which causes the reader to associate it with happiness. As a result, Davidson is painting the education system as somewhat of a grinch who goes around stealing gifts. While there is truth in much of what Davidson writes, that is not grounds for the audience to disregard the harsh severity and one-sidedness of the statements she makes.
I really liked how you compared the Grinch to Davidson's view of the education system. That was a really out-of-the-box kind of idea that I personally could not have come up with. I'm assuming that in this case, since the Grinch is the education system, the knowledge the kid's could gain is the toys? So not only does the education system need some improvements, it is actually stealing the skills that students will need for their futures.
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