It is beyond question that Maine used to have a very good education system and now we don’t. This doesn’t stop at our state border. The truth is that for most of the 20th century American intelligence and ingenuity were the envy of the world. Now Our kids I.Q. Scores are dropping for the first time in 100 years. They are getting dumber and there are ways to stop it.

1. A major part of the problem is the dramatic rise of ADHD in children. They are spending too much time doing unnatural things in unnatural environments. We need to ban smart phones for kids until they are 16 and ban social media for kids until they are 17. 
2. We need a larger focus in education outside the classroom. That means spending a larger part of the day outside—either learning about the natural world or engaging in educational play.
3. We need an emphasis on what works. We need to return to kids reading and doing non-technology based work. Writing with a pen and paper, reading actual books. These help train the mind and lengthen attention span. We need mandatory education for all high school students that cover democracy, the responsibility of self-rule, and the meaning of things like justice. We need them to graduate with some degree of financial literacy. We also need them to have addiction awareness training. This shouldn’t just be for addictive drugs, but things like internet porn, which is brainwashing generations of kids starting as young as 10 or 12 years old. They need to understand how it’s changing their attitudes toward relationships, dating, and love.