Graduating = Option? I Don't Think So...

I felt the need to write a comment in regard to a recent post made by one of my wonderful classmates, Danielle. Like myself, Danielle wrote a post titled "Graduating is NOT an option" about the education system here in Texas, only hers had more to do with the graduation rate and less about the money. Danielle mentioned that Texas is the 2nd highest state with the most public school attendees, and ranks 43rd in the nation when it comes to the graduation rate. Talk about some incredibly depressing numbers, and sadly, this isn't news to me. What really surprised me was what Carrie mentioned in her follow-up response to Danielle's blog. She said that the graduating class of 2011 was the first class that had to take four years of math and science. WHAT?! Now paint me gold and call me confused (don't ask me where I heard that, ha ha), but your telling me that kids in Texas weren't required to take math and science classes EVERY YEAR they were in high school? This is ridiculously unbelievable to me, and now I can sort of understand why students here in Texas may be having such a hard time graduating. Danielle mentioned that Texans may need to shift their priorities from sports to things like math and science, and I wholeheartedly agree. Personally, I also believe that if public schools started teaching things like contraception and not just abstinence, more children would not get pregnant and be forced to drop out (in 2011, Texas had the third highest teen birth rate in the nation). Sorry, but I'm a realist, not an idealist. I agree with Danielle and Carrie, but unfortunately don't see the numbers drastically changing anytime soon.