Quote:
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Grandpa came from a period when academic rigor was the norm, rather than the exception.
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And just when was that? 
While it used to be true that a student who didn't care much about learning could slide through high school in low-level classes and earn a diploma without learning much, changes in accountability and exit-testing over the last couple of decades have largely eliminated this option, and public schools now face the predictable problem of large numbers of low-achieving students not graduating (nearly 1/3 of eligible students here in Texas fail to graduate high school).
On the other end of the grading scale, however, more public school students than ever are now taking advantage of high caliber learning opportunities (AP and Honors courses, IB programs, dual-credit options with local colleges while still attending high school, etc) which rival what was formerly available only in the most exclusive private schools.
There are multiple realities in a typical public school today, and students who are motivated to challenge themselves with the highest level of classes are apt to find that intellectual challenges are both varied and plentiful.
Consider this fact as well - published admissions statistics for Harvard's class of 2007 show an overall admission rate of 9% (2,056 of 20,918 applications) - of which 65% of the entering class attended public high schools and 35% attended private schools. The geographical breakdown for the entering students was New England 17%; Middle Atlantic 24%; South 16%; Midwest 11%; Pacific 20%; and International 12%.
From this, I would infer that - contrary to the myths - there were obviously plenty enough challenges in the public schools for the public high school graduates who were admitted to Harvard.
I would also infer that none of these students were among those interviewed by Jay Leno in the linked video.
People can
freeze (struggle to remember or speak coherently) when confronted with a celebrity or an on-camera interview, but it would be interesting to know how many people Leno interviewed and just how much editing had to be done to make this
amusing video.
Richard's $.02
