Oklahoma Mom ‘Embarrassed’ After Daughter Assigned Blake Shelton’s 36-Year-Old Textbook
The mother of an elementary school-aged girl in Oklahoma turned to social media to share a story that illustrates the dire state of the state's education system. Her 7-year-old daughter is currently using a reading textbook that was once assigned to Blake Shelton — in 1982.
According to People, Shelly Bryan Parker lives in Ada, Okla., where Shelton was raised. She turned to Facebook to post a picture of her daughter Marley holding up her copy of a school textbook titled Look Away (Keys to Reading). In a split image, she shows the inside cover of the book, where Shelton signed it out as a student in 1982.
"Marley is EXCITED that her 'new' reader belonged to Blake Shelton, but I am EMBARRASSED!!!! I’m 40 and these people are my age!!!" she writes.
Oklahoma teachers have been on strike recently in protest of a decade of budgets cuts that have squeezed the already-overburdened education system there with basic classroom shortages and led to teachers' salaries that are among the lowest in the country.
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According to Reuters, the Oklahoma Senate passed a $44 million revenue and tax package on Friday (April 6) to fund the state’s public school system, but the amount fell short of new spending the teachers sought. Oklahoma teachers have vowed to extend the already five-day strike into next week. They are asking for $200 million in increased education funding annually.
"Thank you to every teacher/parent/support staffer/etc. for fighting for my kids education!!!" Parker writes. "Don’t give up until education is FULLY FUNDED!!!! #fundOKED #Okwalk4kids #westillloveblake."
Carrie Underwood is also from Oklahoma, and she turned to social media earlier in the week to share her support for her sisters, who are teachers in her home state. She posted a picture of them on the picket line with their sign, writing, "So proud of my sisters...Making a difference for the best reason...KIDS. Here’s hoping OK schools get the funding they need so students and teachers can come back to a great learning environment! Love you guys!"
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