We are tired of cliches. Every mission statement of every school I’ve worked for is full of them. They sound good, but they’re pro forma and have changed little in the past 20 years: “We want our children to become lifelong learners, to feel safe, be critical thinkers, and to recognize real world applications for what they’ve learned in their classrooms.”

Mission statements exist so schools do not get demerits from accreditation panels, and so superintendents/headmasters/principals/presidents can continue to occupy their positions for another year or three. What bunk.