Thanks to the whizzes in President Barack Obama's administration, especially at the Department of Education, many of the nation's public school children won't be listening with their classmates to their leader's study-hard-even-though-I won't-reveal-my-school-transcripts inspirational back to school speech on Tuesday, the day after Labor Day.

And it is not because evil, right wing fanatical parents and school district administrators, clinging to their religion and guns, won't let their tykes hear Obama. Oh no! It is more basic than that!

You see, they won't be in school! Officially. Because the 2009-2010 has not yet started. That's right, children in the nation's largest school districts, Los Angeles and New York, as well as in Buffalo and Arlington N.Y., Seattle, Washington and Eugene, Oregon don't begin school until two days after Labor Day. By then Obama's speech will be forgotten, as moving on to even more vulnerable minds, Obama will be busy trying to convince Congress to accept his massive proposed changes to health care insurance. But the students in Boston might at least get a chance to hear Obama speak to Congress at home because they don't begin classes until three days after Labor Day, on a Thursday. Hot Air has the information.

The day after Labor Day is the first day of school for the Chicago Public Schools, recently headed by Arne Duncan, now head of the Department of Education, and for other school districts so students there will probably have an opportunity to hear the speech. However, as a former teacher I know the first few days of school are a very busy time for both students and teachers: meeting new teachers or new students, adjusting to a new routine, getting and passing out books and other supplies, learning some new rules, reinforcing the old ones, solving the inevitable last minute problems.

Interrupting this for a brief televised talk, either in class or trooping off to an assembly, is disruptive, taking away class time from other important activities. And students, being the normal kids they mostly are, will find the talk meaningless at best, laughable at worst. Definitely not inspirational. And having an assignment from the president on the first day of class, in addition to other homework--ew-w-w-w!

Of course if the Department of Education could just find an old video of say, Michael Jackson, singing and dancing about the importance of school, that might make a difference.