RUSH: An eighth-grade student in New York City has written an op-ed in the New York Times that I cannot believe they ran. Thirteen-year-old Veronique Mintz says she’s learning more with distance learning — like at home — than she did when her school was open.

Now, she says that before the coronavirus lockdown, she had to put up with other students talking out of turn in class every day. They destroyed classroom materials, openly disrespected the teachers. They blurted out answers during tests. She says that other students regularly pushed, kicked, and hit each other — and that was life in her middle school. Every. Single. Day.

She also wrote about the problems with so-called “collaborative learning,” which she says accounts for 80% of classroom work in her school. It’s done in groups. Dedicated students have to try to make the unmotivated kids finish assignments and behave.

But distance learning has allowed Ms. Mintz to take control of her own studies. She can now focus on her work, and isn’t being held back by the losers.

Ms. Mintz, I want to thank you. You have single-handedly explained why so many parents in New York and other blue cities want school choice. They want a say in where they send their kids to school so they won’t have to put up with what you’ve been forced to put up with every day until the coronavirus saved you. How ’bout that?