“Go, go down,” says G-d to Moshe, as He informs him of the Golden Calf debacle.  According to the Medrash, the superfluous “go down”  means Moshe is demoted from his great heights of Torah after 40 days/nights on Mt. Sinai.  All his Torah is taken back.

The Jewish people blow it and he loses all his Torah learning?

Yes, says Judaism.  Greatness is something we work for but are blessed with only insofar as it’s used in service of others.  Once the public is not worthy of Moshe’s gift, he can’t possibly deserve to possess it in a vacuum.  The corollary: the more we desire blessing and greatness for both our sake and for others, the more we become a magnet to receive Divine blessing.

Shabbat Shalom,
HH

PS: What kind of tree kept staying home from school?
A Sycamore