Posted on 10/05/2009 9:05:59 PM PDT by jazusamo
Recent videos of American children in school singing songs of praise for Barack Obama were a little much, especially for those of us old enough to remember pictures of children singing the praises of dictators like Hitler, Stalin and Mao.
But you don't need a dictator to make you feel queasy about the manipulation of children. The mindset that sees children in school as an opportunity for teachers to impose their own notions, instead of developing the child's ability to think for himself or herself, is a dangerous distortion of education.
Parents send their children to school to acquire the knowledge that has come down to us as a legacy of our culture-- whether it is mathematics, science, or whatever-- so that those children can grow up and go out into the world equipped to face life's challenges.
Too many "educators" see teaching not as a responsibility to the students but as an opportunity for themselves-- whether to indoctrinate a captive audience with the teacher's ideology, manipulate them in social experiments or just do fun things that make teaching easier, whether or not it really educates the child.
You can, of course, call anything that happens in a classroom "education"-- but that does not make it education, except in the eyes of those who cannot think beyond words. Unfortunately, the dumbed-down education of previous generations means that many parents today see nothing wrong with their children being manipulated in school, instead of being educated.
Such parents may see nothing wrong with spending precious time in classrooms chit-chatting about how everyone "feels" about things on television or in their personal life.
But while our children are frittering away time on trivia, other children in other countries are acquiring the skills in math, science or other fields that will allow them to take the jobs our children will meed when they grow up. Foreigners can take those jobs either by coming to America and outperforming Americans or by having those jobs outsourced to them overseas.
In short, schools are supposed to prepare children for the future, not give teachers opportunities for self-indulgences in the present. One of these self-indulgences was exemplified by a letter I received recently from a fifth-grader in the Sayre Elementary School in Lyon, Michigan.
He said, "I have been assigned to ask a famous person a question about how he or she would solve a difficult problem." The problem was what to do about the economy.
Instead, I replied to his parents: With American students consistently scoring near or at the bottom in international tests, I am repeatedly appalled by teachers who waste their students' time by assigning them to write to strangers, chosen only because those strangers' names have appeared in the media.
It is of course much easier-- and more "exciting," to use a word too many educators use-- to do cute little stuff like this than to take on the sober responsibility to develop in students both the knowledge and the ability to think that will enable them to form their own views on matters in both public and private life. What earthly good would it do your son to know what economic policies I think should be followed, especially since what I think should be done will not have the slightest effect on what the government will in fact do? And why should a fifth-grader be expected to deal with such questions that people with Ph.D.'s in economics have trouble wrestling with?
The damage does not end with wasting students' time and misdirecting their energies, serious though these things are. Getting students used to looking to so-called "famous" people for answers is the antithesis of education as a preparation for making up one's own mind as citizens of a democracy, rather than as followers of "leaders."
Nearly two hundred years ago, the great economist David Ricardo said: "I wish that I may never think the smiles of the great and powerful a sufficient inducement to turn aside from the straight path of honesty and the convictions of my own mind."
The fad of assigning students to write to strangers is an irresponsible self-indulgence of teachers who should be teaching. But that practice will not end until enough parents complain to enough principals and enough elected officials to make it end.
Wow....just wow.
Thomas Sowell is THE MAN. I so much admire his thinking.
He is a parent of a late talking child, like I am. When I was struggling with dealing with a child that didn’t talk, his book (Late Talking Children) gave me great hope. If there are any other parents out there like me, I highly recommend this book!
He is so adept at sharing wisdom and illuminating truth in so many arenas. Thank you God for his heart and his gift.
You may have seen this column of his from July of '08, it's on the subject.
That post very much echoes his book I mentioned. I’m also a huge fan of Stephen Camarata at Vanderbilt.
IMO, Thomas Sowell is a national treasure.
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All I see here is elitism.
So very well said!!
My hubby got a real kick out of that one!
Little Johnny has become quite famous.I hope every classroom in America has one.
It should be put on every high school bulletin board in America.
I guess I don’t define “spirit” the same way you do. To me, a kid with some spirit thinks for himself and asks questions that the grownups can’t or don’t want to answer. I think a kid can do that and not be a brat, though it’s sometimes a fine line between the two. My biggest problem with public education is that too many teachers don’t want kids to learn to think independently, because independent thinkers ask too many questions and see through evasive bulls**t answers.
An unusual and valuable skill.
I personally think it was a very loving thing to do.
So do I. I hope she doesn't let that experience keep her out of the profession.
It is even more disturbing in light of all the teachers who get in trouble, but only after someone outside complains, for being too "touchy-feely" with the students.
Agreed. A child that can’t obey because he has so much “spirit” is really a child that has no self control. You can’t teach a child that has no self control. Of course when I say control, it doesn’t mean that his mind is controlled by the teacher but that he has control of his body and emotions.
I think we’d agree about “spirit”. I like spirit, too. Not “out of control” and rebellious just to be rebellious.
But meanwhile, my problem with children these days is they are spoiled brats (not just spoiled - I am, myself) who are allowed to have their own way, etc.
But it seems 1 of the commie ways is pulling the wool over the eyes of people. Such as kids - let them think they are getting what they want, and that that’s their birthright, and you can lead them easily into the herd mentality. It’s ironic.
I know I didn’t write that well, but I hope you know what I mean.
I am sick of the autism thing. Suddenly, everyone is autistic. 1 out of 150, yeah right.
Just another thing that the government wants us to worry about so they can control us.
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