Last week, NBC launched its Education Nation Summit, stating its goal as providing “every American with an opportunity to pursue the best education in the world.”
Perhaps you see our trouble right from the start: There’s little agreement on what constitutes “the best education.” Best for whom?
NBC says, “Education is the key to our future success as a country . . . Yet, we have allowed our students to fall behind. . . . One-third of our students drop out of high school, and another third aren’t college-ready when they graduate. . . . Our workforce is largely unprepared for today’s rapidly changing marketplace, and we face stiff competition from abroad. . . . The stakes are high for our economy and for our society as a whole.”
I have three kids: One grown, one a college freshman and one still at home. My wife, with my expert advice and assistance, has homeschooled all three. We have not concerned ourselves with what is best for the country or the economy or how to compete with other nations. We have focused, solely, on what is best for our kids — on what they care about, what inspires them.
As long Americans try to solve “our” education problems as “national policy” to be battled over by politicians and teachers’ unions, we will fail.
Focus, instead, on each individual child, not an Education Nation.
This is Common Sense. I’m Paul Jacob.
7 replies on “My Child Before My Country”
The immediate question to NBC is – what business is it of NBC, known to be in the pockets of the president and congress, known to back the “government school” concept most public schools represent, known to back the teacher’s unions representing most teachers? Is their position to further mimic and support the educational status quo, which has resulted in the poor conditions of students that NBC purports to be finding fault with?
This is like the pot calling the kettle black. What a joke for a broadcasting company that parrots the line of the Democrat party exclusively and President Obama and Congress that is ruining our country and presents to its watching and listening audience these negatives and presents further numerous TV and radio shows that contribute to the lessening of the education of our children and their parents and brings down the morals of our country.
$100 million a year for 40 years to the Department of “Education” and not one iota’s difference in test scores or performance.
Why is this boondoggle still being funded?
Why can’t we stop pouring money down this dhimmocrat jobs program hole?
Public schools celebrate their failuresby looking onlyat their relatively few successes. They consistently fail to build the goundations for success in children. Literacy in language and math there is nothing secret or magical about building foundations to success. Private schools do it all the time.I am president of a 501c3 non profit (EIN 32-0194489) which provides state of the art Phonics Reading System materias (Frontline Phonics) to preschools free of charge. More than 2000 four year olds learn to read each year with our program. It’s fun and it works. Public schools in California refuse to allow preschoolers with access to literacy foundation instruction bcause reaearch by academics who have never tought young children say it isn’t appropriate. Government denies our children the opportunity to succeed.
Sorry for the spelling errors and typos. CAn’t see well at all
My mother was a teacher in New York city for some thirty years, and I ahve other relatives that are or were in the education field.
The biggest problems that I have heard are: teaching for a test (in Florida, the FCAT’S)- regardless of the elarnign ability; and political interference; and teaching- “this is Fri. so WE MUST DO THIS”, even if half (or more) of the students are struggling with Thursday’s work; but are ahead in another subject.
All children are suppsoed to learn all subjects at the same speed.
BUT ALSO MISSING IS THE PARENTS. WHERE THE H— ARE THEY? As Bill Cosby said, (paraphrasing)- there are peopel who spend hundreds for a pair of sneakers, but will not spend $50 for “HOOKED ON PHONICS”.
The parents have to take an interets, or the”best’ ( read fanciest) schools, and teachers will not help.
I had some good teachers, and some bad ones. The good ones are remembered fondly, the bad ones cursed for the wasted time.
I was lucky to have been homeschooled myself. I then homeschooled my three boys.
One is an entrepreneur who, before his 29th birthday made his first million. The second works for a large supermarket chain as a regional manager with close to 12,000 people unde his management. The third is an artist, still struggling but promising.
They are all married, have kids their own and pay taxes.
Government schools are a failure. It’s time to separate school and state.