The Kids Don't Have a Chance

The other day when I was driving back from the mall, I saw a car with two bumperstickers. One said, "If you can read this, thank a teacher." Of course every word was in caps, and there was no punctuation, but that's not really my complaint here. The other bumpersticker had a picture of what was clearly supposed to be a UFO and simply said, "Roswell." I don't think that a lot of people other than teachers and perhaps their families would sport the former bumpersticker. So grant me the premise that the owner and driver of the car was a teacher. Why then the second bumpersticker?

I think that it is a bigger problem than we realize when the people that are teaching kids science and math also believe in UFO's. The assumed teacher is not excused if she teaches English or history (though perhaps if art or music < /sarcasm >). But there are problems beyond the teachers. This story talks about the horrifying inaccuracies in textbooks used or available for use in the state of New York. I'm sure everyone knows about the power wielded by the textbook selection committees in Texas, California, Florida, and North Carolina where selection is done on a state-wide level. The article quotes an accuser, "To please rednecks in Texas, they're censoring science in New York — and all over America."

The examples cited in the story are atrocious. How is a teacher supposed to educated kids when the tools they are using are wrong to begin with? Surely it is a fight to explain to students that, "No, the textbook is wrong here, but please continue to believe this textbook and all of your other books except for where I point out otherwise." And how many of the many errors are even addressed in class? How many of the kids are allowed to believe that Gerry Adams is a Protestant crusader? How many teachers are adept enough to point out that the equator does not cut through Florida, Texas, and Arizona? How many dare speak out against texts proclaiming Louis Farrakhan and Al Sharpton as great black leaders in the realm of civil rights?

I have no idea what the answer to the problem is. Normally, I would blame public schools, but I don't know whether the texts are any different in private schools. At home schooling is an attractive option, but it requires time and resources that a lot of families just don't have. I guess the best thing to do is to make sure that you are very actively involved in your kids' education.

If you caught misspellings and poor punctuation in this post, thank a teacher.

Jonathan 12/22/2002 11:24:00 AM