American Education and Indoctrination are Synonymous Part 2 of 3
The whole object of education allegedly is to develop the mind but in too many schools across
the country youth is fleeing the buildings, which we call schools, quite unprepared for the variances of life.
Across the country there has been no set pattern but there has been an underlying ideology
aimed at creating values foreign to our culture and to our way of life. The examples are too
numerous for these pages but there may be room for a few. There are schools which have
eliminated the Valedictorians and the Salutatorians at graduation since their ability to excel
would most assuredly destroy the self-esteem of their peers. Classrooms have indicated that
a child has given the correct answer if responding that 2 + 2 equals 5. Thus self- esteem
is protected. Prayer in school had to be abolished whether in a group or individually since
others should not be subjected to such a mundane act. A number of schools across the country
quit using red ink on papers because red is too shocking and traumatic for children. The
school district in Fairfax, Virginia (of all places) strictly prohibits reciting the Lord's
Prayer but during the Islamic holy month the students were exposed and indoctrinated in that
religion's customs, practices and prayers. In other schools students could be sent home for
wearing a necklace with a cross. There are schools which no longer display the American flag
nor pledge allegiance. There are schools which have taken down the picture of George
Washington. There are schools which teach a secular and socialist revision of American
History but where the space for Marilyn Monroe is in excess of the limited pages for Washington
or Lincoln. In Ypsilanti, Michigan a wrestling coach had to stop leading his team in prayers
or the ACLU would sue. In other schools the Declaration of Independence cannot be exposed
since the word God is in it. It has been an ongoing credo in a huge number of public schools
that students be promoted whether they passed the grade or not. A high school graduate with a
second grade education thus is sent out to fight the battle for his livelihood quite unprepared.
As Robert M. Hutchins so aptly stated, "It has been said that we have not had the three R's in America, we had the six R's; remedial readin', remedial 'ritin' and remedial 'rithmetic. A
statement which can be attested to not only by the employers across the country but by the
Colleges and the Universities.
In America every child has a right to a proper education and our system has the capacity and capability to do it. But it isn't. Instead of teaching our children how government works they are being taught how to work it.
Recently, Tom Watkins, the State Superintendent of Schools in Michigan attempted to take off
first base the State's abysmal track record in teaching children. He had the audacity to put
forth a few initiatives in order to focus the political powers on the problems. To
over-simplify, amongst his main points he was generally asking that with a bipartisan
commission there be identification of administrative inefficiencies and the optimization
allocation of resources to enhance student achievement. He is a democrat. He was sat down
on hard by a democrat governor who is quite beholden to the state's teachers union.. There
was rumor that he could even lose his job. This is in a state where over 109 schools are
not meeting minimum standards and a huge number of schools are insolvent. This is in a state
where there is a gutless Republican majority in the legislature. This is in a state where
competition to the public schools is an anathema and where a philanthropist who wished to
build schools was sent packing. A good coach with a losing football team immediately takes
it back to the fundamentals of blocking and tackling. This way he irons out the problems.
Not so with this outfit. Rigor mortis is here to stay.
Too many schools across the country are abject failures in the educating of our children
primarily because they, as citadels of learning, have not been challenged to excel and
because they have become infested with teachers whose main objectives have been to reach
them philosophically and ideologically rather than in preparing them for the basics in life
ahead. This is truly unfair to the hundreds of thousands of teachers out there who love to
teach and who love children and who are performing in a highly commendable manner under the circumstances. However, they will never be able to function productively and to their fullest
since they are and have been under the yoke of their Union and as in most Socialist environments they must watch what they do or say and remain in lockstep.. Yes, even in this country.
The present government school system across the board has fought tooth and nail against charter schools, private schools, parochial schools, private academies, home schooling and any other
entity which would threaten its monopoly on education. It needs competition badly but it
won't accept it. A case in point occurred recently in Detroit, Michigan when a philanthropist offered 200 million dollars for the building of charter schools and both the city and the
Board of Education refused. This is a city which is on the verge of bankruptcy and a school
system where not half the enrollees graduate There was a time when American education was
ahead of the curve but once the Collectivists took over ----------- it was curtains
We are replete withe the same kinds of problems in the Colleges and the Universities but that's another story. A forthcoming story will depict the fact that we have more teachers in these institutions of higher learning who are socialists/communists than Bayer's got aspirins.
Proof that intellect and intelligence are not necessarily compatible.
The human mechanism and the human child are the most intricate, delicate machines ever built.
Our Republic is the most free-spirited, productive, creative, and generous government ever
devised. We must not and cannot continue to stand by and allow the forces of collectivism to
dismantle both.
George M. Haddad has a Bachelors Degree in Sociology and a Masters Degree in Social Administration with extensive work experience with the mentally ill. He is a World War II veteran having served in the Infantry; Interpreter of the French language; Interrogator in Technical Intelligence and Sgt.-Major of a Separation Center. Also the former Executive Director - National Institute for Burn Medicine - affiliated with the University of Michigan. He is retired from the National Staff of the YMCA as a troubleshooter in financial management and administration and has worked as a management consultant to non-profit corporations. He has written frequently on medical, social and political issues and has many published articles to his credit. He currently writes from Franklin, Michigan and can be contacted at gmhaddad@comcast.net