Adam Smith: Google Images
In 1759 Adam Smith published his Theory of Moral Sentiments in which he wrote that the education of children is the responsibility of parents... Lest they become indoctrinated by the State- how prophetic!
This, of course, didn't stop social engineers such as John Dewey from devising a system of public education with that very end in mind. I've written several posts critical of public education (which will likely continue). This is not to say that the teachers themselves are bad and I don't mean to paint them all with the same broad brush. There are some very dedicated, intelligent educators who, for the most part, are hampered in their efforts to educate by administrators. As in every other occupation there are some very good teachers and some very bad ones... But it isn't the teachers that run the school system, it's the administration.
The concept of public education as a means of actually educating children is doomed from the outset... It just doesn't pass logical muster. It is however, a useful tool for social engineers attempting to create and maintain behavioral uniformity- Dewey himself was a psychologist, a behaviorist. The very notion of putting anywhere from 20-50, if not more, children in a room with an unfamiliar adult and expecting them to learn is ridiculous on the face of it... It makes no sense whatsoever.
The US Dept. of Education decides educational policy. The bureaucrats that run it come primarily from the teacher's union (NEA)... one of the most powerful lobbying groups in the country as well as the largest contributor to the Democratic Party (if you're a teacher, that's where your dues go- like it or not). The NEA in fact controls educational policy in the US (as well as teacher voting habits). Any teacher who speaks their mind, or expresses opinions contrary to the NEA orthodoxy is immediately censured.
It was disclosed that at an NEA conference in the 1990's that no mention whatever of education even came up as a topic of discussion... Only how to create "good global citizens" in compliance with the UN's Treaty on the Rights of the Child (See link below for source). I sent my children to school to receive an education, not UN indoctrination- I prefer they learn to think for themselves... It looks like Adam Smith may have been on to something. But that wasn't what finally convinced me to homeschool.
The final straw came when I was called to school because of my oldest son. His teacher diagnosed him with ADHD and demanded he be put on medication or he couldn't return to school. Let me say that again- his teacher diagnosed him, not a doctor, not the school nurse.
I suggested that this was probably something better suited for a competent medical professional, not someone that barely graduated college- this was not one of the dedicated, intelligent teachers I spoke of earlier (I had spoken to her before and she definitely didn't strike me as the sharpest tack in the box). She told me I was "agitated" and "threatening" (oh, "offensive" as well). She threatened to call security.
I was sitting calmly and had made no threatening gestures or comments, only that I thought a doctor or at least the school nurse may be better suited (not to mention qualified) to make the diagnosis. I told her security wasn't necessary, that I was leaving- and so were my children. I went immediately and pulled my boys out of class. My oldest daughter was in kindergarten so I let her finish out the year... She liked the teacher and was having fun and I had taught her to read a couple of years earlier, so I didn't figure they could do much harm. One day when we walked to the school to pick her up we ran into my youngest son's former teacher, who pulled me aside:
"You did the right thing," she said. "I don't have kids, but if I did I wouldn't let them near this place." She went on to tell me: "I've been trying to get my sister to do what you did... You really did a good thing for your kids."
The Right Choice: The Incredible Failure of Public Education and the Rising Hope of Home Schooling : an Academic, Historical, Practical, and Legal Perspective... Christopher J. Klicka
