Post Something Positive....

Normally I am an optimist. However, there are times I get cynical - sometimes it seems there is so much drek out there that it is difficult to see the positive side of a story. This will be three posts in a row in which I point out the negative side of public education. I will post some upbeat pieces next. Meanwhile, here is another example of why we home school: the way in which history is taught, as exemplified by a story on Columbus day.

"...the whole Columbus being the founder of the United States, doesn't sit well with a lot of people, myself included," said Paul Prussing, deputy director of Alaska's Division of Teaching and Learning Support.

Perhaps Mr. Prussing should take a history course before opining on history. Christopher Columbus, of course, did not found the United States, the U.S.A. being a political entity that was not founded until nearly three centuries after Columbus' journey to the Americas. And whatever opinion Prussing has of the man, he should still encourage history to be taught factually, and see to it that the actions of historical figures are taught in context with the culture of their times, not through the filter of a different age and culture.

From the same story, "Every hero is somebody else's villain," said Felipe Fernandez-Armesto, a scholar and author of several books related to Columbus.... "Heroism and villainy are just two sides of the same coin."

Alright, so let's look at an extreme example. I'm sure that the firefighters who gave their lives rescuing people from the Twin Towers on September 11, 2001, were villians in the eyes of some people. But can you truly say that selfless heroism in the effort to save lives is the offset to the mindless hate that villainizes these heroes because they prevented deaths?

Moral relativism has no place in teaching. Sure, Mussolini was a vicious dictator, but he made the trains run on time! This type of attitude attempts to bridge the gap between good and evil; it minimizes accomplishment and excuses atrocity. It judges action and intent from the court of political agenda.

Children taught by the incompetent and the activist will suffer a terrible loss of perspective- they will be unable to perceive the currents in the world and will make faulty decisions based on the inaccurate data they have been given. To refer back to Dr. Sowell, they should be taught how to think, not what to think.