Let's Blame it on the Schools

I have a bit of a problem when I hear people speak of the condition of our country and it seems to me the blame always goes back to the schools of today.  At least, that has been my experience when talking with others.  My problem is this:  Children do not start to school until they are 5.  Of course some are in day care and nursery school long before that, but if I am up to date on the current system the children aren't required to enter school before kindergarten. They are in school five days a week for approximately 7 hours (am I right on this?)  So.....who is responsible for teaching those same children (yours and mine) on the week ends, in the summer and the other 17 hours of the school days?  Me thinks it's the responsibility of the parents!

 

We kick and scream about not being able to pray in schools these days.  I am the first to wish that we had never let one lady take that away while the majority sat back and did nothing.  But, how many children are taught to pray at home?  How many ever hear their father or mother pray?  I'll bet you a betcha (and that's as much as I bet) if the children in any of our schools were polled they would admit that they rarely, if ever, hear a prayer at home.

 

We kick and scream about not having the Pledge of Allegiance at school anymore.....though I  am aware that at least one school I know of does.  Again I ask.......how many of the homes are teaching positive attitudes about our country such as respect for authority, love for the freedoms we enjoy, our democratic government as opposed to others who are ruled by dictators, and so forth?  Granted, there are things that need changing in our system but we have the right to help make those changes through our votes, freedom of speech etc.  It seems most people I hear grumbling and complaining about our government that is all they are doing....grumbling and complaining. They don't seem to be putting any effort out to change it.  I would again bet you a betcha that this is what the children hear at home and never hear anything good about the life we enjoy here in the good old USA.

 

We kick and scream about teachers not doing their jobs when it comes to discipline.  I know that children who are taught right from wrong and are disciplined at home still get into mischief from time to time and need discipline away from the home.  I have even disciplined children in my Bible classes, but that is not my main job when teaching.  A teacher's main job is to teach the subject they are trained to teach.  In most cases a good, dedicated teacher earns respect and rarely has problems of discipline in his/her class.  Again.....the job of discipline, teaching respect for others, etc. should fall on the shoulders of parents and guardians.

 

Now, before one of my fantastic blog followers begins to point out such things as:  What about the children who are not taught at home?  What about those reared in one-parent homes where the parent struggles to make ends meet by working two jobs?  What about those children who are pretty much left to roam the streets?  The list could be a mile long here.  This post isn't written to address these issues.  However, I do believe good, loving, kind, Christ-centered teachers will do all within their power to help those children.  But, it is something they will do out of compassion and love for the student.  In my opinion it is not their job.

 

Do I appreciate teachers?  You betcha I do!  Though I am not a teacher, unless you count over 55 years teaching Bible classes from tiny tots to grown women and all ages in between, I have had teachers in my family from as far back as my Great-Grandfather.  A quick count in my family alone includes 7 currently teaching or in administration and many others who have taught and are now stay-at-home mothers training their children for the time they will enter the school system.

 

God bless our teachers, administrators and schools!  God bless the parents who are diligently preparing their children for the world they are soon to lead.  And God bless America Land That I Love.

 

More to come soon.

 

Here are some family members who are currently teaching or in other forms of education.

 

 

 

 

Son, Frank Wright, Teacher of U.S. History and Government at Kings High School, Kings Mill, Ohio.

 

Daughter, Paula Dyer, Elementary Math Coordinator, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

 

Granddaughter, Jessica Henderson teaches 3-year-olds at a private Christian school in Huntsville, Alabama.

 

Granddaughter, Lindsey Bell, Instructional Aide in Pre-Kindergarten and working on a degree in Elementary Ed.  Huntsville, Alabama

 

 

Granddaughter-in-love, Kari Dyer in the middle, with two of her coworkers.  Kari taught several years and is now a School Counselor and working on her Doctorate. She is also in Oklahoma City.

 

 

Granddaughter-in-love, Martha Ford with her 4th grade class in Antioch, Tennessee

Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates. Deuteronomy 6:4-9