False premise

I heard this morning yet another spokesman for yet another education initiative called STEM make the erroneous contention that “ the most important thing is a great teacher.” Note the false premise. The truism should state that “ the most important thing is a receptive student” or something with similar wording. As usual, liberals get reality backwards. Who else but a liberal would deny the obvious by contending that parents should be involved in their children’s education. History, past and present, shows that many parents are lackadaisical at best when it comes to parenting and often either can’t speak English or haven’t been educated even to the level of their high school age children. Yet parents usually want their children to excel to a better life than they have achieved.

I repeat, agenda driven initiatives - think government-paid sponsorship - usually flow from upside down liberal thinking. The major premise of education must reflect the fact that “all education is self education.” Great teachers are not needed; mediocre individuals with the knowledge of a specific subject of instruction will do. The onus is upon the student to put in the time and effort, to do the work, to accept the role of learner, to think but not to disrupt other students’ thinking.

Oh my, how far from the major premise the billions and billions of taxpayer funded educational dollars have come. On this Thanksgiving, this is not something for which Americans should be thankful. Let’s find something else. Say what?