Tag: children
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Education in America – Part Six
Part 6: Why So Many Parents No Longer Trust Public Education Public trust is rarely destroyed by a single event. It is worn down by repeated contradiction. Parents are told that schools are committed to excellence, yet many see weak academic results. They are told that schools welcome partnership, yet too often experience opacity, delay, and condescension…
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Education in America – Part Five
The Child Does Not Belong to the State A free society must answer certain questions correctly or it will soon answer many others wrongly. One of those questions is this: who bears the first responsibility for the child? The answer is not the school district, the state agency, the licensing body, the union, or the educational theorist.…
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Education in America – Part Three
Part 3: From Reading and Arithmetic to Therapy and Activism There was a time when the purpose of a school could be stated without embarrassment. Children were sent there to learn to read, to write, to count, to know something of the world that existed before they arrived, and to acquire habits of mind that would serve them when novelty had…
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Education in America – Part One
The Real Crisis in American Education Is Not Money, but Mission Ask most parents what school is for, and the answer is usually plain enough. A school exists to teach children to read with understanding, write with clarity, reckon with numbers, know something of history and science, and grow into adults capable of sound judgment. That…
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The Role of Parents in Education: The Supreme Court’s Stand
The recent divide between the leaders of America’s two largest teachers’ unions over the Supreme Court’s ruling in Mahmoud v. Taylor is as revealing as it is unsurprising. One laments the Court’s decision as a betrayal of professional expertise, while the other somewhat unexpectedly acknowledges the rightful place of parents in the educational process. And…
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A Defense of the Innocence of Children: A Response to the Kansas Decision
It is a sign of great moral confusion that we must now contend for truths so obvious that our ancestors would have regarded their denial as madness. That childhood should be protected, that the bodies of children should remain inviolate, that no man ought to maim or sterilize a child under the pretense of mercy—these…
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Why Fathers Matter: The Impact on Society and Families
The role of fathers in society is both irreplaceable and undervalued. Despite fashionable rhetoric to the contrary, the evidence is overwhelming that fathers provide essential contributions to the stability and development of their children. A father’s presence—or absence—can ripple through generations, shaping the character, prospects, and resilience of individuals and communities alike. Fathers are not…
Seeking Truth in Today's Troubled World 