Strike!
There have been many articles recently in the local papers about a teachers' strike in Strongsville. I do not know the particulars about the reasons for the strike, nor am I writing to address those reasons. But there are a couple of things that I find bothersome in the responses to this, and, really, any teacher strike. This Sunday's paper had an editorial written by a former educator, Matthew Langlais, imploring people to support the striking teachers. (If you wish to read the article, you can find it online if you search for: Plain Dealer Strongsville teachers deserve community support).
One of the things I notice whenever there is a teacher strike is how quickly the local school falls apart and meaningful education is thrown out the window. Why does this happen? I believe it shows how, as a culture, we have become completely dependent on the government to educate our children. No one seems to know what to do when the teachers strike; there is a lot of hand wringing by the parents and the community. Even the children feel hopeless when their teachers are striking and not in the class room to tell them what to do. We have become sheep indeed if we really believe that the only entity that could possibly direct our children's education is the government-run schools, staffed only by professionals with several degrees in this field. Langlais' article had a comment tucked in the middle that summed this up: "And what exactly are the implications behind assuming that all teachers do is baby-sit children while greedily asking for more of your money? That anybody can teach, because we've all been to school, or have a child or two?" (emphasis mine). What a chilling and sinister statement. Is he serious? Does he really believe that I and countless other parents are unable to teach our own children? How on earth are all those home educated children scoring well above average on standardized tests (tests that the government deems valuable) and getting into college? It is the view of most home educators that they are able to teach their own children precisely because they DO have children! And sadly, I fear it is the view of most educators that parents are woefully inadequate to teach their own children.
I have no bone to pick with teachers; I think that most of them go into the field with good intentions and want to make a difference in the lives of children, and many of them do. But I also think that they get caught up in a broken system and before they know it, they are doing the bidding of a behemoth administration that stretches from the local school all the way to the federal government. Somewhere along the way, they are convinced that only those who have advanced degrees in education are capable of educating children, and somewhere along the way, parents are convinced of this as well. And so we see communities crippled when teachers strike because we have handed over parental autonomy to our government.
I know this will come as no surprise to anyone who has been home educating for several years; we all know that we are rebels, going against the grain. But it's not often that the views of those that do not approve of homeschooling or hold home educators in disdain are brought so sharply to my attention. And to those people I would say that perhaps they should walk a mile in my shoes before dismissing me so quickly. I would ask that they empower parents who do use the schools to take charge of things when teachers go on strike. And I would hope that they would strive to work with parents and the community instead of holding them hostage.
One of the things I notice whenever there is a teacher strike is how quickly the local school falls apart and meaningful education is thrown out the window. Why does this happen? I believe it shows how, as a culture, we have become completely dependent on the government to educate our children. No one seems to know what to do when the teachers strike; there is a lot of hand wringing by the parents and the community. Even the children feel hopeless when their teachers are striking and not in the class room to tell them what to do. We have become sheep indeed if we really believe that the only entity that could possibly direct our children's education is the government-run schools, staffed only by professionals with several degrees in this field. Langlais' article had a comment tucked in the middle that summed this up: "And what exactly are the implications behind assuming that all teachers do is baby-sit children while greedily asking for more of your money? That anybody can teach, because we've all been to school, or have a child or two?" (emphasis mine). What a chilling and sinister statement. Is he serious? Does he really believe that I and countless other parents are unable to teach our own children? How on earth are all those home educated children scoring well above average on standardized tests (tests that the government deems valuable) and getting into college? It is the view of most home educators that they are able to teach their own children precisely because they DO have children! And sadly, I fear it is the view of most educators that parents are woefully inadequate to teach their own children.
I have no bone to pick with teachers; I think that most of them go into the field with good intentions and want to make a difference in the lives of children, and many of them do. But I also think that they get caught up in a broken system and before they know it, they are doing the bidding of a behemoth administration that stretches from the local school all the way to the federal government. Somewhere along the way, they are convinced that only those who have advanced degrees in education are capable of educating children, and somewhere along the way, parents are convinced of this as well. And so we see communities crippled when teachers strike because we have handed over parental autonomy to our government.
I know this will come as no surprise to anyone who has been home educating for several years; we all know that we are rebels, going against the grain. But it's not often that the views of those that do not approve of homeschooling or hold home educators in disdain are brought so sharply to my attention. And to those people I would say that perhaps they should walk a mile in my shoes before dismissing me so quickly. I would ask that they empower parents who do use the schools to take charge of things when teachers go on strike. And I would hope that they would strive to work with parents and the community instead of holding them hostage.
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