Here I write with our public schools in mind, but the writing may also apply to most learning opportunities in the republic and to the culture we pass on to the children, youth, and all of us.
For example each citizen of the republic has some direct responsibility for the schooling the of the children and youth around us. Such schooling benefits each as well as those being schooled. The better that schooling the better the benefits for all of us. To fulfill that responsibility we need to maintain among us a useful understanding of our citizenship, an up to date concept of the doings of a republic, and a knowledge of the kinds of schooling we want to share among us.
Among some of us the word ''schooling" is becoming a "bad word" much as the word "politics" has. A politic is a way of governance. It is up to us to choose the best ways for our governance. We can choose very bad politics, but that does not make politics bad. We can choose very good governance, very good ways of taking care of ourselves, we can each politic we choose an excellent one. Schooling is much like that. Schooling has meant imparting the best ways of doing life that we know. There exists bad schooling but that does not make schooling bad. We have the power of choosing good schooling, and better schooling, and to aim to have the best schooling we can.
Much good schooling has been done in homes, by parents, grandparents,
siblings, friends, and neighbors. Still some schooling is best done by experts we choose.
Where we are citizens of a republic we have responsibility for much of what our children and you learn and that which we ourselves learn. And we and the those who come after us certainly benefit from that learning. In our republic each and every one of us has some responsibility for the learning of our children and youth. Paying taxes does not fulfill that responsibility, seeing how those funds are used might. You and I and our fellow citizens have responsibility for the quality of our future citizens. The quality of our citizenship and the quality of our lives depends much on our learning. That learning can be strongly supported by the schooling available to us. We are many so the doing of our schooling need not be burdensome. We may accept the benefits of the schooling around us with pride.
When we are parents of children and adolescents we often become more aware that our responsibility for their education is more than legal and moral. It is vital for the quality of our culture. It affects the very survival of our culture and species. We often become more aware that we are all responsible for the improvement and maintenance of our society and culture. When the people of that society and culture do not fulfill that responsibility, God help us. A society or culture can die. Some times that death can come quickly. Let's remember that we are the ones to see that the best of our culture is passed on to our offspring and the carriers of our culture.
We know that culture is more than something found in a museum. Our culture is all that we are not born with. It is all that we experience, learn, understand, remember, and more. We also know that our common culture is all that makes us a people.
There is a world of practical doings to consider. One of these is assuring that we have competent and appropriate observers of our schools report to us. We must find, train, and keep eyes on observers whom can be well trusted by us and who deal well school officials. And, also who do not interfere with the instruccion they observe. We must also observe school administration. Then we need to support those who help us to interpret the information gathered and then to report our findings.There is plenty for active citizens to do, but we are many and help is available. If we need a boss, we can choose her.
We can help teachers to obtain that which they need to do their job. That help could include helpful ongoing education for them, small enough class sizes, helpers for them and their students, appropriate help and support from parents and others. what happens and what is done in our schools is up to us and we could use ongoing education for ourselves. It is great that there are so many of us.
It is up to us together to decide how we want our schools to be. We need to have their purpose well in mind. We may have to school ourselves in that sort of decision making. We do not want to be the responsible many, but want to be smart too. How do you want that particular school near you to be? What is it important for the students their to learn. We may decide how we want the lives of our children, our youth, and ourselves to be, what we want to learn, and what we need to learn. Perhaps there is more to learn about learning to learn!
We need to show up for our governance of our education and that of our children.
There is little that we have to do on our own. Our common governance needs to be handled by us together or we may end up in a very unpleasant place in deed.
We need to show up for the decisions as to what our youth and children are to taught and how that teaching is to be done. We do not have to do this alone. In reality it It may have to be done together. Of course when it is for us it is best done with our participation. We are free to consult with our teachers, our neighbors, our youth, and the best experts available, but we need to show up.
RCS