Wiston Papers

A new role for public education

Each year tens of thousands of American children are lost.  Young people are disappearing at an alarming rate and there appears to be little sense of urgency by our leaders to rescue them.  

Unless we take immediate resolute steps, we will lose our future, too.  

This nation has abandoned millions  of potentially productive citizens to a life of despair, poverty and dependence.  And every year thousands of young people join their number.

As a former university professor, I am proud that I spent the majority of my career preparing young people for professional lives.  I was buoyed by their enthusiasm, energy, and creativity.  

It’s easy to work with such people when they come to you ready to learn, optimistic about their future, and confident upon graduation  to take the helm of America in coming years.

But our elementary and secondary schools are failing the grade.  Too many children are at risk--especially in large cities--to the pernicious daily threats of drugs, violence, and dysfunctional families.  

I often see the smiling faces of young children in television news stories about early grade school education.  But fast forward only a few years and those smiles are gone, the initial excitement for learning is supplanted by emotionless expressions of resignation, apathy and cynicism.  Why?

It’s time for educators and politicians to step up.  Now is the hour to reinvent public education in America.  I have some suggestions for our elected leaders and school administrators:

First, when making tough budgetary decisions, government should not trim programs that affect education, food, health or employment.  All other areas are on the chopping block.

Second, let’s expand the mission of our public schools.  In addition to teaching the three Rs, teachers should inculcate the  societal values of morality, honesty, public service, discipline, and aspiration.  

Third, our schools can and should help rebuild blighted American neighborhoods.  Just as churches once were viewed as sanctuaries for the downtrodden, today’s public schools should be a beaon for hope and achievement.  Let’s turn on the lights and open the schoolroom doors 24 hours a day 7 days a week.  

As midnight basketball has helped get young men and women off dangerous streets, 24/7 classrooms can provide safety and nurturing for young children who desperately need help and protection.

Four, let’s invest money and talent in the nation’s poorest schools.  Provide financial incentives for America’s best teachers to spend at least two years in the worst neighborhoods.  

Hire America’s returning servicemen and women to provide security both at the school door, in classes, and in the hallways/bathrooms of our schools.

Equip every school in every poor neighborhood with the  best educational hardware and software.  

Link poor schools with their wealthier counterparts via teleconferences and online classrooms.

Five, involve the parents in their children’s education  through adult remedial courses and skills training.  At-risk children often come from dysfunctional families where a culture of and respect for education is absent.  

We can reverse that by making our schools social- and community-based environments as well as learning centers.

If we’re serious about education in this country, we need our schools to become the center of our communities.  They should represent safe harbors for families and play a wider role in the lives of the neighborhood than simply teaching basic skills of reading writing and arithmetic.  

Once we see public education as an opportunity rather than an obligation, we can begin to save our children before they are lost.   

To those who ask where do we find the money?  How can we afford this?   I say simply.  Don’t raise obstacles; open paths of opportunities. If we’re serious about education in America, we can find the resources.  The commitment comes first.   

Steve Coon

November 15, 2012