The statistics on education in the U.S. are disturbing. American students rank 25th in math and 21st in science compared with students in 30 industrialized countries, according to the Broad Foundation. Sixty-eight percent of 8th graders can’t read at their grade level and most will never catch up, the foundation reported. Of freshmen entering two and four-year colleges and universities, many are not ready and some will need remedial classes. According to David Nagel in an article in The Journal, fourth and eighth-grade reading scores “have barely budged since 1992,” despite policy and investment focused on improving overall student achievement.
There is a reason for this. In my opinion, our education system is being used to disassemble traditional Western culture and replace that culture with a collectivist utopia operated under rules set by the progressive left. Marxism is being infused into the school curriculum as American history, traditions and values are being phased out.
Schools are no longer teaching the basics: reading, writing and arithmetic. Traditional math is being replaced by radical/social justice math. American history is being distorted and manipulated by anti-American rhetoric.
The public school systems are being used to indoctrinate our children and impose their political agenda. The California Federation of Teachers even produced a puppet show, “The Trouble in the Hen House,” to teach young children about unions. These educators now have a way of teaching children how to use tactics to get what they want from those in positions of power.
Some schools are now showing a documentary for children called “The Story of Stuff,” a web video disparaging America’s consumer society. It was funded by the Tides Foundation, which was formerly run by self-proclaimed communist, Van Jones.
“An Inconvenient Truth,” a documentary by Al Gore about the theory that man is responsible for global warming, was mandated for schools to show in science class. Some schools went as far as mandating parents to attend the showing with their children. This was a clear example of the left attacking capitalism and our way of life. Despite the numerous scientists that have come forth to expose the lies that were in the movie, children are still being told that they need to monitor their parents as well as themselves in order to reduce their carbon footprint and save the polar bears.
Gore addressed an assembly of kids on global warming in which he states, “There are some things about our world that you know that older people don’t know.” Consensus is replacing science in our schools.
Schools are breeding grounds for socialism. Is it any wonder that American traditions are under attack within our school system? The American flag is now considered offensive. In California’s Morgan Hill, five students were sent home for wearing American flag T-shirts on Cinco de Mayo.
It is not just the flag, but now some groups are arguing for a ban of the Pledge of Allegiance. Martin Rosenthal, the co-chair of Brookline Political Action for Peace, or Brookline PAX, told the Boston Globe, “The pledge puts kids in an uncomfortable situation and doesn’t belong in schools.” Rosenthal went on to say that the pledge has no educational value and the pressure it places on children to participate makes his “skin crawl.” Supporters of the ban say these children are often criticized by classmates and the ban would help stop the bullying. I have heard of banning the pledge because of the reference to God, but this is the first time I have heard that reciting the Pledge of Allegiance causes bullying. Some people who feel that it is too violent are also attacking the National Anthem.
For years we have been hearing that there is separation of church and state. Schools have banned prayer and any reference to God or Jesus in the classroom. Teachers of a second-grade class in Taunton, Massachusetts gave an assignment to their class: Make a Christmas drawing, something that reminds you of the holidays. One of the 8-year-old students drew a stick picture of the Crucifixion that he and his parents had visited. Instead of praise, the teacher immediately sent him home and ordered that he undergo a psychological evaluation. In New Jersey, a third-grader was getting ready for quiet time at school. During this time the kids can read a book or rest. The girl decided she was going to read her Bible. The teacher walked over and told her that the Bible was not appropriate reading material, and that she had to put it away. Does it matter what she reads? Shouldn’t she be encouraged to read?
The purpose of the education system is to provide students with knowledge and skills in order to be successful. Thomas Jefferson believed that an educated citizenry was essential to the preservation of the American experiment. With the dumbing down of Americans through the school system, it allows for Marxism to take hold.
