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Individual Power
Many readers, upon learning – or learning more – about the real agenda behind public education; school district consolidations; social workers replacing educational personnel; the special education trap, the FedEd curriculum, School-to-Work, and all of the other anti-academic policies foisted upon America’s children, have written to ask what one person, or one family, can possibly do to save the schools. It is important that these concerns be addressed in hopes that a movement to rebuild (not save or reform) education, and thus save the country, can gain in momentum so as to roll with strength across the land. Concerns about government schooling should not be considered the exclusive property of parents with children currently in schools. The responsibility to find solutions to the federal and state takeover and mismanagement of public education must be shared by all Americans still capable of rational thought and action. If we wish to see America returned to its republican, Constitutional philosophies; rooted as they originally were in concepts of limited federal duties, states’ rights and in local autonomy and local cohesiveness, we must accept that we are all in this together. It is a group project that depends on commitment, knowledge, planning and ire. One of the unspoken messages conveyed by government schooling is, "You have no choice." I find it offensive that here in the land of the free, the state educational system actively seeks to entrap our children and us. I feel personally violated by such a policy and my reactions push me to free my own child, as well as all children, from the federal ties that bind. Since decades of rational explanations and debates, successful teaching for example, and attempts to educate other teachers, have failed to stay, let alone turn, the erroneous course of public education, it appears that we must resort to resolutions and actions driven by, fueled by, anger. With all of this in mind, consider how you as an individual can make better decisions regarding the education of your children, and how you can help another family make better decisions concerning the education of their children. A first step is to learn as much as possible about the issues that the schooling establishment would prefer be kept secret. Read, Research, Report! Read Murray Rothbard, Thomas Sowell, Walter Williams, Phyllis Schlafly, John Taylor Gatto, Charlotte Iserbyt, Edward Griffin, the Maple River Educational Association, and more. So many concerned people are researching, writing, and trying to get the information out to all parents, taxpayers, citizens. Help them to reach you; at least meet them halfway! If you have children in public schools, make decisions that will be in the best interests of those children, realizing that you may not have many remaining years to stop, let alone undo, the damage being done by the collectivist and the globalist agendas. Assess your priorities; refigure your budget; do whatever is necessary to remove your children from placements that destroy the critical thinking abilities of your child and from places where your children will suffer irreparable damage as the system collapses (see Crooked House – Crumbling Foundation). The dangers are subtle, but there, and they are molding your children towards a global, collectivist, socialistic worldview. Act to stop this process before it is too late. One reader wrote to explain that she was a straight-A student in a public high school, but was shocked upon arriving at college and having a homeschooled student as a roommate. The reader explained that it was only when she observed the differences between their approaches to learning – motivation, study habits, enthusiasm, research abilities, skills in thought and analysis--did she realize that she had not actually received an education in the government schools; nor had she been taught how to self-educate for further education and lifelong learning. The reader expressed her belief that no matter how she might now try, she would never become the ‘true scholar’ that the homeschooled roommate already was, even as she entered college,. Consider the effects of public education upon your child, both long term and short term, and observe the process closely from all angles. You will soon realize the importance of making the sacrifices necessary to change your child’s school enrollment – to homeschooling, or to a private or parochial school. You will never regret providing you children and grandchildren with excellent foundational educations to prepare them for life. You may, however, regret the purchase of an expensive vehicle that will depreciate quickly even as it burdens you with a monthly payment greater than the cost of private schooling. If you decide upon private or parochial schooling, research the school well. Request information about the curriculum and the success rates. Just being ‘private’ or ‘parochial’ does not guarantee quality and success in educating children. Far too many of these schools have fallen for the whole language, new-new math, and dumbed down curriculum. Far too many are more interested in the politics of administration than in the education of children. Far too many accept federal programs and money – DARE, lunch support, special education monies. Do your homework and choose schools wisely. Whether you have children or not, it is imperative that you find like-minded individuals and act now to pressure the local and state officials to reject the federal monies and federal control; to make wise decisions that best serve local populations. Understand that this dumbing down process has been slowly infiltrating the schools since about 1840. Picture the public educational system as a Dracula-like creature – one that cannot tolerate any ‘light’ to shine upon it countenance. Arm yourselves with information and become beacons of light, providing knowledge, insight and leadership to others less aware. Shine the light into every crack and crevice and shine it brightly. Form citizen and parent groups that are independent of the PTO, the PTA, and the schools. Contact the Maple River Educational Association in Minnesota and ask for advice and guidance. Develop structured plans and follow them closely and consistently. Attend every school board meeting in your district, paying close attention to every discussion and decision; questioning any that seem unclear; go on record as objecting to any that further state and collectivist agendas, rather than individualistic and strongly academic, knowledge-based ones. Call the superintendent’s office prior to each board meeting and ask to be put on the agenda to speak out against consolidation, Outcomes Based Education, School-to-Work, eighth grade vocation direction, etc. Demand accountability for teacher in-service expenses. Demand satisfactory answers and action about anything regarding the schools that cause you concern. Those people are elected officials responsible to you! Do not let them intimidate you into feeling dumb, or unknowing, or unnecessary to the schooling process. Demand that educational establishments of all types successfully teach reading and truly educate children. Insist that all schools allow parents in the buildings at any time; to monitor class offerings, teaching efficiency, student behaviors, curricular processes. Organize your group so that members are available to be in the buildings, in the classrooms, at the board meetings. Reinstate the concept of ‘room mothers’ and take those duties very seriously. You are needed there as watchdogs to protect our freedoms, not just to provide cupcakes on birthdays. Report to your group anything that you observe that should be of concern to a nation seeking to raise an educated, thinking, patriotic population that will jealously guard our remaining freedoms, and act to reinstate those which have been usurped by illegal, unconstitutional laws, and presidential mandates. Realize that the teachers cannot help you! You must be alert to notice points of concern; you must listen carefully in case teachers try to unobtrusively direct your attention and concern. Become adept at reading between the lines of any communication. We pay to support these centers of indoctrination – indoctrination centers that hide in the best of neighborhoods and operate openly right under our noses – and it is time that we stand up and take back our heritage, our future, our country. Consider… if one woman can force God out of the schools, we thousands can turn the tide for the better, rebuilding with wisdom and foresight. We can pull our children out of public schools until the buildings have to close due to lack of interest and enrollment. We can then rebuild local schooling based on local values and needs, and we can even use the deserted local buildings – buildings for which we paid dearly – with our money and with the sacrifice of children’s minds and futures. We can do it --if we educate ourselves, then work individually, as well as in groups; if we begin with goals that we can achieve locally, family-by-family; if we begin, then nourish, a movement that can grow and roll across the country conquering illiteracy and ignorance, crushing dishonorable policies and bureaucracies---from Sea to Shining Sea. We can again have a free America that will hold an honorable place and again earn respect and admiration for its honesty, competencies, innovations, and leadership. But we need to act quickly, and the older generations need to assist the younger generations, for we are the last who see and understand how much has already been lost. July 4, 2003
Copyright © 2003 LewRockwell.com
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Linda
Schrock Taylor 
