The three 'R's

One of the topics that is guaranteed to get the disoriented author's attention is education. As the father of eight [that's right eight] children I am certainly  more than a disinterested observer.

Sixteen years ago when our oldest son was ready to start school, we looked at the various options available to us. We interviewed the principal and teacher at the local public school. We also met with the team at a nearby Christian school. In the end we decided that neither school would be appropriate for our son. The week before school started we decided to home school him. While home schooling is relatively commonplace today it was rare sixteen years ago. Since then, we have used a combination of home school, public school and private school for all of our children. Some years ago, my concern for education even led me to run for a seat on the local school board.

As school budgets get tighter, schools are facing tough decisions. Some schools have decided to focus on the three 'R's. Reading, wRiting and aRithmetic. Unfortunately this decision is often accompanied by a decrease in programs in foreign languages, the arts, sports and music.

To remove these extra-curricular programs from the schools would be to throw away some of the best parts of the American educational system.

There is more to an education than the three 'R's. Recently I have attended several music events for my children. I have been to show choir competitions, choir and orchestra contests, piano competitions. My children also participate in sports and theater and my oldest son started college on a piano performance scholarship and majored in French. As I look back on my own education, my participation in speech competition, Junior Achievement, journalism, theater, music and student government all helped to shape my education. While my academic studies in mathematics and computer science were crucial to my getting into my current career field, it is these other extra-curricular activities that have helped me develop a career.

If you ever get depressed about the state of the younger generation — I encourage you to spend a day at a show choir competition. This may be a Red State phenomenon but if you get a chance, you should go.

This weekend I attended a middle school show choir competition. There were 15 choirs with 40-50 singers, technicians and band members each. These competitions are huge all day affairs. Schools travel all across the country to enter some of the bigger competitions. Many students practice year round to build a show. Students learn about teamwork, responsibility and sportsmanship. They also learn dance and music skills at a very high level. My son (the family athlete) suddenly showed an interest this year. He says that the show choir practices are tougher than his football workouts.

As a nation, we are failing the grade in teaching math, science and English. In our efforts to fix the problems in the school system, we must be careful not to destroy those things that American schools do better than nearly any other in the world.