AS MUCH AS ONE CAN RESENT THE CHANGES IN CULTURE THAT TECHNOLOGY AND THE GLUT OF (MIS)INFORMATION BRINGS, SOMETIMES YOU GOTTA LOOK AT THE POSITIVES. ONE SUCH POSITIVE IS THAT WHEN YOU ARE TOO TIRED (LAZY) TO WRITE ABOUT SOMETHING YOU FEEL STRONGLY ABOUT ON YOUR BLOG, THERE IS ALWAYS SOMEONE ELSE WHO HAS WRITTEN IT (BETTER THAN YOU COULD HAVE) AND POSTED IT ON THE WEB. [From "Dodging the Homeschool Stereotype" by Susan Wise Baur]
Classical education leans heavily on the evaluation of evidence: The educated child learns to avoid logical fallacies, to decide whether arguments are trustworthy or flawed. And both secular and religious classrooms are prone to simplistic thinking. "The evidence for evolution is unambiguous!" announces the public-school science text, without any reference to the growing "intelligent design" debate. "The evidence for a young earth can't be refuted!" insists the Christian school text, in a breathtaking display of selective reasoning. Ad hominem attacks abound. "Only people who are in rebellion against God espouse evolution!" concludes the science teacher in the Christian school. And the secularist retorts, "Creationists want to plunge education back into the Dark Ages!"
With which teacher should I entrust my children?
Nor do I want my kids to learn history with all questions of religion either censored or simplified. Were the Crusaders soldiers of God or soldiers of Western imperialism? Religious educators are often too afraid to admit that devout believers did bad things; secular educators are often all too happy to point out that the love of God is the root of all evil.
My public school would teach my 9-year-old that Columbus was a self-aggrandizing representative of an expansionist empire determined to acquire more money and power while wiping out native cultures. On the other side, the mother of a Christian-school student told me with wide-eyed exhilaration of her son's American history lesson the week before: "Columbus went to the New World to share the gospel with the Indians! I never knew that! Doesn't that change the way you think about this country? We were founded on the declaration of the gospel! Isn't God good?"
So was Columbus a patriarchal aggressor or a humble servant of God? He was both.
I won't say that no classroom can address this issue in all its complexity. But there isn't one near me. Until there is, I'll continue to teach my kids at home.
SWB ~ I {HEART} YOU!
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