Radio Commentary
A great quote says: “Either we teach our children, or we
abandon the future to chance and nonsense.”
You don’t
have to tell that to parents or educators. Both groups seem well aware of the
responsibilities placed squarely on their shoulders.
A Gallup
Poll on Americans’ attitudes toward public schools once again confirmed a
perception that has held steady for more than three decades: the public gives
only average marks to the nation’s public schools, but predominantly As or Bs
to the schools their own children attend.
We hear the
reports about the demise of public education, but what parents see for their
own children — for whom they are the world’s harshest critics — they rate above
average or excellent.
Educators
recognize that challenges remain. Until all students reach their potential,
hard work remains to be done. Efforts are constantly made to reach every child
at every level.
The one irrefutable concept we have
learned from research over the years is that every child learns differently.
Some must
read information to “get” it. Others must hear it, and others need hands-on
approaches.
Still others do much better in small groups, while some
require the one-to-one attention of a teacher or tutor. Most need a mix of
techniques for different materials.
The trick
for educators lies in identifying the needs for each student and providing
teaching strategies to meet those various needs.
That is the
challenge, and the goal, so that we do not “abandon the future to chance and
nonsense.”
