On September 8, 2009, President Obama will be addressing all public schools, K-12. In preparation, the Department of Education (DOE) published memos with instructions and suggestions for how teachers could “extend the learning.”
Here is a sample of the instructions for K-6:
As students listen to the speech, teachers could ask students to think about the following:
- What is the president trying to tell me?
- What is the president asking me to do?
- What new ideas and actions is the president challenging me to think about?
Teachers are then encouraged to “extend the learning” by having students:
- Write letters to themselves about what they can do to help the president. These would be collected and redistributed at a later date (just like Obama and your parent’s money – okay, I added that).
Here is a sample of the instructions for Grades 7-12:
Before the speech, teachers could ask students to think about the following:
- How will he inspire us? (That’s rather presumptuous, no?)
- Do you remember any other historic moment when the president spoke to the nation? (GWB and a megaphone, anyone?)
- What impact did it have?
After the speech, teachers are encouraged to hold a guided discussion that includes:
- Is President Obama inspiring you to do anything? (First they wondered HOW he’d be inspiring. Now they wonder if he WAS inspiring. They must have received a copy of the speech in between these questions.)
- What do you believe are the challenges of your generation? (Besides the debt you owe due to the Spender-in-Chief’s policies?)
- How can you be a part of addressing these challenges? (Pay your taxes. Or don’t and become Treasury Secretary.)
The DOE must have received a lot of flack because they’ve made an update to the instructions for K-6. Instead of writing letters to themselves as to how they can help the President, now they’re asked to write letters to themselves about how they can achieve their short-term and long-term education goals. Hmm, the focus went from him to them.
Jim Geraghty, of National Review, captured both versions here. When I read the original one, the idea of writing a letter to yourself explaining how you can help the President struck me as rather odd. First of all, a letter to one’s self is called a diary entry. Tell that to a 5th grade football player. He’ll be all over that assignment. Second, why is a federal agency suggesting teachers encourage young people who can’t vote for him (yet) to think about how they can help the President? They didn’t say “help the country” or “help your classmate” but “help the President.” Help the President. Doesn’t he have enough advisors for that?
What kind of responses are they hoping to receive?
If given such an assignment, this is what my kid would write:
- “The President inspires me to know the history of socialism in order to recognize it when it rears its ugly head.”
- “The President inspires me to submit a term paper and then emphatically deny its contents during my presentation on it.”
- “The President inspires me to take lunch money from my friend and give it to my classmates.” (Especially if my friend’s name is Joe and his dad’s a plumber.)
- “The President inspires me to throw grandma under the bus whenever convenient. My pastor, too. And my real estate friend. Oh, and don’t forget Cambridge police officers.”
- “The President inspires me to have a beer with people to resolve my differences, or at least use it for a photo op.”
- “The President inspires me to find ways to work ‘wee weed up’ into as many conversations as possible.”
- “The President inspires me to not give up on identifying the 57 United States, even though I’ve only found 50 so far.”
Here is how my kid’s classmates would respond:
- “The President inspires me to say, ‘Let me be clear’ or ‘Make no mistake’ before I tell a lie.”
- “The President inspires me to take other people’s money.” – School Bully
- “The President inspires me to register to vote so that I can vote for the other person.” – High School Senior
You might think it’s a little over the top to be criticizing the President’s speech to the nation’s public school children before the speech is given. What kind of harm can it do? I’m not concerned about President Obama telling our nation’s kids to study and work hard. If a boy or girl needs that extra inspiration from the President to be a good student, then they’ll get that boost. (According to the DOE, they’ll get more homework, too.) I’m not concerned about tender minds becoming democrats. I’m concerned about them becoming loyalists, or Obamabots. Obamabots are the worst. They never question anything. Ever. Don’t kid yourself. It’s not just a speech. There are “before” activities and “after” activities which lead to a Day of Obama.
As I said on Twitter, JFK’s words have been restructured yet again: Ask not what Obama can do “for the children” but what the children can do for Obama.
Besides the teachers (like the one in this video) who go above and beyond to “extend the learning” for those young, malleable minds, I’m curious as to who wouldn’t have a problem with this type of assignment? Probably the parents of these kids:
UPDATE: Students are asked to do a little homework prior to the big speech and read about Barack Obama. The two books, including excerpts, available here.