A lot can be said about the recent keynote speech by Becky Pringle at the 2024 NEA Representative Assembly in Philadelphia last week. Pushing past the emotion with which she delivered her impassioned speech, her points included the NEA's goals for the future and many of the triumphs various states have already seen in their fight to create a public school system they believe will benefit all of our children. Pringle stated:
"We will fight privatization, vouchers, and any other scheme to drain resources from our public schools."
"We will lead the changes we seek in public education that will create and sustain a professional environment where all educators have the professional authority and collaborative autonomy to make teaching and learning decisions for themselves and their students."
"In Maryland, the determination of their educators led to the passage of the Freedom to Read Act, critical legislation that prevents state-funded libraries from banning books and protects school and library staff from retaliation."
The problem with most of Pringle's message was that the NEA's agenda dismisses parents in favor of its own so-called "wins."
Vouchers allow families to choose the best educational setting for their children. As parents, we trust teachers with our most precious treasures. Our duty and right is to raise them using the morals and values we see fit. If our zoned school does not meet our standards, we, as Americans, should have the right to choose a different school and allocate our educational dollars accordingly. School administrators should view parents as partners, not enemies. Advocating for the right to complete autonomy over teaching and learning decisions positions parents as antagonists in an environment that should be collaborative and maintain respect for parents as the primary authority in their children's lives.
At a school I worked at in the past, I once walked in on a colleague playing a movie featuring nudity to a class of 8th graders. I reported him, and that led to an investigation that revealed that he had sexually assaulted a handful of students in our school. He was later arrested. We can all agree that nudity on screen is a blazing red flag that everyone should report. So is, say, vulgar music containing profanity. Books of the same nature do not get a free pass.
Students should not have access to all books.
That might seem odd coming from a literacy-focused microschool, but the fact is that not all books are created equal. Philippians 4:8 says, "...whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things." Just as we monitor what our children put in their mouths and what they listen to, our mandate as parents also includes guarding their minds. Those of us who have been called to steward the next generation must be intentional about what books we give children access to. Ideas are not made worthy of entering the minds of our children by their physical packaging alone.
The school board may not agree with our values, and they may create a system that places us in opposition to the very system we fund and trust to raise those we love most, but that's okay. Microschools created by parents who are also experienced teachers are popping up nationwide to give families another option. Lucas Literacy Lab in Old Bridge, NJ, is one such microschool that centers on the family and prioritizes quality, values, and community. We partner with parents to ensure that they are in control of everything from curriculum to how many days per week their child attends.
Join us for a round table chat to discuss our pedagogical approach and share stories and aspirations for an educational experience worthy of our children.
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