Sugar and Spice and...

I’ve not been as prolific in my writing as I’ve been in the past.  A couple of months ago, my wife had a baby – a girl.  I once did not understand people’s compulsion to stay home, quit work and devote one’s time completely to the child.  I’m still not sure I completely understand but I’ve gained over the last couple of months a new appreciation.  Now, my life will center on following Shakespeare’s words – “It is a wise father that knows his own child.”  However, there have been many decisions to make and no doubt, many more to come.

Even before she was born, my wife and I wrestled with a name to give her.  We had so many criteria that the process was a bit mindboggling.  We did not want a name that was too cute – she was sure to grow into an adult embarrassed by a cute-sounding name.  We did not want a name too popular – my wife’s experiences growing up with one of the most common names of her day served as a cautionary tale.  We wanted a name that flowed – a name that rolled off the tongue.  We liked various French names but did not want something with diacritical marks – lest she be condemned to a life of mispronunciations.  At the very least, we did not want a child who would end up in therapy years later because of the name we bestowed upon her.  

Now that she is among us, a new world has opened, filled with responsibilities and decisions to make regarding her upbringing.  I do not say anything in this blog as a criticism to what other people are doing but simply an explanation of what we would like to do.  One of the first bits of advice that we received from doctors and nurses was, “You cannot spoil a baby.”  I reject that out of hand because of the assumption being made.  To say that a baby cannot be spoiled suggests that a baby cannot learn, that cognitively nothing is going on within our daughter.  I believe our daughter, all babies in fact, are born as rational creatures that do nothing for whimsical reasons – all that they do is the product of and is influenced by their environment.  I choose to believe that our daughter is constantly thinking and learning – for better or worse.

Likely the biggest thing I wonder is the degree to which I can foster the maturation of a young woman who is confident, intelligent and tough.  I imagine parents would like their children to be like them so that life is not disrupted too much with extemporaneous events that must be attended, interesting no one but the child.  Still, I have aspirations.  I hope she is a baseball fan, who becomes a prodigious reader and enjoys the great outdoors.  I hope she enjoys history, following the words of Tacitus and thinking of her “forefathers and posterity.”  Of course, I’m not so naïve as to think she will be like me.  However, I can try and then understand if she tells me fill-in-the-blank is not her cup of tea.  

There are so many other ideas that have run through my mind regarding my daughter.  However, this would be at least a ten page blog entry so I’ll stick with the big concepts.  When she was first born, I was not sure what to think of this beautiful child and the fact that I was her father.  Now, I find myself fascinated with and enthralled by her each day.  When I look at her, I wonder about everything, including what she will become.  So, if she does not take to her Tacitus or does not find joy in the Orioles, I will work hard to ensure that she is a thinker, she is a doer, that she will go into this world mentally tough, intellectually formidable and realistically confident.  More importantly, I hope she is a good person.   

War on Intellectualism?

As a country, we’ve always had difficulties with those who profess to know more than us.  It began with the British and to be frank, the British have been holding it over us for centuries.  What we did, collectively in the late 18^th and 19^th centuries, we took pride in the opposite.  We were a bit crude, we were loud and we thumbed our noses at the pretensions held by others.  Yet, there was still value on necessary knowledge – skills that could create or build.  It would seem we are hitting new lows and it will be difficult to re-emerge from our self-induced stupor.   

Probably the most obvious, lowest hanging fruit that I can bang away at is television and advertisement.  This time of year is always distressing for me.  It is not that I’m returning to work soon but I’m bombarded with commercials that tell kids that the most important part of returning to school is that they have the right clothes, the right technology and in general, appear the coolest.  On one hand, what else are they going to say but the emphasis is all consuming and teachers know that of which I speak – the first days of school and the first days after Christmas vacation are de facto fashion shows.  “Books?  Don’t sweat it, kid.  You’ll get further by looking better.” 

Of course, television programs consistently set new lows in depravity and stupidity.  It might be strange to hear but in other countries, as we once did, they have programs where people calmly discuss important political and social issues.  It is mature discussions on the events of the day or with the guest for the evening.  Today, the last refuge for such programming is PBS and even there, such discussion-oriented programming is rather thin on the ground.  The programs you would normally expect the most of but get the least from are news shows.  As I’ve mentioned before, I often watch the news wondering where the adults are.  Screaming and emotionalism are a far cry from what once watched even a decade ago.  As for reality programming, I don’t have enough space to address that issue.

 

Speaking of the aforementioned arena of education, we have the prominence of standardize testing.  Today, it is more important that you know an increasingly narrowed field of information – only what will be on the test.  From an early age, our students are taught that a large swath of information is not important because it will not be assessed.  From the earliest grades, we are teaching our students that the curiosity with which they entered school does not serve them well.  Only a passing test grade will land you into a good school and ergo a good career.  Yet, school officials on the national and state levels scratch their heads and profess dismay at increasingly worsening scores on international testing.  They’ve drunk the Kool-Aid and cannot think beyond their boxes.   

Lastly (only for the sake of this article), technology has emphasized that convenience is valued over substance.  Technology today, despite its proponents who champion educational apps and computer programs as its benefits, has done more to shorten our attention span and gnaw away at our intellectual stamina.  Additionally, for all the “enriching” aspects of technology, I don’t see people using it.  I see people pre-occupied with Twitter, Facebook and other social media outlets.  As a teacher, I’ve seen the degradation and it is disheartening and baffling.  Over the last couple of decades, we have treasured our students’ ability to emote and not think and we are paying for that misdirection. 

I hope the state of things is not as bad as I’m portraying.  I’ve come across students from time to time who buck the trend.  What makes it seem so dire is the prevalence of mass media and popular culture.  I find myself wondering if there is some network or programmer who would be willing to buck the trend and appeal to the country’s intellect.  Is there a celebrity who will do more for intellectual pursuits that posing for the “Read” posters found in libraries throughout the country?  It is fine to not put on airs or to lampoon pretentiousness but we must still value the mind and intellect.  If not, the great experiment might not last much longer.