"Sizably and statistically significantly worse" -- a phrase that many of our kids in Mississippi and across the country can't even spell. But they have the Internet figured out.
So, what to do?
First, every home a school; every parent a teacher. The home-schooling movement is growing among concerned parents in America, as well it should be. Research shows that, on the whole, the longer they are in home-based studies, the more likely students are to outperform their peers.
But not all parents can "home school," given life situations and work demands. Home school anyway, and especially if your child goes to a public and/or secular school. The Hebrews recited the Shema twice a day and many faithful Jews still do today: "Hear O Israel, the Lord is our God the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might. And these words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart. And you shall teach them diligently to your sons .... "
The implication, in the best of Hebrew tradition, was that fathers and mothers are responsible for the education of their children. YOU shall teach them, YOU are to be held primarily responsible, not somebody else and most certainly not the government.
Truth is, a lot of other people impact our kids in schools, churches, and popular culture. But parents are supposed to be the pedagogues whose input during the first, best formative years provides an adequate lens through which the child can judge the rest of what she receives educationally for years to come. No matter the educational delivery system, nothing is to obfuscate the input and primacy of the home.
Note it well -- parents are responsible for the good or bad ideas, the excellent or poor achievement of their children. Period.
Second, choose your college well. Most of them, the vast majority of them, are horrible. Pick one that respects God and the Bible and teaches conservatively on issues theological, moral, cultural and economic.
To be honest, that last sentence limits the choices to a proverbial handful. Choose wisely.
It matters.
Find Dr. Matt Friedeman's blog at "In the Fight." (http://www.inthefight.blogspot.com) Friedeman (mfriedeman@wbs.edu) is a professor of evangelism and discipleship at Wesley Biblical Seminary (http://www.wbs.edu). He and his wife Mary home school their six children.
© 2005 Agape Press. Used with permission. All rights reserved.
