To help speed my recovery after recent heart surgery, a
friend of mine gave me a set of novels and stories by
Dostoevsky and Tolstoy--a gesture I appreciated
tremendously. I read these books when I was young, and
memorized certain passages. They have been a beacon for me
in times of struggle, also in trying to help other people.
These writings are
divinely inspired and contain nuggets that point to biblical
and universal truths. For me they have the same stature as
the writings of the Old Testament prophets, and I think
every high school student and adult should read them. After
all, these books stand at the center of a true education.
Unfortunately, fewer and fewer young people have even
heard of such classics, let alone read them. In recent years
the American government has worked very hard to improve the
public school system. The No Child Left Behind law is being
hailed as one of the most significant achievements of the
Bush administration. But even if those who wrote this
legislation had noble intentions, their efforts are badly
misguided and will have devastating results.
Nobody can truly teach by means of computers and
technology. As glamorous as it looks, the fruits are bad. In
fact, it seems to me that we are raising a generation of
robots, with damaged and even ruined souls. Here I am
reminded of the words of Jesus, "Woe to you if you mislead
one of these my little ones. It would be better if a
millstone is hung around your neck and you drown in the
deepest sea." All of us need to take this warning seriously.
A truly valuable education has one purpose: to teach
children that fulfillment can be found only in serving
others. A life of service leads to community, to God, and to
true nationhood. Why are we so afraid of it?
True education takes place through the influence of role
models, not by means of robotic imitation. Let me give you
an example: When my grandfather was a young man, at the time
of the First World War, the patriotic teachers of his native
Germany inspired a whole generation of students to enlist.
The response was overwhelming, even if misguided.
Tragically, thousands were killed. But the point remains:
the country's teachers were real role models, and led their
students into battle.
Years later, in Paraguay, where I grew up during World War
II, the teachers I had (who were highly trained German
refugees) had such enthusiasm and passion that even though
we had no textbooks and no visual aids--only a
blackboard--we had a first-rate education. Most of it took
place outdoors in nature--in real life. But now, a
half-century later, I know that my peers and I had an
education that today’s millionaires would covet for their
children. Sadly, they will not get it, for love or money,
because we have our priorities all wrong.
I have seen on my journeys around the world, that the
education I had as a child can still be found in many Third
World countries in South America, Africa, and Asia. As in my
day, the children of today’s developing countries live in
poverty. But if they have nothing else, they still have a
teacher who loves them and is determined to see their
education through. Both these teachers and their pupils have
a sparkle in their eyes that has been destroyed in this
country--and a glow that should put us to shame. Computers
and audiovisual aids are not magic. They are not even
necessary to make learning become alive.
Anyone who is involved in the field of education (including
parents!) would do well to ponder these words from
Dostoevsky's Brothers Karamazov, which speaks about the
vital importance not only of an education, but of every
single day: "You must know that there is nothing higher and
stronger and more wholesome for life in the future than some
good memory, especially a memory of childhood, of home.
People talk to you a great deal about education. But some
good, sacred memory preserved from childhood--that is
perhaps the best education. For if a man has only one good
memory left in his heart, even that may keep him from
evil...And if he carries many such memories with him into
life, he is safe for the end of his days."
If one day is so important, what about a month or a year?
Children are our only future. Why are we so afraid to give
them the best we have?
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