The public school system in America has become a dismal failure. But education in many other times and cultures has been quite successful. The ancient Greeks, whose civilization was at its height around 500 B.C., founded Western civilization as we know it. The Athenian Greeks invented or perfected logic, drama, science, philosophy, astronomy, mathematics, literature, and much more. Yet ancient Greece had no compulsory schools.
Other than requiring two years of military training for young men that began at age eighteen, Athens let parents educate their children as they saw fit. Parents either taught their children at home or sent them to voluntary schools where teachers and philosophers like Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle gave lectures to all who wanted to learn. These great teacher-philosophers did not need a license to teach, nor did they have tenure.
The ancient Athenians had a free-market education system. The thought of compulsory, state-run schools and compulsory licensing would have been repulsive to them. The Athenians respected a parents' natural right to direct the education of their children.
In contrast, Sparta, Athens's mortal enemy, created the first truly state-run, compulsory education system on record. Individual Spartans lived and died for the state, and had to serve the state from birth until sixty years of age. Their society was a brutal military dictatorship in which male children literally belonged to the city, not to their parents.
The Spartan military government took boys from their homes and parents at the age of seven and forced them to live in military-style barracks for the rest of their lives. Spartan men were life-long soldiers whose highest duty was to obey the commands of their leaders.
It is no coincidence that Sparta had compulsory, state-run education. If a society believes that children belong not to parents, but to the state, then the state must control children's education by compulsion.
Are our public schools any different than the brutal Spartan society in the way they treat parents and children? Today, school compulsory-attendance laws force parents to hand over their children to government employees called teachers for eight to twelve years.
In effect, our local and state governments claim that they, like the Spartans, own our children's minds and bodies for twelve years. Parents who refuse to hand over their children to the public schools can be and have been locked in jail for disobeying the compulsory-attendance laws.
In this respect, our public schools today are just as brutal as the Spartans. The difference is only in degree. Where the Spartans stole children from their parents to serve a lifetime in their military, our local governments create laws that let them, in effect, legally kidnap our children to serve twelve years in their education boot camps called public schools. The brutality of the principal is the same. Like the Spartans, our public-school officials think they own our children, and have contempt for parents' rights.
Joel Turtel is an education policy analyst, and author of "Public Schools, Public Menace: How Public Schools Lie To Parents and Betray Our Children." Contact Information: Website: http://www.mykidsdeservebetter.com, Email: http://www.mykidsdeservebetter.com, Phone: 718-447-7348. Article Copyrighted ? 2005 by Joel Turtel. NOTE: You may post this Article on an Ezine, newsletter, or other website only if you include Joel Turtel's complete contact information, and set up a hyperlink to Joel Turtel's email address and website URL, http://www.mykidsdeservebetter.com
Oswego taxi to Midway ..The least flexible character in all of the stories of... Read More
Working with adults (as well as children and teens) for... Read More
Be aware. You may become totally overwhelmed when you get... Read More
Fizzy sherbet in a paper bag with a strawberry lollipop... Read More
"Home Schooling ? Look Before You Leap"Are you considering home... Read More
Q. My daughter has gotten very good at manipulating us,... Read More
Many public schools not only fail to educate our children,... Read More
My daughters and I went to the beach several weeks... Read More
Why are more people, especially parents not outraged?I call it... Read More
Although many children are picky eaters at some stage in... Read More
Do you remember how you first learned the alphabet? I... Read More
When my firstborn arrived into this serene and peaceful household,... Read More
The formula is pretty straightforward: energy in/energy out. This is... Read More
Seven-year old Michael was on a school trip to a... Read More
You need to smart to be able influence adolescents. You... Read More
Annie easily slipped into becoming the sole caregiver of her... Read More
Imagine yourself lying flat on your back, totally strapped down... Read More
It's hard to explain to the uninitiated the changes that... Read More
Using 14 "at" Flashcards To Teach Reading:This exercise helps your... Read More
So you want to be a mum? Every time you... Read More
Many families, ours included, have learned that breakfast is eaten... Read More
Spending quality time with your children doesn't need to cost... Read More
There are only two ways to get more money:1) Increase... Read More
We begin forming healthy habits at a young age. With... Read More
If your parenting methods include abuse of any kind; physical,... Read More
shuttle from Midway Morris ..In "The Ring Bear," a picture book by Tigard resident... Read More
My daughters and I went to the beach several weeks... Read More
When a parent is deployed with the military it can... Read More
'Picky Eater' is a label coined to describe the phenomenon... Read More
As our children grow, they will be going to schools... Read More
Do you praise your child when he fulfils a basic... Read More
It's the third time this week that Sam has complained... Read More
So, the thing is? I am feeling a little guilty.I... Read More
It was blisteringly hot last Saturday. As I took that... Read More
(Isaiah 11:6 KJV) The wolf also shall dwell with the... Read More
"In general my children refuse to eat anything that hasn't... Read More
the woes of being a parent of an ADHD child.....Like... Read More
Many parents would like to homeschool their children but are... Read More
Is Homework Really That Important?Dear Friends,I no longer teach in... Read More
I'll never forget my first lesson in a glider.I'd been... Read More
Moms and dads, are there times you think that parenting... Read More
Do you have a young child whose weight or eating... Read More
There are so many learning labels floating around these days... Read More
A growing body of scientific evidence shows that the way... Read More
Most day cares are non-profit organizations that must operate within... Read More
As a parent, you probably know that the birthday party... Read More
If you are like most people today, you do not... Read More
For many adults, reading a book or newspaper seems effortless.... Read More
How to Get Your Child to Love Reading was conceived... Read More
It can be difficult on all family members to have... Read More
Parenting |