A Date That Will Live in Infamy…
Today is December 7, 2016. 75 years ago today, The United States was attacked by the empire of Japan at Pear Harbor in Hawaii. This attack not only cost the lives of Americans, but led to the United States entering World War II which resulted in thousands more dying. Now, I know this isn’t a history lesson, but as teachers, aren’t we supposed to be lifelong learners? And what better teaching tool is there than history?
We have established throughout the semester that literacy is key to achieving education — both on the part of the educator and the student. As teachers, we need to incorporate whatever medium of text we can to ensure we identify — and in turn, help students identify — various types of literacy. Being teachers in the 21st century, it is imperative that we intertwine our lesson plans with technology, social media, and pop culture. Instead of creating a barrier between classroom discussion and the real world, we need to be the bridge between the two. This is all well and good, and it is beyond a necessity…but is that all we need to do? What good will all of this technology, differentiation, and learning by design do if the students are not better people, citizens, Americans when they leave our classrooms? We need to teach students about parts of speech, the Founding Fathers, photosynthesis, multiplication, but we also need to make them concerned and active citizens. This need to have educated Americans was best seen during the 2016 election cycle.
With the shitshow that was the 2016 presidential campaign, it is clear that bias exists throughout the American media, education system, and — perhaps most detrimental — inside the American home. Regardless of what candidate you or I voted for within the safety of a voter’s booth, anyone with two ears can agree that the smearing that came from both sides of the aisle was counter-productive to the efforts of teachers that are attempting to teach students empathy, kindness, and critical thinking. Most importantly, this campaign cycle was an attack at literacy. Both Clinton and Trump led their party in verbally attacking the other candidate — and in some cases, these attacks came from their own camp. Often times, from both candidates, these attacks were unfounded and without evidence; their attacks were slander. Would a student receive a passing grade if their response to a prompt had no evidence? Would a student receive a passing grade if their response didn’t answer the question as we saw both candidates do at multiple debates? No. The student would be held responsible for digesting information, analyzing texts, and formulating new opinions based on evidence.
So, what does Pearl Harbor have to do with the 2016 presidential election? After the attack at Pearl Harbor, and even more so after the United States’ victory in World War II, the Untied States was unified. We were, as a nation, united for a common goal — making a better America. There was a political division among red and blue voters, sure, but it took a back seat to seeing America succeed. This was because America was globally literate. American citizens at that time were, by and large, not as educated as they are today. Both my grandpas, who were born in 1936 and 1933, quit school after the 8th grade and never went back. They can read and write, but not very well. They know their multiplication tables and some of the presidents. They’re very intelligent men who worked their asses off for 60 years and made a pretty good lower-middle class living. But, they’re not educated. These men, and the majority of people from their time, however, love America. My maternal grandpa, Ralph, fought in the Korean War. He has told me many, many times about people he served with from California that had completely different values than him. They smoked dope, had different views on homosexuality, premarital relations, but they and Ralph agreed on one thing — they loved America and by God would stand up for her. This is the literacy we have lost today. My generation has become so individualized that we see ourselves as white Americans, black Americans, gay Americans, women Americans, Christian Americans, Muslim Americans, instead of seeing ourselves for what we really are — Americans. The United States of America have become more divided than they have been since the War Between the States.
I know this seems like rambling, and maybe it is. I tend to do that a lot. If you don’t remember any of this, try to remember this. As teachers, it is our responsibility and duty as Americans to teach students that although politicians will serve different flavors of rhetoric, it is important to remember that at the end of the day, we all have a common purpose — protecting, honoring, and serving America. Although the right and left have extremely different recipes for achieving this, all of these ideas stem from the same idea, to help America. Now, I know there are people in America of all different races, religions, and political persuasions that don’t love America. That don’t respect her values. That want to see her fail. But just because somebody doesn’t like your girlfriend doesn’t mean you don’t think she’s the bee’s knees. Students today need to be taught about what makes America so great: her diversity, her history, her aptitude, her attitude. By teaching all students what being an American means, we can increase the literacy of all Americans, and then, and only then, can we truly Make America Great Again.
