We the People
Reflections on what makes us great
It’s Constitution Day.
The 237th, to be exact. The National Constitution Center unveiled its new online, personalized High School Civics course, created in partnership with Khan Academy, aiming to help scores more students and educators learn and teach about the Constitution and the many chapters in history that shaped it, as well as that were shaped by its principles.
As NCC President Jeff Rosen, who was with Sal Khan for the unveiling today said, “It will connect great scholars with great teachers and then connect this great material with students on a scale previously unimagined.” Explore the principles of liberty, federalism, the separation of powers, Bill of Rights and more with scholars, thought leaders and celebrities. The depth and rigor and accessibility are unprecedented. It’s free for everyone, too. Use it, read it, share it, learn about it. And let me know what you think. I’m happy to say we played a supporting role!
We the People Remember
Just a week ago, thousands gathered near and far to remember 9/11 twenty-three years before.
Patriotism was at an all-time high, reported CBS Sunday Morning in a special piece on September 8th. But today, “patriotism, and the love of the symbol and what it stands for has decreased,” says the head of Gettysburg flag works.
That - and the stats that follow - led veteran reporter Ted Koppel to posit that “What our flag stands for remains open to interpretation…”
According to Gallup, while 70% were proud to be American in 2003, the number hovers around 41% of people today. “They want to fly the flag, but they are worried their neighbors will think they are Republicans,” offers the flag guy. He says he tells them, “Look, the American flag is for all Americans to love and cherish. It stands for everybody, regardless of political affiliation.” he says. “It is not about one party over the other.”
How the flag came to be and be used the way it is today is a great story and I encourage you to watch the piece. That history, and the rest of our nation’s story, led to patriotism once being a foundational and important value in our schools, and its modern absence from the classroom is what people like E.D Hirsch and the civic education movement today has worked to reverse.
To quote the late historian, David McCullough, “you cannot love what you don’t know.”
Many struggle with the question of how to educate students - especially those poorly served by U.S. schools - about the nation’s founding and its history. It’s not that most teachers do not care or care to know. But for most teachers, accessing objective, credible and engaging sources of history is more difficult than ever. And many are not required - or incentivized - to do so. Once they do, they are powerful allies for great civics education, as students are actually captivated by the exploration of history.
On September 11, 2001, President Bush was in a school, reading, when the Twin Towers were hit. It was a poignant link in history, and we must remember the sacrifices that people make for the country they hold dear. And it should be a reminder that while education is and will remain the foundation of a free society, the glue is the knowledge about that which makes us - the U.S. - unique.
We the Innovators
On September 12, 2024, this year’s 25 Yass Prize semifinalists gathered, with STOP Award alum and friends, atop today’s World Trade Center, in the Freedom Tower, with Lady Liberty and the New York metropolitan skyline, casting their gaze on the achievements of some of the best education providers the nation has known.
As they sat and learned from one another the 25 distinct approaches and ideas affecting more than 200,000 students, it was hard not to smile at the incredible power of freedom, the freedom made possible by virtue of the national fabric we celebrate today, as well as the modern-day laws that fuel, allow, or in some cases have to be ignored for them to operate!
In a surprise announcement by the Yass Team and Janine Yass, Primer Microschools was named the winner of the $1 million Yass Prize, while Big Picture Learning, Boddle, Rural Education Innovation Zone and St. Mary’s were named finalists with $500,000 STOP Awards. Primer seeks to build schools that take kids seriously. The entire crew is, frankly, creating and iterating on educational conventions to build schools that are worthy of our kids. Read all about the latest cadre of awardees, the people who will help replicate success for years to come!
Notes and Asides
Did the South Carolina Supreme Court forget that its job is judicial and not political? It’s not clear they know that from their rejection of the state’s ESA program. A fight is on…
Does AI signal the end of reading? Interesting question - but remember kids’ reading has been declining or stagnant since we actually stopped teaching the skill - or expecting it.
African American coalition cautions candidates to focus on crisis in black student achievement. If fact, it would be worthwhile to hear the candidates on education, period. Or maybe not?
Liberty and education go hand in hand, and they are part of my own personal story. I’m pleased to share my remarks at the Yass gathering on the 12th with you. Thank you for your support. Jeanne