The Paris News

Why did President Obama want to speak to school children of the United States of America? Why was there such a big fuss made by some parents and other adults because the President of the United States of America chose to talk to school children on the first day of school for most of them?

We have heard some of the reasoning and it does not make sense. Why would President Obama want to indoctrinate the children of this country? If he could indoctrinate the children with one speech we are in big trouble and that means parents are not doing their job of being the protector of their children. An article in the Aug. 9, 2009 issue of “Parade Magazine” by Bill O’Reilly, entitled, “What Children Can Learn From President Obama” lists five lessons children can learn from the president.

Lesson one: Forgiveness. The President forgave his parents for not being good parents. His father left him and his mother when he was two years old. His mother remarried and took him to Indonesia. At the age of ten he was sent back to Hawaii to live with his grandparents, who reared him. In spite of his parents putting their needs above him he is not bitter toward them. I am sure his grandparents had a lot to do with him becoming the person he is today.

Lesson two: Respect. In spite of his parents being reckless, he respects them and has said his mother was the center of his universe. I am sure his grandparents were at work again.

Lesson three: Persistence. President Obama did not have many advantages growing up as a child. He learned how to get up when he was knocked down. He lost his first election when he ran for Congress and four years later ran for the Senate from Illinois and won. He seems to like a challenge. He is not a quitter and he is a very disciplined person.

Lesson four: Hard Work. He worked hard to get where he is today. This a direct quote from the article. “The President earned his present job by performing in school and, later, in his various jobs. He was smart enough to lay a foundation for success.”

Lesson five: In America, anything is possible. A direct quote from the article: “Consider the odds. The United States is a nation of more than 300 million citizens. Only one person is currently the Commander in Chief. That man had no fatherly guidance, is mixed race, and had no family connections to guide him into the world of national politics.”

If President Barack Obama could become President of the United States this should teach children whatever dream they have is possible. Thank God for his grandparents.

Now back to the first question. What does President Obama know that most Americans don’t know? The condition of education in the United States is not good. When former House Speaker Newt Gringrich and the Rev. Al Sharpton can work together with Secretary of Education Arne Duncan on a multi-city tour to challenge conventional thinking on fixing the nation’s schools you know we have a problem. The tour will start Sept. 29 in Philadelphia and be in New Orleans Nov. 3, and Baltimore on Nov. 13. The cities were selected for what they can teach others about school reform.

Following are some statistics the President knows that the average citizen may not know.

In a study of 20 high income countries, the United States ranked 12th on literacy. There are 44 million adults unable to read a simple story to their child. Seven million Americans can’t read. Fifty percent of adults cannot read a book written at eighth grade level. Twenty percent of Americans are functionally illiterate and read below a fifth grade level. Thirty million Americans cannot read a simple sentence. Some will say the other countries educate a select group of their citizens. That is no excuse, for our education system was set up to educate all.

What the president said in his speech this past week should not have been a threat to anyone. He encouraged students to do their best in school and obey their teachers, which is what all of us should be doing.

Marva Joe is a former Paris Independent School District trustee and is co-chair of the Diversity Task Force of Paris.

Share | Save | Mail | Print | Letter

Serving Northeast Texas and Southeast Oklahoma

A Southern Newspapers publication.