President Obama’s planned message to all school children in grades Pre-K-12 is to be delivered next week as students all over the country return to school, but there has been a good deal of controversy regarding it. At the center of the debate is a writing assignment included in the preparatory materials distributed to teachers by the Department of Education asking students to “Write letters to themselves about what they can do to help the president.”
This was obviously taken the wrong way be some parents and Republicans who felt that this is part of a bigger attempt to fill students with liberal messages and to promote the president’s agenda, including the health-care initiative. After the public outcry hit the media, the assignment was changed by the Department of Education, no doubt with a good deal of input from the President, to read: “Write letters to themselves about how they can achieve their short-term and long-term educational goals.”
White House Spokesman Tommy Vietor said, “We changed it to clarify the language so the intent is clear.” Okay, we might say, that sounds right, but if we examine the two different directions they do seem to have nothing in common. If the original direction was written in that spirit, whoever wrote it certainly did a poor job. For a student to “help” a President is far different than for him or her to think about a way to “achieve” in school now or in the future.
Is there something inherently wrong about a President addressing students on their way back to school? I think not. In fact, I like the idea that Mr. Obama values education and is willing to take the time to let kids know it. We certainly need more positive messages about school, staying in school, and accomplishing something more significant than reaching the next level of a video game.
What has some Republicans and some parents spooked about this message? Well, politically speaking, the President would be woefully wrong to turn the back-to-school message to kids into a political speech. I am anxious to see the text of the address, which will be released on Monday, but until then I think everyone would do well to not get overly excited. Again, I must emphasize that it is necessary and compelling in these times for students to get a positive message about school. A message coming from the President carries weight and kids, who obviously admire and respect Mr. Obama, are going to be more open to his call for taking their studies more seriously.
Article comments
— go to most recent comments1 - El Bicho
Great article, Victor. I hope the people that need to read it the most will make the effort.
2 - Erdo Boy
The country and the President are not the same thing. Likening the speech by JFK to this press release is a mistake. I have heard the audio from the message and it is the complete opposite of what JFK was trying to say.
3 - zingzing
"I have heard the audio from the message and it is the complete opposite of what JFK was trying to say."
where did you hear it, and how is it the opposite?
4 - Jordan Richardson
I have heard the audio from the message and it is the complete opposite of what JFK was trying to say.
Bullllllllllllllshit.
5 - jonolan
I think that there's a huge difference between using a letter to the President writing assignment and the more targeted "how they can help" Obama assignment. The first is open ended and fairly objective whereas the second carries the preconception and bias that the students must want to further Obama's goals.
That is what was inappropriate, especially for the younger students.
6 - john
"The country and the President are not the same thing." That's it. Stupid of them not to be keenly aware of that distinction. Even after they correct it a sense of distrust remains.
7 - icouldbedancing
Would people be against a letter about helping Ronald Reagan or JFK? Writing a letter to the President is a great idea, reminding citizens - yes children are citizens too - that their opinion counts in this great country! The students would "help" the President in ways that they feel are important to them. I am sure students, especially younger ones, are not well-versed in the President's agenda! Additionally, fostering education is ALWAYS a good idea!
8 - Clavos
Additionally, fostering education is ALWAYS a good idea!
Not always, no. Depends on what's being "fostered."
9 - Just Sayin'
Wanna know why the White House is asking students to write letters about how to help the president?
It's because we elected a know-nothing "community organizer" who is now so disorganized, that he's begging OUR KIDS for advice!
10 - Doug Hunter
Anyone who has ever read my comments on this site knows I'm a far right, government hating nutjob. That being said, I see nothing wrong with a president occasionally addressing schoolkids, or anyone for that matter. If he inserts politics into the broadcast then that will be an issue to deal with after the fact.
If you don't like Obama being the president to get to address your kids, I suggest you work harder to elect someone else next time. To the victor go the spoils.
11 - Dr Dreadful
Well said, Doug.
12 - Silas Kain
I, for one, am gratified by the resurgence of parental interest in education. For far too long, parents have allowed the school systems to dictate education without regard to the quality thereof. Now that parents are out there protesting the President's address to students perhaps PTA involvement will go up. Perhaps parents will become more proactive in extracurricular affairs, personal accountability projects and more. Such a great door of opportunity has been opened by President Obama's intrusion into our schools!
Oh, I forgot, this is about President Obama and has nothing to do with parents getting proactive. Never mind. Back to basics -- substandard education, no accountability and, of course, no interest in civic responsibility. Well, this one will be another "failure" in the Obama column because parents these days never were educated in personal accountability (except, of course, Dave Nalle).
13 - Baronius
You got it right, Victor.
14 - Warren Kelly
Doug,
From one right wing nutjob to another, I couldn't agree more. Of course, I had a family member call me a liberal last night, so maybe I'm not as big a nutjob as I thought ...
15 - Joanne Huspek
There's a parental resurgence in education? Where? When? How?
I'm not being facetious. I deal with kids and parents all the time, and for the most part the concerned ones are few and far between.
A poll of Michigan parents last year found that most of them didn't think a college education was necessary.
Oy vay. This is our future.
16 - Dr Dreadful
I had a family member call me a liberal last night
Do you require medical attention? :-)
17 - Matthew T. Sussman
No, I can't support this. In this day and age, the so-called "forward thinkers" are trying to indoctrinate children into thinking it's okay to write letters. As most people know, children's handwriting can be largely unreadable, which is a waste of paper, a natural resource.
18 - Victor Lana
Just want to thank you all for the comments. They go to show how differently people feel about this topic.
I think the common thread is that we ALL care about education , and maybe this will get some people more interested if they were not before.
19 - Clavos
I had a family member call me a liberal last night
Do you require medical attention? :-)
Careful. He's not really a doctor, he just plays on one BC.
20 - Clavos
@ #17,
You're right. The WH should have asked for emails.
21 - Baronius
Now I've got to break up the lovey-dovey stuff.
You have to marvel at an administration that can't speak to schoolkids without stumbling into controversy. They've been on the dance floor for 7 months and they still haven't got the rythym. I'm not fan of Bill Clinton, but he was born to dance.
I wonder if maybe the easy 2008 campaign never really tested the staff.
22 - zingzing
joanne: "There's a parental resurgence in education? Where? When? How? I'm not being facetious."
but he was. he's saying that the only time parents (in the case, rightwing parents,) pay any attention to education is to actually remove their children from school, forcing their own political agenda on their kids, in order to keep them from supposedly having another political agenda forced on them instead. of course... that's a pretty ridiculous strategy, and also kinda hypocritical...
23 - zingzing
"You have to marvel at an administration that can't speak to schoolkids without stumbling into controversy. "
false, trumped-up, bullshit controversy, created by uninformed, hyperbolic, paranoid idiots, but controversy nonetheless...
24 - Dr Dreadful
You have to marvel at an administration that can't speak to schoolkids without stumbling into controversy.
Sure, Baronius. And the rape victim brought it on herself.
25 - Silas Kain
I'm being facetious, Joanne. Where were all these "outraged" parents when school athletics were cut? How many of these "concerned" parents coach, sit on school boards or really give a rat's ass about their child's future? Heaven forbid, we should try and inspire children. It's better to let them sit at home and watch trash television, play video games and eat junk food. Wall-E, here we come.