Driving Grace to school this morning (she's at a magnet school and the bus stop is as far away as the school), I was reminded of the years Joe was at the same school - how much he loved it, the friends he made there, the teachers who mentored him. I know our school system leaves so much to be desired, but I can't help but think how lucky we are to live in a town full of teachers, thanks to the University of Florida.
I am also grateful for the community that good schools provide. Over the years, some of my closest friends became so by virtue of their kids going to the same school as mine. My very best friend and I walked our older daughters to school through a neighborhood cut-through over 20 years ago. We bonded over mothering war stories and still do. When I go out with John to a local concert or play, I'm almost sure to run into one of those old fellow costume-sewers and classroom volunteers. I am overwhelmed with gratitude to the adults who were also teachers and introduced my children to instruments I couldn't play, art supplies I didn't have, and books I hadn't heard of. A school can be the heartbeat of a neighborhood - where gifted adults share time and skills with the up-and-coming. A school can be the village we believe can help raise a child.
Living in a university town, I have also encountered the "dress for success" parents who see early reading, gifted classes, and magnet schools as mere stepping stones to the Ivy League and future material success in a competitive world. Honestly, I have always shied away from them, afraid that their vision might be too narrow, hoping that rather than simply prepare my child for a job, school might open their minds and exercise their wings, give them insight into their particular gifts and the needs of the world, help them discover how those might match up. I had, and have, faith that a person, confident in their own skills and finding ways to use them up for the common good, will be on fire - and that they'll also be able to make a living.
I've always admired the writing of John Gatto, an award-winning educator who believes education is for "building character and community" - and that a lot of that happens outside of schools. Here, in an article published in Yes! magazine, he talks about the twelve things you might not have learned in the classroom, but really educated people know. I couldn't agree more.
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