I’m beyond thrilled to be in The Washington Post’s On Parenting section, with this piece so near and dear to my heart. (Someone pinch me!)
“Education has become a high-stakes Rube Goldberg machine, propelling our kids from one academic pressure to the next with no end in sight. What has existed until now as an implied tenet, is becoming a tangible reality: Be exceptional, or be a failure; there is no middle ground.”
Continue reading at The Washington Post.
If this resonates with you at all, it comes down to us –the parents. We have to defend the place of “the middle” in education. Teachers’ hands are tied. They are inundated with new standards, new curriculum, and pressure to prove they are challenging the top performers. It’s wonderful to live in an area with so many advanced kids, but brain development, human development, and readiness ARE important. And no matter how fast we spin the wheel forward, we can’t change the timeline of human growth. And YES there is learning in play, in art, in music. (Research supports this, I’m not just making it up.)
Celebrating personal best – at all levels – fosters a love of learning. A love of learning is a lifelong asset, no matter the educational path – because they aren’t all headed for the Ivy Leagues. (Sorry, but true.)
One of the brightest and most gifted kids I ever taught’s mother told me at the beginning of the year, “I know she’s going to sail through the academics, but she’s here for MORE than that. She needs to learn how to be a student and be with her peers. I’ll support you with extra curriculum, but please know I am 100% ok with her reading any time and will keep her cubby stocked with books.” And this kid is in college – and she’s doing just fine!