smithformeragent
Moderator
Please note that this post is meant to be apolitical.
Those living in the States, have a blessed Memorial Day.
Memorial Day puts into focus for me why I do what I do.
It’s a challenging time to be an American History teacher. So many in academia, Hollywood, and in Washington want to revisit the way we teach history in schools.
I’m going to continue teaching it the way I always have.
The Founding Fathers were not perfect. They did not form a perfect government. Nor did they create a utopian society without flaws.
That does not change the fact that they strived to create a new type of country in which its people could elevate their lives via education and hard work. And the reality is that many people died to create that country.
Many people willingly died to ensure that that country would remain united.
Many people died to keep that country safe from foreign threats.
Many people continue to make the ultimate sacrifice so that you can I can go to school, spend time with friends, enjoy the company of our pets, tell our family we love them, go to watch a hockey game, play or coach a sport; whatever we do for fun; none of that would exist were it not for the brave men and women who have sacrificed for this nation.
And so I take my responsibility as an educator seriously in this regard. I never served. But I can teach about those who did. I can continue to tell their stories. I can instill in young people the importance of studying history, not to memorize a bunch of facts for an exam, but to appreciate that this country is a special place.
That’s it’s worth fighting for.
That it’s worth dying for.
And that it’s on us to complete the “unfinished work”.
Those living in the States, have a blessed Memorial Day.
Memorial Day puts into focus for me why I do what I do.
It’s a challenging time to be an American History teacher. So many in academia, Hollywood, and in Washington want to revisit the way we teach history in schools.
I’m going to continue teaching it the way I always have.
The Founding Fathers were not perfect. They did not form a perfect government. Nor did they create a utopian society without flaws.
That does not change the fact that they strived to create a new type of country in which its people could elevate their lives via education and hard work. And the reality is that many people died to create that country.
Many people willingly died to ensure that that country would remain united.
Many people died to keep that country safe from foreign threats.
Many people continue to make the ultimate sacrifice so that you can I can go to school, spend time with friends, enjoy the company of our pets, tell our family we love them, go to watch a hockey game, play or coach a sport; whatever we do for fun; none of that would exist were it not for the brave men and women who have sacrificed for this nation.
And so I take my responsibility as an educator seriously in this regard. I never served. But I can teach about those who did. I can continue to tell their stories. I can instill in young people the importance of studying history, not to memorize a bunch of facts for an exam, but to appreciate that this country is a special place.
That’s it’s worth fighting for.
That it’s worth dying for.
And that it’s on us to complete the “unfinished work”.
