—>> Rationale
If people don’t care, and care fairly passionately, about the core values and principles that make America unique, we cannot create and maintain a common understanding that guides Americans to restore and preserve the best of what America is.
One of the things the educational system could and should do is teach American Values, the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and what it is that makes America truly unique and remarkable.
—>> Where the Problem Is
Civics is where that was taught when I was in school, although I’m not sure its even taught any more.
I literally hated civics when I was in school. So much so that 50 years later I can still remember the name of the teacher who tormented us with it. I was deeply bored by American history, because it was taught as names and dates and memorization and it was never connected to anything I cared about or could find an interest in.
—>> Why It Matters
For America to be healthy, with a unifying integrity, people need to care about Amerian Values, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights. These remarkable principles and documents are the essential foundation for best of everything America is. The way to get them to care is to create personal connection to it.
—>> What’s Broken
The place to teach this is in schools when young people are still forming their ideas about what their values should be. That didn’t happen for me, and it’s definitely not happening for kids in school now.
—>> How Do We Fix It?
What finally captured my imagination and lit a passion for understanding our history and constitution was watching well made movies and dramatic documentaries that had the best of putting-you-in-the-action style. It became personal.
THAT is what lit the fire for me.
THAT is what we need to do for our young people.
When kids realize that the founding fathers weren’t an unrelatable bunch of old guys and discover they were young, risk-taking, bet-it-all-on-a-dream people, with mile-wide rebel streaks, and the courage to put their lives on the line, the founding fathers become real.
When the story is told around those real people in a way that presents WHY we have the constitution we have, what they risked everything for, and why it was so compelling they’d risk everything, there’s hope for interesting young people in something outside tiktok and World of Warcraft.
If we capture the imagination of young people, we have a hope of truly reclaiming America’s finest hours and reforming our country into something inspirational.
—>> What Can We Leverage To Get There Faster?
There are some EXCELLENT history channel and other series that create a relatable form of American History. They personalize the Revolution and Formation of the American Founding Principles and the Constitution in a way that could be leveraged, or used as a model for making this topic come alive, and that fosters both understanding and enduring interest.
—>> What’s The Plan?
So here’s the proposal:
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Create a federally funded program that teaches American History, the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and American Values, through the vehicle of Dramatic Movie Series.
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Structure that program to be taught over 4 years of school so the lesson can develop as kids minds and maturity grow.
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Present the principles of the Constitution, Bill of Rights, and American Values through the real historical action, dramatized storyline, and character development, not through lecture. Provide activities and interaction that allow the students to discover the principles for themselves.
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Plan that program to engage students at 6th, 7th, 8th, and 12th grades, with each course involving personal development and projects to allow kids to discover their personal connection to the principles presented.
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Provide that program to all private, public, and home schools at no cost.
If we’re going to save and restore America, it’s children need to be passionately invested in the principles and values of what America should, and was intended, to be.
—>> What Has To Be Removed?
The Department of Education has to get out of the way, or be dismantled so that the current agenda denigrating American History and American Values, and venerating DEI and all it’s little friends, is stopped.
—>> Conclusion
If we want to restore the best of what America is, people have to understand what makes America unique, they have to personally connect with those principles, and they have to be passionate about what makes America a miracle of innovation and the Land of the Free.
And we start with the kids.
—>> Footnotes
Here are some movies / series that could be used in, or serve as models for, developing the dramatic series for this program:
- John Adams (series, 2008)
- The Patriot (2000)
- Turn: Washington’s Spies (series, 2014-2018)
- Sons of Liberty (series, 2015)
- America: The Story of Us (series, 2010)
- The Crossing (2000)