Instead of seeing these children for the blessings that they are, we are measuring them only by the standard of whether they will be future deficits or assets for our nation's competitive needs.
Interpretation
The quote critiques how society views children merely as future economic contributors instead of recognizing their inherent value.
Jonathan Kozol's quote emphasizes the importance of recognizing children as blessings rather than mere economic indicators. He argues that society often assesses children based on their potential contributions to the economy, neglecting their unique qualities and the joy they bring to life. This perspective overlooks the intrinsic worth of every child and the richness they add to society beyond mere productivity.
In practice
In a speech addressing educators, this quote could be used to advocate for a more holistic view of student development.
A great deal has been written in recent years about the purported lack of motivation in the children of the Negro ghettos. Little in my experience supports this, yet the phrase has been repeated endlessly, and the blame in almost all cases is placed somewhere outside the classroom.
Schooling should not be left to the whim or wealth of village elders. I believe that we should fund all schools in the U.S. with our national resources. All these kids are being educated to be Americans, not citizens of Minneapolis or San Francisco.
An awful lot of people come to college with this strange idea that there's no longer segregation in America's schools, that our schools are basically equal; neither of these things is true.
Hypersegregated inner-city schools - in which one finds no more than five or ten white children, at the very most, within a student population of as many as 3,000 - are the norm, not the exception, in most northern urban areas today.
I wrote the first book, and I thought people would say: 'Separate and unequal schools in the City of Boston? I didn't know that. Let's go out and fix it.'
The trouble is not that schools don't work; they do. They're excellent machines for achieving historically accepted purposes. In suburban schools are children of the rich, who grow up to privilege and anesthetic oblivion to pain - and who then use the servants produced by ghetto schools.
When our students fail, we, as teachers, too, have failed.
If your children want to alter society, listen to their reasons and the idealism behind them. Don't crush them with some clever remark straight away.
Read. Travel. Read. Ask. Read. Learn. Read. Connect. Read.
In nine months, a group of children left alone with a computer in any language will reach the same standard as an office secretary in the West.
If you can help a child, you don't have to spend years repairing an adult.
There is something irreversible about acquiring knowledge; and the simulation of the search for it differs in a most profound way from the reality.
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