"The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically... Intelligence plus character - that is the goal of true education.”
- Martin Luther King, Jr.
As I sit here home with my two children I can’t help but think what Martin Luther King Jr. would have thought about having a teacher in-service today? Having not known the man personally and history not being my strong suit I can only speculate. I think he would have liked the idea of using his birthday to reenergize teachers about teaching students about equality and character education, but I doubt this is the topic being discussed throughout area school districts’ in-services today.
I find it ironic that that man that dreamed of his African-American children learning and playing alongside Caucasian children is having his birthday celebrated years after his death by giving them the day off of school. I’m not one of those moms that dreads when my kids are off of school, please realize this is not where my thoughts are stemming from.
Last year I wrote a blog entry about my surprise at the lack of community events commemorating MLK. First thing this morning I read a newspaper announcement of my local celebration that again begins at 7:00pm. Maybe next year if I don’t find myself employed, and attending an in-service I will plan a birthday party of sorts for MLK at my house. The only criteria for being invited will be that you have to be different than my children --- which of course we all are, each and every one of us.
“Nothing in all the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity.” -Martin Luther King Jr., 1963
