Parents as Primary Educators

Our children need our guidance more than ever

When I worked in Washington, D.C., as a legislative assistant to a U.S. representative, I frequently used my lunch hour to attend seminars. I had recently become friends with a woman whose boss sat with mine on the Energy and Commerce Committee, and I invited her to join me for a ladies’ tea sponsored by The Center for Christian Statesmanship. The speaker was to be Marilyn Musgrave, a Republican Member of Congress from Colorado. 

To my surprise, my new friend told me that she needed to run all events by her chief of staff; she would have to let me know after it had been approved. Shockingly, this grown woman was not allowed to attend the event with me on her own lunchtime. I, on the other hand, worked for a Member of Congress on the other side of the aisle, and I could attend anything I wanted to—without running it by my chief of staff. I was encouraged to educate myself on all sides of every issue.

In 2022, I find myself reminded daily by our nation’s legacy education organizations, like the National Educators Association, the National School Boards Association, various state teachers unions and school boards associations, special interest groups, and other symbiotic organizations that have an out-sized influence on schools across America, of this unwillingness to let others explore or express another viewpoint. 

The hostility that activists direct toward parents who question their implementation of critical theory with its dogma on race and human sexuality is something I never thought I’d see in the United States of America (here is an excellent primer on critical theory for the next time you’re mocked and told that this is a legal theory only taught in law school. Trust me, most detractors are only spouting talking points and have no clue what they’re talking about). Parents and those who support them in their God-given role are lied about and called racists, bigots, homophobes, TERFs, and other slurs that make you wonder why years of anti-bullying programs have only made people meaner.

The simple fact is that many of our schools are straying out of their lane and teaching our children a one-sided view of divisive issues that millions of Americans can’t agree upon. Since when was it okay for public establishments to endorse political viewpoints to a captive audience of school children?

With The Primary Educator, I want to help parents reclaim their natural right, a right protected by the U.S. Constitution, to oversee the care, upbringing, and education of their own children. I aim to support them (and their allies) as they navigate various U.S. education systems to provide their children with a complete education. I will write about education news, policy, trends, curricula, programs, and philosophy. The Primary Educator will be relevant to those who have school-age children in their lives (i.e., parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, teachers, school board members, etc.).

Retired Admiral William McRaven named K-12 education as his top national security issue in 2020, and former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the same in 2013.

I couldn’t agree more.

Our future doctors and nurses must know the difference between men and women and the fundamentals of biology—at the very minimum. Our future scientists must understand the scientific method, and they need to be able to trust their senses when conducting and interpreting experiments. Our future legislators and leaders must understand natural law and natural rights and the underpinnings of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. Our future teachers must themselves understand our nation’s history so, for one, they can accurately teach about what makes America exceptional in all of world history.

Our children must learn factual history—using primary and reliable sources. And though this is not an exhaustive list by any means, our children must learn the stories (and why they matter to the world) of figures like Galileo, William Brewster, John Locke, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, William Wilberforce, Hannah More, Frederick Douglass, Abraham Lincoln, Booker T. Washington, Calvin Coolidge, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Winston Churchill, and so many others from the past who advanced the cause of human dignity and freedom. 

In a culture that’s desperately trying to redefine reality, we must be diligent to teach our children truth and to encourage them as they aspire to humanity’s highest ideals—not our base instincts.

We have a big task set before us, but the good news is that you don’t need to wait around for a new law or policy to pass or for a change in school board—or any systemic change—in order to start teaching your own children in your own home. I’m not talking about homeschooling, but I am talking about being intentional each day with what they’re learning and being exposed to. I’m talking about challenging them to learn all sides of the issues (in an age-appropriate way, of course) so they will know what they believe and why.

Yes, let’s work on the macro changes, but let’s simultaneously get to work in our own homes—our most important sphere of influence.

When our children leave our care, we want them to have the tools they need to stand firm on what they know to be true, and we want them to step out into the world knowing that their lives have meaning and purpose. They are the future of our country (and world)—and in the process of helping them, we just might begin to turn things around sooner rather than later.