Forgetting The Past
Volume 61, Program 20
7/29/2005 Homeschooling parents want to pass on to their children a view of history that is accurate and biblical. Unfortunately, many colleges are undermining that effort. Tune in to today's Home School Heartbeat with Michael Farris to find out more.
Michael Farris: A recent survey of seniors at the top 25 national universities and top 25 national liberal arts colleges uncovered some disturbing statistics about today's students. Only 23% could identify Madison as the "Father of the Constitution." Only 22% answered correctly that the phrase "government of the people, by the people, and for the people" is from the Gettysburg Address. Only 60% could identify the correct half-century in which the American Civil War took place. By contrast, 98% of the same seniors knew that Snoop Doggy Dogg is a rap singer, and 99% recognized Beavis and Butthead as television cartoon characters. Not a single one of these schools requires students to take a course in American history as a prerequisite for graduation.
Colleges and universities today are not doing their job. In their quest to have it all, they seem to have lost everything that was worth keeping. Instead, we need an approach to history that is both accurate and not ashamed to instill old-fashioned notions like patriotism, virtue, and fidelity into the hearts of students. Our history and the ideals that formed us as a people are what give us identity as Americans rather than our ethnic background or the color of our skin. America's next generation needs an accurate understanding of our history in order to lead the nation correctly.
I'm Mike Farris.