China: First its children, now ours

I've 'blogged on many occasions about issues involving China, especially those involving its children, and no doubt someone in that country would prefer I keep my fingers off the keyboard and my thoughts to myself.

But I can't, no, so here's a new China-themed posting to contemplate.

Seems that some parents in California are up in arms (not literally, of course, because that would mean aligning themselves with folks like the late Charleton Heston and the NRA) because so-called "Confucius Classrooms" are springing up in their public schools.

The program has been around for a few years and can be found in schools from New York to Oregon, according to a report by Fox News' Anita Vogel.

The classes are funded by private groups, universities and the Chinese government and are designed to teach Chinese language and culture to American schoolchildren.

Critics charge that communism is being given a favorable treatment, but supporters say the classes are benign and really do teach language and culture and nothing else.

Quoting from Ms. Vogel's report:

At Riverview Elementary, in Lakeside, California, just outside of San Diego, third graders are learning Mandarin at a rapid pace. The principal there, Olympia Kyriakidis, insists this is a major asset for her students. She says in addition to Spanish and multi-media classes, her kids are going to be at the top of their game and ready to compete in the global market.

Mmm. Nothing said about civics or reading, writing, and 'rithmetic -- you know, those pesky basic subjects that American schools seem to avoid in favor of sexy stuff like Mandarin and multi-media classes. The global market is calling and we must answer!

When I first read the article, I wondered why we don't pay for and send into China our own classes on the joys of the English language and American culture.

Then I remembered that the last thing China wants its people to have is unfettered access to anything remotely connected to democracy.

Sadly, this often seems to be the last thing our own educational system wants, too.

If you don't believe me, find a recent graduate of a public school in your community and ask him to tell you something about the Declaration of Independence, the cause of the American Revolutionary War, the Bill of Rights, the Constitution itself, the difference between a democracy and a republic, or the valuable warnings in George Washington's farewell address.

Odds are he'll look at you like you're speaking -- you guessed it -- Chinese.