EDUCATION NOTES
Resolution: Strive for a good Auld Lang Syne
BOB BYRD

The Scottish poet Robert Burns first published “Auld Lang Syne,” in the late 1700s after hearing a man from his home region sing it. This fact, and the thoughts behind the song will probably not be on the TAKS test. Yet there are important lessons to be learned from reflecting on our most popular New Year's song, that we should consider as we make our New Year's resolutions.

The most well known part of the song implores us to not forget those “auld” acquaintances, and to think fondly of our relationships and days gone by. As the children we teach grow to maturity and grow to take over the adult roles in our wonderful world, will we have given them the kind of education and personal experiences that they will remember fondly? Will we have given them the kind of education that will not only prepare them, but also do so in a decent and humane way?

The world today is a vastly more fast-paced, globally competitive place than it was in Burns' time. Countries that were once lagging far behind the U.S., Europeans and Japanese economically are now working hard to make up the deficit, to educate their children in similar ways, and to the level that we do. The transformation of our economy in the last 40 to 50 years or so has been astounding in itself; no longer do we see nearly as many jobs where a good young person without much education can settle in, make a good living, and expect to retire from the same place after a long career. The family farm has become a nostalgic thing, not an economic reality for the overwhelming majority.

To compete in the new economy, our children will have to be very well prepared in the basics of reading, writing and arithmetic. In addition, they will also have to learn to be rigorous in learning to do what it takes to adapt to an ever changing world: Critical thinking skills, confidence, self-discipline, understanding other people, and an ability to adapt readily to new technologies would be some of the skill sets we would like them to take with them.

This brings me to current New Year's resolutions in the form of questions to be answered correctly. We are not like the Babylonians who are thought to have been the first to make New Year's resolutions, or the early Christians, who saw New Year's Day as a day to reflect on how to improve ourselves in the New Year. We have to continually look throughout the year for ways to improve ourselves. We must resolve to effectively answer important questions so as to do the best possible job we can for students.

Are there more effective ways to educate our children? New research on the human brain seems to teach us new things every month; it may be one of the things humanity is most ignorant about at present.

Are we employing the new things we are finding, or are we too stuck in the past? Sociologists tell us that most societies have quite a “social lag” in adapting to changing circumstances, that they stay rooted in past paradigms long past their usefulness.

Are we in education adapting quickly enough to what our children need? Are our political leaders? The Houston Museum of Natural Science had an exhibition recently on Ben Franklin. Back in the mid- 1700s, Ben was locked in one of his most intense conflicts with an old guard educator over what should be stressed at what would become the University of Pennsylvania. Ben wanted a more practical approach that would more directly tie into the future employment of the students. A civic-minded spirit like Ben would surely enjoy the debates of our education community today and would be passionate about doing it right. We should be, too.

In the more obscure parts of “Auld Lang Syne” the song references some of the old acquaintances being remembered because they are far away across the seas; that, in seeking their life's adventure, good Scots ended up in all sorts of places far, far away. In their younger days these old acquaintances had run about the hills and picked the daisies, enjoyed a happy and healthy life as it were. This too, they did not wish to forget. Wherever our young people end up, technologically, globally, economically, and in terms of their health, we should make sure that everything we have done in our time was intended to make it a good place. That they will look back and fondly remember these “auld acquaintances.”

Bob Byrd is principal at Brundrett Middle School.