Issue VIII Education - Still Held in High Esteem?

When I was a GED teacher, I had all kinds of students, from the very bright and bored with regular school, to the athlete who needed to graduate on time and didn’t have enough credits, and the court appointed kid who was told by a judge to get a GED or go to jail, plus a few with both diagnosed and undiagnosed health issues. Regardless of why they were there, each student was tested to see what level they were at in relation to their ability to pass the tests. We got most of them through, some quicker than others, but we got the job done.

I remember one student who was there at the behest of his job. He worked for a construction company that wanted him to at least have his high school diploma. This kid was about 19 if I recall and had dropped out of high school. One time he spoke up in class during a social studies lesson and said, “Why do we have to learn all this? I’m making a thousand a week,” as if the sole role in life is to make money.

While the rest of the class listened, I asked, “What are you going to do when you’re on a roof and you fall off? Or, let’s say, you’re cutting a board and your saw slips and you lose a finger?”

I then related how statistics show that over his lifetime, the more education he attains, the more money he will make, so instead of putting all of his eggs into one basket (which was mostly his back and his hands), he should diversify his skills so he has more options if something goes wrong, and ultimately more money.

I’m not sure how far I got, but I was saying this for all the class to hear. Students were there for a variety of reasons, but most of education, if it is being done properly, is more than a financial transaction. It’s to open the mind to further life instruction and wonders, to be able to entertain lots of viewpoints and lots of data. It’s to be prepared to have a role beyond just making money.

Our family now has two generations of alumni from Florida State University. That’s a big deal for us, even though nationally, most Americans are probably only aware of FSU during football season.

Don’t get me wrong. I love sports like anyone else. When I was attending, FSU had some good scholars and good athletes and sometimes both. We had Heisman winner Charlie Ward and running back Warrick Dunn and linebacker Derrick Brooks. The 1993 FSU Seminoles football team remains one of the all-time great college teams, for both on and off-the-field leadership. Ward went on to a successful career in the NBA, while Dunn and Brooks (not the country band) had great careers in the NFL.

Today, college football is experiencing a roller coaster with the use of what’s called the college football transfer portal. It is an online database that allows college players to explore their options and seek a transfer to another school without losing their eligibility or scholarship. It very much makes me think of free agency in baseball, where your favorite team player can test the open market and leave for more money with a different team, fans be damned.

But this is college and not professional sports, and I have not one time heard anything about how this new system affects the education of these players. And the lesson to the youth of America is my greatest concern, that it is all about you, it’s all about money, and it’s all about now.

A few years ago, I wrote about the inequity between college players and the money the universities make and received a haranguing for my consideration to pay college athletes. With endorsement deals now being allowed, compensation is occurring for some players, but not most. The majority of these athletes will not play professionally. Less than 2% ever make it to the big leagues. Some of them will experience lifelong pain from their few years of college glory.

The gentleman’s agreement has always been that the athlete would have their education to lean on. We give you a scholarship to play and you get your degree for free.

But was that ever really enough, and how does that work with the transfer portal? I suspect that money is again the major factor. The portal has certainly gained a lot of attention and it allows the NCAA to sidestep addressing the equity imbalance (after all, athletes now have more choices and options to earn).

I also suspect that the messaging and media hype for some athletes will only get more extreme. If an athlete is unhappy with his playing time, unhappy with a coach, or generally unhappy about anything, including his personal attention to studies, he can transfer to another school, and then do it again, and maybe yet again.

I like fairness and equity. I also like honesty and loyalty. And I like one generation looking out for another. I care about the message that a system like the transfer portal sends to youth and athletes. There is a place for sports and competition in the human psyche, but I care much more about these athletes getting their education and becoming productive citizens.

Back to that GED class. My young construction friend thought he had the world by the tail with his outsized weekly paycheck. Much like these athletes who come to play football with dreams of becoming professional, they put off the realities of tomorrow for the dreams and abilities of today. And the system is encouraging them to buy into that.

Instead of supporting this transfer portal free agency system, what the NCAA should have done is to ensure some trust fund equity set-asides for these athletes, along with years of guaranteed health and life insurance. That would strike the right balance and the right message to young fans and athletes alike. Education is the priority.

Yes, sports is the only ticket to college for some players. All the more reason to ensure that a real education takes root. That’s the purpose of college. You strengthen the brain while the athlete’s body is used. You plant the seeds of wanting more knowledge in addition to earning a paycheck. I think a good education always leaves you a bit hungry, or as Andy Grove, the former CEO of Intel wrote, you learn to stay a little bit paranoid of what you don’t know.

Most of these kids will not go to the NFL. Instead, they will return to towns and cities all over America, some of them with chronic pain and hidden injuries. It’s our job to ensure they have the tools of an alternative to sport, and they get there with the education and support they deserve.

This study doesn’t get too in-depth but it does remind me of the great importance of social behavior. One sentence that really sticks with me: For a lot of kids, these behaviors come from their parents. The more you're able to demonstrate positive social traits like warmth and empathy, the better off your kids will be.

Over and over, we see where the family dynamic plays a huge part in the success of the child. That probably isn't too surprising. Kids who related well to their peers, handled their emotions better, and were good at resolving problems went on to have more successful lives

Learning and observing is never just in the classroom, and we are in a time where a lot of adults are championing a might makes right form of interaction. Instead of warmth and empathy, kids are seeing more of looking strong and talking tough. Be loud! Be obnoxious! It gets more likes and followers!

That’s the wrong message for kids and I hope this will run its course. History has shown us that bombastic behavior is a fleeting form of leadership, which is why teaching those strong social skills at home and school is so important to know the difference.

The concept of boys struggling is also not a new premise and has been discussed in literature for quite a while. This article suggests some reasons, though I question all the solutions being considered.

Take a step back in time and let’s think about the last twenty years and what has changed the most. Today, there’s a gaming system in almost every home and a smartphone in almost every pocket. A computer is with you everywhere you go.

There is less parental time at home. Most households have two parents working to keep up, and single-parent homes have shot through the roof. Hence, kids are on their own for longer periods with more digital distractions than ever before.

There is less time spent outdoors, and when they are, there is less skill to interact with strangers and more focus on looking at their phone than what’s around them. While many cities have measures to ensure that parks are within walking distance of neighborhoods, the days of playing after school or using the open field nearby, or playing outside with neighbor kids have simply become harder to do.

I’m not sure if it is boys specifically that are struggling. I think the pressure on all kids is high. My strategies may be too simplistic but they target those items that I think have changed the most:

• No phones in schools at least through middle school.

• Up the amount of public messaging to increase the reading time and lower the gaming time.

• Make it easier to go outdoors from a kid’s point of view. This would include walking to school, proximity to local parks, and safe routes to local conveniences.

• Make it easier for a parent to be home.

We can do these things.

And Now….

Something to think about ….

Hope to see you next time. If you enjoyed this issue, please share it and ask friends and family to sign up. Keep up your reading regimen this week, and remember: Be a good human.