Fable: narrative tradition and literary significance

Dissemination of a Fable in the American School Curriculum

There are many misconceptions, or fables that exist in relation to school curriculum development and implementation. However, it is likely that in times of curriculum change that the existing fables or misconceptions arise to the surface demanding to be addressed by the school administrators, principal, and staff. This work focuses on misconceptions and fables that surround the subject of the school curriculum and what must be done to address and dispel these misconceptions and fables. American school curriculum, historically and traditionally involved civic learning for students. Civic learning assisted students in their individual engagement in activities, projects, and other local governance and community interactions. However, in today's American schools there is little in the way of civic education therefore leaving the question of 'what then makes these schools American schools if civic education is lacking. Sandra Day O'Connor voiced this but perpetuated a fable which has penetrated American society when state stated the belief that sounds much like she is blaming the individual teachers stating "Public schools have pretty much stopped teaching, government, civics and American history..." (Just Another Fable in the Educational Landscape, 2006) While O'Connor's point that: "I truly don't know how long we can survive as a strong nation if our younger citizens don't understand the nature of our government...That is something you have to learn. It just isn't handed down in the genetic pool" is so emphatically true the fable is that schools and teachers are failing because the actual failing has to be placed with policy makers, federal regulators, and those at the helm of the very system of education itself. States are denied right to grants funding if they choose to teach outside of the National standardized, homogenized, quantitative, tests-based highly regulated educational curriculum standards. This is evident in the State of Alabama in that the state has not applied to technology grants due to coloring outside the lines of this regulated national curriculum standards. This leaves many schools, teachers, and rooms full of students sharing only one computer as there are approximately 15 students to each computer in rural Alabama schools and the statistics are even worse in inner-city schools where crime is greatest and poverty is highest. So indeed, it might be said to the Honorable Justice Sandra Day O'Connor that a fable is being further perpetrated against teachers and schools because it is not that the teachers will not teach civic education, indeed no. The problem is that national curriculum standards do not include the provisions for civic education as such and while government classes certainly continue other civic organizations throughout communities, states and regions are not promoted in schools and the simple truth is that American schools are worse for the loss of civic education. Civic education offered something to the community that has been lost - civic participation within the communities. In American schools prior to FEMA's enactment the local County Civil Defense was very interactive with civic organizations within the community and in the type of interactions that was not so invasively as now in terms of negative impacts on the lives of individuals and as well crime was less then, or perhaps it was that which was conceived as criminal prior to the war on drugs period began. During this time in history all community organizations interacted at many levels within towns and communities to address needs, emergencies, agendas, projects, and what was deemed important and many times these meetings took place at the local schools in the area which community level civic engagement and participation occurred. Therefore, having named national regulations and rules, standards, and quantitative data in testing to have played a great role in the lack of civic education in schools, as well it is necessary to address the importance assigned to education in the United States. While politicians, policy-makers and legislators all want to declare that they and their political party and organization has assigned the utmost importance to education in today's schools then a new fable in school education curriculum is discovered as under-funded and understaffed schools with horrendously unfit schools much less computer and other technology learning equipment required for today's students may be witnessed throughout the United States and in many Americans schools. There are indeed many fables that exist concerning educational curriculum however, the greatest, and the gravest, is that what is wrong with the schools may be blamed on something as simple as schools and teachers because the blame for the shape that today's school curriculum is in, except in states where teachers and schools have waved aside funding in order to really teach...and not 'to the test' and not like a 'cookie cutter' reading scripts to students. In these areas it is related that civic education still plays a key role in these small communities and that this has directed pathways for improvement in teaching however teachers who are not extremely creative uninspired and their students far behind the national curriculum standards in terms of testing standards and yet these students in some areas, are far ahead of national standards. School curriculum it seems is like teachers something that cannot be well-formed on the basis of national standards in order to be effective unless there is a central adherent that holds together or 'cements' the structure of what comprises American schools however, civic education did always provide that framework and structure upon which to base educational curriculum and gear all students toward being a better participants in the American democratic form of government by and for 'We the People.' Perhaps the real fable perpetrated is that civic education is not important as it appears that it is very important evidenced by the present shape of the American school curriculum and the importance assigned American school curriculum in terms of funding and national support and assistance efforts in reaching technological standards to meet the education of today's students.