Cookie cutter education is not the answer

No Child Left Behind, while good-intentioned, created a system in which every student is forced to comply with the same set of expectations. Individual needs and abilities are not considered. As C.S. Lewis put it in his classic Mere Christianity:

"When you find yourself wanting to turn your children, or your pupils, or even your neighbors into people exactly like yourself, remember that God probably never intended for them to be that. You and they are different organs, intended to do different things."

We are all part of the 'body' of Christ, yet we are not all toes, or kneecaps, or little fingers. That would certainly make for a weird looking body. No one part is more important or valuable than another. We all have different talents and gifts and have different roles in God's will for our lives and in contributing to the kingdom of God.

William Wilberforce championed the decades-long battle to abolish the slave trade in the British Empire in the late 1700's and early 1800's. He wrote a book on the society of his day called "Real Christianity". The following quotation from that book was describing France during the time of the French Revolution.

It sounds eerily like America today, don't you think?

"Christianity has been attacked and marginalized by groups because those who profess belief are unable to defend the faith from attacks, even though the attackers' arguments are deeply flawed." --William Wilberforce

“…for the sake of our commission to ‘go and make disciples,’ I hope Christians will not surrender the public schools. Instead, let us take them back. Let’s consider them a mission field.”

--- Franklin Graham, Decision magazine, September 2004

The Stakes Are High Table of Contents

CONTENTS:

Author’s note: Why this book? Why now? Why me?
Introduction: The Stakes ARE High
Part 1: God’s Wisdom is “the Principal Thing”
Chapter 1: Gaining God’s Wisdom
Chapter 2: Ears to Hear
Part 2: What Students Need from God’s Wisdom
Chapter 3: The Big “C” – Character
Chapter 4: The New “Three R’s” of Education
Chapter 5: Trains, Planes, and Automobiles – The “Three D’s”
Part 3: This is for Teachers (and not just those in the classrooms)
Chapter 6: Now It’s Our Turn
Part 4: One Nation....UNDER GOD....once again !
Chapter 7: The United States - a ‘Schizophrenic Personality’
Part 5: Conclusion: How Can I Make a Difference?

The Stakes Are High indeed!!

Many people today would agree with the statement:

America’s public school system is in crisis!

Rarely does a week go by without a news story about low test scores, violence in schools, teachers having inappropriate relationships with students, guns and gang activities, or alcohol and drug problems.

It is no wonder that more and more Christian parents are removing their children from our nations public schools and placing them into Christian schools, or home-schooling them. Is this the correct move for us as Christians? Should we run from the fight with evil influences and let worldly wisdom direct the education of Americas youth? The future of all young people is at stake. Our nations future is at stake! This is not the time to turn our backs or throw in the towel! This is the time to get Godly wisdom and attack the issues at hand. In The Stakes Are High, veteran teacher Dennis Ray examines what Godly wisdom means and how to get it, providing practical applications for use in the lives of students and adults alike.