Lesson in Civics or Political Indoctrination?

I’m sure you have heard of Dear Leader Obama giving a speech on September 8 directly to school children across the nation.  Lesson plans for teachers have been posted on the Department of Education’s website as well.

Here’s an excerpt from the PreK – 6th Grade Lesson Plan:

As students listen to the speech, they could think about the following:

• What is the President trying to tell me? 
• What is the President asking me to do?
• What new ideas and actions is the President challenging me to think about?

Students can record important parts of the speech where the President is asking them to do something. Students might think about:  What specific job is he asking me to do? Is he asking anything of anyone else? Teachers? Principals? Parents? The American people?

Students can record any questions they have while he is speaking and then discuss them after the speech. Younger children may need to dictate their questions.

I’m on the fence on this.  I’d really like to see a transcript of his speech so I could know exactly what he plans on telling these impressionable kids.  If he talks about the importance of a great education or the importance of being involved in civics, then fine.  I don’t really have a problem with that.  However, I do think that this could be construed as political heavy-handing of education – a place the federal government really has no mandate.  (I’m completely against a federal Department of Education, since the States are supposed to be in charge of it.)   I just hope it’s not an attempt to indoctrinate the youth of America with the “Obama Doctrine”. 

What is so important that Obama has to address kids during school hours, and not during prime time when the parents can see it as well?  I remember when I was in school during the Clinton years, we had a project to listen to his “State of the Union” address and write a synopsis of what he was saying.  That I have no problem with.  This, however, seems to be crossing a very fine line.

There is no clear encouragement of discussing opposing views.  It only says that students can “share the ideas they recorded”.  Here’s another statement from the Lesson Plan, under the section entitled “Extension of the Speech:  Teachers can extend learning by having students…”

Write letters to themselves about what they can do to help the president. These would be collected and redistributed at an appropriate later date by the teacher to make students accountable to their goals.

Here I ask:  Help the president do what??  I really want to know what it is he intends on asking these youth.   Also, “make students accountable” to the goals?  How exactly will they be made accountable?

I think parents should take a very strong interest in this.  I think at least one should be in attendance at their kids’ school that day to watch the speech with them.  You better believe if I had a kid in school, I would be there.  This seems to be crossing a threshold into a realm that should be left to the parents only.

What do  you think?   Is this political indoctrination by the Dear Leader, or is this an “innocent” lesson in civics?  Fire away in the comments.

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