More education, less political activism

"Instead of equipping students with the tools to think, reason, and succeed," many public schools "are immersing them in ideological narratives that divide and disempower," writes Diana Blum on the FAIR For All site. "Education should prepare children to be hopeful and productive, not primed for lifelong grievance."

These America-worst lessons encourage children "to see themselves through the lens of victimhood or guilt — not as individuals capable of reason, resilience, and growth," she writes.

It encourages a can't-do spirit: Young people are "conditioned to believe either that the system is too rigged to reward them or too evil to be worth preserving."

Schools should strive to build "citizens, not activists," writes Blum, who came to America as a child fleeing anti-Semitism in the Soviet Union.

Do we want children who feel emboldened to shape their futures, or ones who are taught to see themselves as permanently wronged or perpetually guilty? Do we want students who can think for themselves, or who merely repeat the language of their ideological training?

FAIR’s American Experience curriculum offers an alternative, Blum writes. "Rather than whitewashing America’s complex and difficult history or reducing it to simplistic narratives of oppression and resistance, FAIR’s curriculum teaches students to grapple with the nuances of the American story."

To counteract left-wing ethnic studies curricula, American Experience asks students “to consider and write about their own personal, cultural, ethnic, and American identities, as well as their goals and potential as unique human beings within the American story,” a summary states. It discusses the challenges different groups have faced and how they've coped, while encouraging students "to explore their common humanity."

Readings reflect diverse perspectives, according to FAIR, and students will be expected to learn how to debate "alternative interpretations of historical events."

The emphasis is on "agency and self-efficacy." Your future is not determined by your parents' or grandparents' or great-grandparents' past. That seems very American to me.