This week, my two sons joined 2.6 million other Israeli children, and tens of millions more all over the world, in that most beloved (and hated) of childhood traditions, the first day of the new school year.
I know how blessed we are that both of my sons are in an educational framework that is WAY above the average for Israel. I won't say much more about that, but I've seen the evidence that the principal's at both my eldest son's high school and my youngest son's primary school cited to back up their claims to being among the best schools in the country and I was convinced by it.
However, I am also under no illusions that this is sufficient.
The test scores of Israeli high school graduates have been at the bottom of the barrel for OECD countries every year for a very long time, and it's no mystery why. A recent study was published showing that Israeli teachers have some of the lowest levels of professional skills in the OECD. If the teachers are barely able to read, write, and explain complex situations, we can't expect the students to have these skills.
The problems go beyond poor test scores and have also begun to show up on factory floors and board rooms, as older workers (many of whom were immigrants from the former Soviet Union, which for all its faults had an excellent education system) retire and companies struggle to find younger people who have the skills and knowledge necessary to replace them.
But Israel is not alone in having problems along these lines.
In the last few years, I have seen one news report after another about university freshman in America, Canada, Western Europe and Australia showing up on campus unable to read even basic passages out of their textbooks or take notes in class. Professors also report students being unable to hold serious discussions about many topics because they simply don't have the vocabulary and also have a hard time focusing on anything for any great length of time.
I am therefore "that dad" who takes away his kids' screens for at least two hours every evening after they come home from school and makes them read books, play educational games (often playing with them, because that makes it more fun for everyone) or going outside and burning off energy at the park by playing with our wonderful little dog.
I'm even "that dad" who downloads worksheets with math and science problems for my sons to work on if their teacher didn't give them enough homework. I'm "that dad" who pays for them to take karate lessons and signs them up for whatever summer school programs are available from the municipality, sends them to the camps provided by our church, or anything else I can think of to get them off the couch and off their screens.
I am also "that dad" who reads the daily portion from the One-Year Bible to my children at bedtime, and you better believe I'm "that dad" who prays for them every night as they're going to sleep, and also every morning as they're on their way to school.
Brothers and sisters, I'm not saying all this to brag on myself, but rather to give you some ideas about how you can invest in your own children.
The schools do their best to give our children what they need and their teachers and coaches are, for the most part, dedicated and sincere professionals who care about the children and want what's best for them. The same is true of the pastors and youth leaders at our churches.
But they simply can't do it all themselves.
If we want our children to grow up to be happy, successful, high-functioning human beings who will make positive contributions to society and stay with the faith after they grow old enough to make their own decisions then we have to intentionally invest our time, effort, money and other resources into making sure that happens.
It's not enough to drop them off at school in the morning and pick them up in the afternoon and then let them do whatever they want in the evening. It's not even enough to take them to church once a week and make sure they go into the Sunday school.
That's important, but it's not sufficient.
We must do more than that, not only for the obvious reason that we want our children to have the skills and knowledge they will need to get a decent job when they're done with school. It's not just about them getting a good job; it's also about them NOT falling away from the Faith and/or turning into a zombie/barbarian.
Beyond your local congregation (which you can and MUST sow into with your time, effort and above all your prayers) I can recommend two parachurch organizations which have been a huge blessing to my own life, especially my parenting journey.
The first is Family Life Today and the second is Moms in Prayer.
Last but certainly not least, I can't end this blog without saying once again that getting a dog for my family was one of the best decisions I ever made, and I recommend it for everyone.
