Dave Testerman: First responsibility is to your kids, not to having lots of toys

To The Daily Sun,

I am writing this because I am concerned and dismayed by what I see and read about the state of our families. I’ve read several articles today about the status of the recent panic and “remote learning” and the ongoing back-to-school planning. Frankly I am just plain irritated at what I see.

First I hear complaints about how hard it is for parents to juggle two jobs and keep up with what appears to be feckless instruction provided by the government schools. These parents sense, and in some cases witness, their students falling further and further behind academically. It seems the schools tried to cobble together some version of schoolroom classes and the results were frankly abysmal. Now they are faced with some wide variety back-to-school options of what appear to be completely unworkable solutions that in many cases will have each child on a different partial week schedule. This is despite many countries like Sweden, Iceland, and Germany finding that there is little or none in the way of Covid issues with children and staff in a “regular” situation.

But this isn’t my real concern. It is that parents seem to think that some version of government schooling is their only option or that two incomes are absolutely necessary. First, parents need to remember that their first responsibility is to find the right fit for their child, even if it means relocating. One parent found that Nebraska was pretty much business as usual and moved from Washington DC. If one parent stays home, then home schooling is an option. There are numerous tried and true curriculums. Something government schools should have tried.

Worried about home schooling? I have two home-schooled granddaughters. One is working on an advanced degree at UNH and the other is in her third year of college. Both received full scholarships.

Worried about only one income? My family survived on one income even though it meant some cars had 200-300K miles on them and we didn’t live in the flashiest home or have a ski-boat or snowmobile. We sacrificed for our four children. It is a parental responsibility to make decisions that will help their child be a good contributing member of society. It is time to quit complaining about five-plus months of government malfeasance and take it in your hands and hearts to be a family.

Dave Testerman

Rep. for Franklin and Hill

Franklin