Reading on the “Letters to the Next President 2.0” website about what topics concern the students of today gives me insight into their beliefs and interests. Here are seven letters I felt affinity towards:
Elijah M from New York talks about his hope that our country will move way from fossil fuels and towards clean energy. I appreciate how invested he is in maintaining a habitable world for all humans to enjoy. I am impressed that he sought out multiple sources such as the NASA website and National Geographic so that his letter could be fueled by facts and not by opinion.
Samantha H from Minnesota talks about taxes and who should pay them. She also cities multiple sources, but what impresses me about her letter is that she presents the Republican view, the Democratic view, and then goes on to quote a Nobel prize winner. Her lack of bias if refreshing, and it makes me wonder whether she might be looking towards a future in news reporting. She seems to be off to an excellent start.
Shannon from Michigan created an informative visual using a free infographic creator called Venngage. Her passion for music and its continued funding in schools points out how music programs can embody many of the best aspects of Connected Learning: they are interest-driven, promote learning as a group, are peer-supported, and open up opportunities for growth.
I reference a letter written by Madelyn from Virginia because she makes a suggestion I find naive… she wants to given Al Queda land in order to defeat ISIS. I applaud her attention to world affairs, but I think she needs to remember that the enemy of your enemy is not always your friend. I question how much knowledge she has of modern Middle Eastern history and I wonder if she bounced her idea off of any mentors before writing, but I encourage her to keep learning!
Sam from Ohio talks about marijuana legalization and brings up two valid points: first, that alcohol and tobacco are more dangerous, and secondly, that resources spent enforcing marijuana laws could be better spent apprehending serious criminals. I am curious to know what firsthand experience he has with marijuana in his life? Do his parents smoke it? Does he have a sick relative that benefits from it? Does he use it for recreation? I wonder what his motive is for promoting this agenda…
Lucas W from North Carolina focuses his attention on a matter very dear to us all: public education. His letter is curious in that he frames poor teaching as being responsible for lack of creativity in graduating students. Lucas then follows that up with concerns about graduates not being able to perform basic math calculations. His answer? Make all teaching positions require master’s degrees and provide more incentives for teachers (although he doesn’t propose what these might be). I wonder if his discontent arises from personal experience or if he is being guided by the ideas of a mentor (a current or past teacher, perhaps?).
Anthony O from New York is certainly concerned about “alternate facts” in his letter about the necessity for children’s vaccinations. Perhaps he is a future doctor or biologist? He is certainly concerned about the health and wellness of his fellow humans. As with the other letter writers, I wonder what drove him to pick this topic. Was it a suggestion from an adult? Or possibly something he came across accidentally on the internet? Either way, he should certainly become familiar with the scientific method so that he could possibly investigate first-hand… (in a future occupation, even?)
All of these future adults would benefit from collaboration and/or division of labor between like-minded seekers of knowledge. Like good historians, their findings become more conclusive when corroborated by multiple sources…
Thanks for reading,
Eric L.