Telling The Story Of Our History
The older I get the more I like watching the reruns of the old shows. I sure hope that doesn’t mean I am getting old, because that is something I have refused over and over to do. One old show I love watching is Daniel Boone. As you know, 🎶 “Daniel Boone was a man, he was a big man.” 🎵 Yesterday morning, the Daniel Boone Christmas episode was being replayed. The episode’s writer, Stephen Lord, parallels the Luke 2 Christmas story in the Bible with storytelling perfection. At the end there is even the reference of a single bright torch to signify the birth of a son which then shifts to the image of a bright star. For a very complete description of the 14th Episode of Season 2, click here.
Watching this reminded me of just how far we have come as a country since the time of Daniel Boone and the experiment that is the United States began. We still have a long way to go, but we’ve come a long way too. While there were characters in this show saying things and acting in a way that ashamed me, they also learned and were changing their attitudes and way they treated others in the end. The episode even had characters asking for forgiveness. I do not agree with, those who want to erase history. We need to keep our history in front of us and teach our kids what every person in our past did, both good and bad. If our children are to have a sense of their own history, we cannot sanitize it. To this end we need high quality and effective civics education.
I had the opportunity to be on a webinar recently through ExcelinEd with Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice as part of EdPalooza 2020. She is such an incredible leader and any time I have the opportunity to learn from her I take it. She was joined by John Meacham, Pulitzer Prize winner and a New York Times bestselling author and the webinar was expertly moderated by Juan Williams. The topic of conversation was civics education. Here are bullet point quotes of great points I wrote down and tweeted during the webinar:
- “Start them [children] early in ways that let students be involved in our democracy. And, teach our kids to make arguments to defend their opinions.” ~ Condoleezza Rice
- “Teach history through case-study. It allows us to tell the stories and learn.” “You can tell that story…” ~ John Meacham
- “Teach history and civics by simulations and role-playing. Let them engage and live in the history.” ~ Condoleezza Rice
- “Cultural literacy is important. We tend to think in analogies and more and more we do not broadly understand the analogies.” “If you see a student flicker with interest, flood the zone.” ~ John Meacham
- “Somehow we need get the entire story of history told. Let’s not leave anyone out. Jefferson was contradictory, but needs to be taught. It’s very complex.” ~ Condoleezza Rice
- “What are the [historical] examples that can guide us?” “Narrative is our friend; tell the story.” “Our students learn better through case studies and stories.” ~ John Meacham
As you can see, this session entitled “In the Hands of Our Children: The Road Ahead for a Strong Democracy” was incredible. It reminded me of my blog post We Voted! that I did as a reflection of going with my son to vote in his first presidential election. Condoleezza Rice once made these positive comments on “the long road to freedom” through a sometimes violent past, crediting “Americans claiming those institutions for themselves and expanding the definition of ‘We the People.'” “That Constitution originally counted my ancestors as three-fifths of a man,” she said. “In 1952 my father had trouble registering to vote in Birmingham, Alabama. And then, in 2005, I stood in the Ben Franklin Room … I took an oath of office to that same Constitution, and it was administered by a Jewish woman Supreme Court Justice. That’s the story of America.” We can’t erase our past, so let’s not try to hide it from our children, but help them to understand it, so they can be a part of making our world a better place for all.
Big Momentum
Lyndon B. Johnson – President Signs Civil Rights Bill/George Tames/1964/ National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution/Gift of Frances O. Tames/© George Tames; The New York Times
Successful sports teams in the 1960s were said to have “The Big Mo” on their side. The term refers to momentum. Since then it has come to describe lots of things, including politics, business, schools, et cetera. When we have momentum, we don’t worry about small problems, and larger problems seem to work themselves out.
It is said, “Momentum is truly a cruel mistress. She always seeks out inertia.” Robert Caro made reference to this in The Passage of Power, in reference to the first days, weeks, and months of the Johnson Presidency. Johnson was masterful in making use of the momentum that was gained when he first took office. He was particularly effective using momentum as a lever as it related to get the civil rights and tax cut bills of 1964 passed. The momentum that occurs when something new is starting is awesome. Caro did not talk about it in the book, but I believe that momentum changed people’s perspective of President Johnson, and they forgot about mistakes and looked past his shortcomings. We need to consider that momentum probably makes us look better than we are.
When we have big momentum the purpose and goals are clear. The expedition is going smoothly and this makes it easier to enthusiastically complete initiatives. When you have no momentum, the simplest tasks seem impossible, morale becomes low, and the future appears dark. On the other hand, when you have momentum, the future looks bright, obstacles appear small, and employee engagement is high.
As leaders it is our responsibility to create momentum. Momentum begins with each of us. If we are not focused on our own or organization’s vision, working to motivate our stakeholders, and maintaining the right attitude, we are limiting our organization’s potential.
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