When it comes to federal holidays, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday seems (to me) to be the one where most businesses stay open. Throughout my career, I don’t recall ever having the day off, with Presidents Day being a close second when it comes to federal holidays that are “ignored” by employers. We have yet to have “MLK Day” sales (at least as far as I’ve seen; please correct me if I’m wrong) so perhaps the holiday has yet to become corrupted. Which I think it would be an excellent educational opportunity.
I do realize that I am being idealistic here and that my vision will never happen, but imagine, just for a moment what could be accomplished if on that one day schools focused not on Common Core subjects, but on who Dr. King was and what his dream means to our history. It could be a chance to review our racial history from the time of our founding fathers (where the issue of slavery nearly sidelined the adoption of the country’s independence) to our current status. It should be a day of service (as designated by Congress in 1994 when the holiday was declared to be a day to honor the memory of Dr. King through service) where students could work together to help others. There could be so many teachable moments. It would be a time of learning that would not be graded by test scores, but would help our children to grow as individuals.
Why couldn’t this be done at home you ask? It obviously could, but how many working parents have the day off? Certainly learning as a group in a classroom setting has the potential to be much more effective. It would be an opportunity to learn for learning’s sake and not for a grade. (Which is probably the biggest reason why it will never happen.) It could be a chance to inspire students and not affect their GPA.
While school will not be open and I will be working, I’m going to make an effort to not let this just be another day off for my son. Sure, maybe he’ll sleep in later than usual and have a day of play, but when I do get home I’m going to try to take some time to discuss the importance of the holiday and how serving others can change other lives, and often our own. How it’s not (and never should be) about retail sales, but about a man who dreamt of equality for all races.
Beth Shorten is a life-long resident of Verona. You can read more of her writing on her personal site, Bfth’s Boring Blog.
