In brief, the current state of our schools is the result of a model of education that discounted students actually knowing and understanding things, that cast aspersions on authority figures like students’ teachers and parents and those who have come before them, that viewed students first as social problem-solvers and then as outright political pawns and partisan activists, and that built an apparatus of gatekeeping and grift that repelled not only conservatives but also the most talented and capable individuals from becoming teachers and education leaders. In this vacuous, politically charged environment, woke was injected and thrived, reinforcing this self-sabotage in a vicious cycle.
So tackle the woke and actually enforce transparency and reforms (instead of presuming passing a law or policy will magically fix everything without any oversight). But Republicans must do more. They must reform education to remove the conditions that allow woke to flourish, and that fundamentally means returning education to forming wise, virtuous, and highly capable future citizens. It means focusing on academics and character. It means casting a vision, a return to what school was meant to be.
To deliver on education and save the country, Republicans need look no further than how our Founding Fathers were educated, what they said about education, and what parents are demanding today: Classical Education.