I have to assume that the good teachers at kindergarten played some role in this little pre-algebra lecture from the lad:

This is very strong. It is twice as strong as you are. I’m using you as a kind of symbol for how strong something can be, and then I’m saying that this is twice as strong as that.

I’m really good at estimating. Did I ever tell you that?

No this isn’t a post about eliminating student loans at wealthy colleges and universities. (I have some thoughts about that, but maybe another day.) Nor is this a post about 529’s and other investment vehicles.

This is a post about our son, who at six, is already thinking about college. While some social-climbing parents might like having a child who thinks about college while he’s in kindergarten, I feel awkward about it. I try to tell myself that it’s a natural byproduct of having a daddy who works in higher education. Rationalization, perhaps?

On his birthday, his great-grandmother presented him with a U.S. savings bond. He came running into the kitchen, “Mommy, look what Grandnana gave me! Now I can go to college!”

Today, the topic came up again.

Dad: You know who owes you that money? The United States government! [Big smile…likes that thought.] Your grandnana loaned some money to the United States, and she told them to give the money to you when it’s time to pay it back. Cool, huh?
Lad: How much is it worth?
Mom: Fifty dollars.
Lad: Is that enough to go to college?
Dad: Nope, it costs more than that.
Lad: How do I get a–you kn0w–appointment in college? Like to let me in.
Dad: You mean accepted? You apply to the college you want to go to.
Lad: What if they don’t accept my application?

That he could even form the question–a little heartbreaking, isn’t it? How does a kid this age even know about selectivity?

Dad: Then you apply to another school that you like.
Lad: And what if they don’t accept my application?
Dad: You just keep on applying. Trust me, lovey, some college is going to REALLY want you to come to their school. You’ll find the right one when the time comes.

In a similar vein of parental worry about pressure on kids, I share a horrifying picture with you. This was taken at the local elementary school’s Scholastic book fair a couple months ago:

…your entire presentation is about a topic that is sometimes abbreviated to a three-letter acronym…for the sake of argument, let us call it XYZ; in the conference program, the topic audience is listed as “anyone”;  at the start of said presentaion you say “I want this to be a conversation, not death by PowerPoint”; then you use a laser pointer to punctuate your comments on a 25-slide PowerPoint presentation; and after said presentation, the audience stares at you in solemn silence until one lone question emerges from the audience:

“What does XYZ stand for?”

You sir, have wasted everybody’s time, including your own.

Taking a break from politics and parenting for a couple days to attend to matters professional. I kick it old school like that sometimes.

Another one for my librarian friends and others with an interest in information literacy and the ongoing debate about authority. The general theme of a discussion with my son was “The other side of the world.”

Dad: Do you know what country in the world has the most people in it?
Lad: No.
Dad: It’s China.
Lad: I don’t believe you.
Dad: You don’t?! Who would you believe?
Lad: Nobody.
Dad: Well, would you look it up in a book? Or we could look it up in the Wikipedia.
Lad: No.
Dad: Would you believe mommy? Or a teacher? Or a librarian?
Lad: I’d ask a librarian!
Dad: Okay, they could help you find the right book.
Lad: Wait a minute…

[Our hero disappears into his room. He returns with a large, red book in his hands. It is the Big Book of Knowledge.]

Lad: I bet this book has the answer!
Dad: I bet you’re right. [Looking…] There it is. China has around 1.4 billion people, the most in the world.
Lad: Now I believe it. [Tucks the book under his arm and takes it back to his bookshelves.] I had the right book.

I’m very interested to discover that a pre-literate child already has a mental model for research. It’s not just that he knew he could look in a book, but he knew which book would probably give him the kind of answer he was looking for. I wonder if there are studies on information-seeking behaviors of pre-readers.

Anyone?

Our little guy’s pre-school lessons this week have focused on Martin Luther King, Jr. and the civil rights movement. He’s been very interested in the topic, asking me to help him find facts and pictures on the Internet and wi-ki-ped-i-a. When they arrived at school today, there were signs posted around the room stating new rules. The rules indicated that only certain kids–like those wearing striped shirts–would be able to drink from the fountain, play with certain toys, or sit in certain places.

It was our wee muckraker who crossed the line when he took a forbidden drink from the fountain. After a little discussion, the class talked about how that kind of mean rule was bad. They ceremoniously tore the rules down from wall and ripped them to shreds.

When I asked him why he decided to break the rule this evening, he said, “I was thirsty. And… I had to show the other kids that it was a bad rule.”

We’re very proud of the kid. Now we just need to make sure he remembers that Mom and Dad’s rules are never mean and need to be followed.

One of the best things about working at a top-notch academic institution is that you’re always around people who have interesting ideas and a profound ability to communicate them. I’m an information sponge, so I’m grateful to reside among those who willingly satisfy my desire to absorb.

Peter Holms of Swarthmore’s own War News Radio filed a report on the Maine National Guard’s “Flat Soldier” program to help children feel the presence of parents who are deployed in Iraq.

Political Scientist James Kurth published an article “America’s Democratization Projects Abroad” in the October edition of the conservative American Spectator. (The Spectator!) It’s a excellent primer on a century of U.S. attempts to promote liberal democracy around the globe. It sounds to me like the E.U. may be better poised to play that role today. I guess that keeps us stuck playing the role of the World’s Cops.

Meanwhile, my blogging colleague Tim Burke is publicly hashing out the syllabi for two courses I’d love to take. (In that alternate universe where I currently have the time to take advantage of the benefit that allows me to take free courses.) The courses are “The Production of History” and “The History of Reading.” Tim gets assists from his colleagues at other institutions in the comments. It’s neat to watch a course taking shape in the public web.

That’s it for a few days. Now, the pie.

Happy Thanksgiving to all. And thanks to all who give.