My country ‘tis of thee, sweet land of liberty,
of thee I sing….
Land where my fathers died, land of the Pilgrim’s pride,
From every mountainside, let freedom ring.I learned that song in the 3rd grade at Hillside Elementary and like most things that get reinforced year after year, I never forgot it.

I was the product of what E.D. Hirsh would say was an education that valued that we are part of something larger than ourselves, something that joins us to a community. His “farewell” book, How to Educate a Citizen, is worth pondering on this Independence Day weekend.

“You and I do not belong to different tribes,” he argues, and “that’s where the patriotic songs come in.”  “All the early thinkers about the schools in the United States felt that everybody should know about the ideals of freedom and toleration because it was felt that you could build a nation on those new Enlightenment ideas.”

“We share these songs, these hymns, so to speak.”

Many believe there is little to sing about, though, that we have little in common.

I disagree. It is precisely because we are free that we have so much to sing about. That is our commonality. As the 92 years-young scholar and self-described leftist Hirsch says,  

“It is …a peaceable and happy arrangement if the education of the young is wise and effective, and is, in these days also international and peaceable. For schooling to achieve that kind of beneficent result, adults are obliged to hand down the tribe’s language and customs, so that the child benefits from their historically gained wisdom.”    
(An Educated Citizen, Patriotism: Shared Knowledge and Kindness)

This weekend, we salute this nation, and those who have pledged their lives, their fortunes and their sacred honor to give us the privilege of living in the United States of America. We at CER pledge our time and attention to ensuring everyone has the honor of learning what it’s all about.

Happy Independence Day! 

Jeanne Allen

Founder and CEO
edreform.com

For more about what and how we might learn Why America? visit our initiative here.

Founded in 1993, the Center for Education Reform aims to expand educational opportunities that lead to improved economic outcomes for all Americans — particularly our youth — ensuring that conditions are ripe for innovation, freedom and flexibility throughout U.S. education.