The Children of Lake Wobegon: Competing With Training Wheels in a Global Race to the Top

• In Event: Roundtable Session 26
  In Roundtable Session: Broader Considerations: Lessons From International and Rural Contexts

Abstract

Results from a survey of a nationally representative sample of American parents of school-age children examine how family culture is informing child development. Parents overwhelmingly perceive their children as strong academic performers– the children of “Lake Wobegon -” who will one day become their best friends but are vulnerable and need protection from a threatening world. A “proficiency illusion” has resulted from state standards set low in comparison to national and global assessments. Recommendations arise from analysis of consistently high performing countries including expanding the curriculum toward a comprehensive, content-rich education in the liberal arts and sciences, and to encourage the “dignity of risk” of failure, a lesson from the disability community on the crippling outcomes of overprotection.

Author

• Laura Desportes, James Madison University