A pep talk for students

President Obama's C-SPAN address to school children on Tuesday focused on messages we hope young people take to heart. There was nothing overtly political or otherwise inappropriate lurking in the president's back-to-school speech.

That said, we also agree with Corridor area schools' decision to allow, but not require, their students to watch the address.

Certainly, the president - every president of our nation - deserves respect. We all should pay attention to what our president says. Yet local districts have a duty and need to determine how class time is spent and ensure all activities uphold educational standards and integrity.

Speeches by politicians, even the president, shouldn't be mandatory viewing for students, because politicians have political views they often want to present.

Teachers and administrators in our public schools must be careful not to promote, even indirectly, any political agenda. Study politics, yes. Discuss controversial or difficult issues in an environment where everyone's viewpoint is heard, yes. Advocate for political causes, no.

The pre-speech controversy proved largely to be overblown. Who can argue with the general themes of personal responsibility, persistence and setting goals that dominated the president's talk? Some excerpts:

“And that's what I want to focus on today: the responsibility each of you has for your education. ... the responsibility you have to yourself.

“You can't drop out

of school and just drop into a good job. You've got to work for it and train for it and learn for it.”

“If you quit on school - you're not just quitting on yourself, you're quitting on your country.”

“What you look like, where you come from, how much money you have, what you've got going on at home - that's no excuse for neglecting your homework or having a bad attitude.”

“Where you are right now doesn't have to determine where you'll end up.”

“But the truth is, being successful is hard ... you become good at things through hard work,” with references to the Harry Potter book series' author, JK Rawlings, who overcame multiple rejections before finding success, and basketball legend Michael Jordan, who once couldn't make his high school team but persevered.

The administration did initially misstep in its suggested, optional lesson plan for teachers, created by the Education Department to accompany the speech.

It recommended that students draft letters to themselves on “what they can do to help the president,” with teachers monitoring to see if students hit their goals. That language could be misconstrued as seeking political support.

But the White House responded and revised.

And in the end, democracy prevailed. The president delivered a strong pep talk without dictating how schools should respond.