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Is TikTok becoming Gen Z’s go-to for scholarships? · Cultural Wars | America Out Loud News

• 0:23
  We are in this uh dichotomy here of education up a strange dichotomy where those who those who uh are I don't want to say those who are in charge of education, but I'm going to, I'm going to say it that way.
• 0:40
  Those who are in charge of education on one side of the fence want to push technology.
• 0:46
  They want to push AI, they want to push ed tech, but there are others on the other side who realize the devastation that technology is causing to the hearts and minds of our young people.
• 1:04
  We're going to look at that dichotomy today.
• 1:06
  There's this push for screen free.
• 1:09
  And then uh on the other side, you've got apps like TikTok that are emerging as scholarship search engines.
• 1:18
  It's odd.
• 1:19
  I know it's odd.
• 1:19
  We're gonna we're gonna get into it today.
• 1:22
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• 2:48
  All right.
• 2:49
  So I've got a couple of articles here that I'm that I'm staring at.
• 2:53
  One talks about screen-free advocates inviting families to to have a have a screen pause for a few days.
• 3:03
  But yet on the flip side, we have uh people in education that are pushing AI down our throats, pushing ed tech down our throats.
• 3:14
  Uh, TikTok is emerging as a scholarship search engine.
• 3:18
  I'm looking at an exclusive uh survey here, exclusive research uh put out by the Sally Corporation.
• 3:29
  Sally is an education solutions company, and their objective is to help guide students and families through the entire higher education journey.
• 3:40
  And they do this through trusted tools, uh free money support, clear guidance, and other things.
• 3:50
  Sally's taking this, uh not taken, they've conducted this exclusive survey uh amongst Gen Zers, and they're interested in how Gen Zers are using TikTok in terms of finding scholarships.
• 4:10
  Did you know that was a thing?
• 4:12
  Many students uh are still searching official websites.
• 4:17
  TikTok has become a space according to Sally, where scholarship advice feels quick and accessible.
• 4:25
  It's at their fingertips.
• 4:26
  And once young people find opportunities, many are then turning to AI tools to help them complete the application.
• 4:36
  Uh about uh two and three, 60, 68% of Gen Z students are using TikTok to search for scholarship opportunities, at least occasionally.
• 4:51
  Excuse me, 20% are using TikTok to search for scholarships at least once a week.
• 4:58
  Who knew that TikTok was a scholarship search engine?
• 5:03
  Uh this obviously is showing that the platform has become a part of many students' regular planning routine.
• 5:11
  Is that a good thing?
• 5:13
  I'm asking for a friend.
• 5:15
  TikTok even ranked as Gen Z's fifth most common scholarship discovery source.
• 5:21
  So are Gen Zers going to TikTok because they know they can find scholarship information?
• 5:29
  Or is scholarship information coming up to Gen Zers in the form of advertisements while they are scrolling TikTok?
• 5:39
  The platform has helped expand access, according to Sally.
• 5:44
  60% of Gen Z students who use TikTok to find scholarships, discovered opportunities they had not heard of as of yet, here too for.
• 6:56
  I don't know, maybe I'm wrong.
• 6:57
  Maybe they are actively searching TikTok for scholarship information.
• 7:00
  TikTok for scholarship information.
• 7:03
  Uh at the same time, according to Sally, nearly half of the users, 49%, said that TikTok scholarship content motivated them to apply to more scholarships, showing the platform can both pressure and inspire when it came to engagement.
• 7:03
  At the same time, according to Sally, nearly half of the users, 49%, said that TikTok scholarship content motivated them to apply to more scholarships.
• 7:15
  Showing the platform can both pressure and inspire.
• 7:19
  When it came to engagement, certain content stood out.
• 7:21
  Certain content stood out.
• 7:23
  TikTok scholarship users engaged most with uh something called hidden gem.
• 7:23
  TikTok scholarship users engaged most with uh something called hidden gem.
• 7:30
  And these are particular scholarship reveals.
• 7:33
  50% of users uh had engaged with hidden gem.
• 7:39
  40% had discovered essay tips.
• 7:43
  31% uh have discovered uh financial aid explainers.
• 7:49
  30% have tapped into creator success stories.
• 7:54
  Well, 22% were reminded about scholarship deadlines and a variety of scholarship alerts.
• 8:02
  So has TikTok tapped into a market here, into a scholarship market.
• 8:10
  Uh scholarship advice on TikTok, however, can feel more personal, but that doesn't necessarily make it more reliable, according to the survey.
• 8:20
  Students navigate a mix of opportunities and risks as they decide who and what to trust.
• 8:27
  About one in third, one in three, 34%, reported encountering content they believe to be misleading.
• 8:36
  I'm surprised.
• 8:37
  I am.
• 8:38
  I'm surprised that that number is so low.
• 8:40
  I expected it to be higher.
• 8:43
  Low-income students discovered the most unique scholarships via TikTok, 68% of them, but also face the highest rate of misleading content of 41% here.
• 8:55
  Ah, here we go.
• 8:56
  Now that number's creeping up.
• 8:58
  About a third of students who paid for a TikTok promoted scholarship service reported it was misleading.
• 9:06
  32% are paying for scholarship services, and they're discovering that the scholarship service is not what it's cracked up to be.
• 9:16
  In the meantime, first generation college students were also about one and a half times more likely to have won a TikTok sourced scholarship than their non-first gen peers.
• 9:30
  11% versus 8%.
• 9:33
  This suggests that peer shared information may be especially impactful for students as they navigate the process without family experience to guide them.
• 9:44
  These uh first-time first time college students.
• 9:50
  Uh students' verification habits varied.
• 9:53
  Only 27% always checked out TikTok scholarship info before applying.
• 10:00
  All right.
• 10:10
  Only 27% are doing this.
• 10:13
  Meaning many other students may have relied on what they saw without double checking.
• 10:18
  That's exactly what it means.
• 10:20
  Personal success stories carried serious weight.
• 10:23
  Three in five students said they were the top factor influencing whether they trusted a TikTok creator's scholarship advice.
• 10:32
  Students also revealed which content creators they trust the most.
• 10:38
  Current college students topped the list at 59%, nearly double the rate of certified financial advisors.
• 10:45
  Well, that's interesting.
• 10:47
  Students are trusting other college students who have said, yeah, I tapped into this service and it was great.
• 10:56
  They're trusting these other kids more than they're trusting certified financial advisors.
• 11:01
  I mean, it's a big rate, almost 60% to 31%.
• 11:05
  It's it's almost double.
• 11:07
  I mean, statistically speaking, we could probably say it's double.
• 11:12
  So what does this mean for new college students?
• 11:15
  TikTok has clearly stepped into a new role here, opening doors to scholarship opportunities and motivating students to apply for more aid.
• 11:26
  At the same time, TikTok exposed many scams.
• 11:32
  Many students are open to misinformation, and they're being pressured to keep up with the Joneses here.
• 11:40
  For student supporters, the takeaway isn't to ignore TikTok, but rather to pair its social discovery with verification.
• 11:54
  Trust, but verify, as our good friend Ronald Reagan once said.
• 12:00
  Check out the tools, are they trusted?
• 12:02
  Look into the conversations about uh financial advice online, check them out.
• 12:07
  Do your homework, kids.
• 12:10
  Scholarship searches move further into social feeds.
• 12:14
  The question becomes bigger than where students look for money.
• 12:19
  It becomes about how they learn to separate helpful guidance from harmful noise and who helps them build that skill.
• 12:28
  So while TikTok here is emerging into the scholarship field, and uh others in education and academia are pushing for uh for ed tech for more AI involvement.
• 12:47
  There is a group uh that is really calling on parents to go screen free, even if just for a moment, let's just take a pause here.
• 12:58
  I'm looking at this piece called Screen Free Advocates, invite families to give screens a pause just for a few days.
• 13:07
  Um everyone is welcome uh to spend their time uh however they wish.
• 13:13
  Obviously, this is America.
• 13:15
  We are the land of the free.
• 13:18
  Um people can choose what they're gonna do with their time.
• 13:23
  Some people might want to uh spend their time scrolling, doom scrolling, as it were.
• 13:30
  Uh, but there is uh uh a group uh this year's national screen free week.
• 13:36
  There's a group pushing screen free week, May 4th to May 10th.
• 13:41
  Organizers are hoping that families and children and adults will accept their invitation to find time to dream, to connect, to play, and to do these things without the screens.
• 13:54
  Hundreds of schools are getting involved in this celebration, hundreds of libraries and community institutions.
• 14:00
  They're going to be celebrating the movement.
• 14:00
  They're going to be celebrating the movement.
• 14:03
  However, real change begins at home.
• 14:03
  However, real change begins at home.
• 14:06
  It's got to happen with us.
• 14:06
  It's gotta happen with us.
• 14:08
  It's gotta happen with mom and dad.
• 14:08
  It's got to happen with mom and dad.
• 14:09
  Mama dad ultimately have to be the ones to say, you know what?
• 14:09
  Mama dad ultimately have to be the ones to say, you know what, we're gonna put the screens down just for a week, even.
• 14:13
  We're going to put the screens down.
• 14:14
  Just for a week, even.
• 14:17
  Uh, Deborah Lawrence is president of the U.S.
• 14:18
  Deborah Lawrence is president of the U.S.
• 14:21
  affiliate of the International Play Association.
• 14:21
  affiliate of the International Play Association.
• 14:24
  Did you know there was an international play association?
• 14:24
  Did you know there was an international play association?
• 14:28
  And that Deborah Lawrence was the president of the U.S.
• 14:28
  And that Deborah Lawrence was the president.
• 14:31
  affiliate.
• 14:32
  I wasn't aware of this.
• 14:34
  It's so sad, she said, that family connections are moving further apart.
• 14:39
  I think we just need to reset and give family options and give families alternatives.
• 14:46
  Well, she's not wrong.
• 14:47
  She's absolutely not wrong.
• 14:49
  We we do support her in this endeavor.
• 14:52
  Lawrence's organization, along with the Fair Play Screen Time Action Network, promotes Screen Free Week.
• 15:00
  Its website provides celebration suggestions and guides for families, schools, libraries, communities, providing them with feedback from people and organizations that in the past had positive or even life-changing experiences.
• 15:15
  After they turned off their screens.
• 15:18
  An observation of screen free week.
• 15:27
  And she wrote on their website.
• 15:37
  Then I stopped myself and just let her lay there.
• 15:40
  She wasn't bored.
• 15:41
  She was just deep in thought.
• 15:44
  We don't always have to be doing something.
• 15:48
  It's true.
• 15:49
  We don't.
• 15:49
  Matter of fact, we encourage boredom.
• 15:51
  We encourage our kids to be bored because then something happens.
• 15:57
  There's some creative mechanism that I don't know, kicks into hyperdrive.
• 16:06
  Boredom has this ability to do this to young people.
• 16:09
  I'm bored.
• 16:10
  Excellent.
• 16:12
  Excellent.
• 16:12
  Why don't you sit with that boredom and just see where it takes you?
• 16:15
  Well, I mean, we've talked about this.
• 16:17
  Boredom is the brain's built-in system to kind of reset.
• 16:26
  Just kind of, you know, it's an invitation for creativity.
• 16:30
  That's what boredom is.
• 16:32
  Um another contribution uh to the website uh from Damien, a first grader.
• 16:40
  Uh a first grader from Massachusetts uh Massachusetts.
• 16:45
  Damien said, I wanted to play on my screen.
• 16:47
  Then I thought of something I really wanted to do.
• 16:50
  Play with my friends.
• 16:52
  Well, congratulations, first grader.
• 16:55
  Get out there and play with your friends.
• 16:57
  Put the screen down and go play with your friends.
• 17:00
  For this year's observation, screen free week organizers asked the governors in all states to issue a proclamation promoting a pause from screens.
• 17:14
  Lawrence said she and her colleagues will post those signed documents on partner websites.
• 17:20
  She called this an important step for committing to gradual change in households, schools, and communities, or at least raising awareness about the harmful effects and excessive screen time can have on kids.
• 17:36
  All right.
• 17:36
  Uh, tell you what, let's I'm looking at the clock here.
• 17:39
  Let's let's pause here for a minute.
• 17:41
  This is a good place to stop.
• 17:43
  We will pick up this conversation, though, on the other side because it's important.
• 17:47
  Uh I've got some clips I want to play for you from some individuals who have who have risen as a as a leading voice, uh, promoting.
• 17:58
  Let's let's just put down the screens here.
• 18:00
  Let's and and and we we talk about the research behind it.
• 18:03
  Uh, it's not just uh a fad.
• 18:06
  This isn't just something that you know we should do just for the sake of gaining attention.
• 18:11
  There is there is legitimate bona fide research behind why or why we should be doing this, and we're gonna pick that up on the other side of this break.
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  uh detox i know that's not what is that what it's called the the the spike detox there's another name in there i love the spike detox uh uh take it every day and you know there's other stuff there that that i know you like uh have you tried the the meats yet the um are they they have they have partnered with uh with these farms that are purely organic throughout the country and they're providing farm to table meat to your doorstep i'm telling you what you and to get 20% off every reoccurring order using code AOL at checkout you cannot beat it you know the wellness company is also sponsoring the 25010 celebration gala taking place this summer in Nashville and you my friends are invited to join us go to America out loud dot news slash Nashville and use code dean to get 25% off of your registration and your name will be entered into a drawing for a free two night stay at the luxurious Sheraton hotel there in downtown Nashville uh that weekend you you might get your hotel paid for for free for free i'm telling you what the event outside of all the the the the bonus here uh the the event is going to be fantastic it's gonna be spectacular but excellent speakers delicious food you're gonna be rubbing shoulders with like minded American loving patriots celebrating 250 years oh man this is once in a lifetime I'm looking forward to it I just I am I can't wait to be there and I will I will be there and I would love to see you there so uh use code dean uh get 25% off of your registration okay so what do you think about uh having a pause on on screens for a few days I mean I I think this is it's a very good thing it should be promoted it should be talked about even though even while kids are are utilizing TikTok for scholarship information let's take a pause let's just let's just pause here for a minute matter of fact the pause should probably last longer than a minute I was uh quoting um what is her name Lawrence uh no what's her first uh Deborah Lawrence yes uh she is um part of she's the U.S.
• 21:02
  I know that's not what is that what it's called?
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  The the the spike detox.
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  There's another name in there.
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  I love the spike detox.
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  Uh take it every day.
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  And you know, there's other stuff there that I know you like.
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  Uh have you tried the the meats yet?
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  The um are they they have they have partnered with uh with these farms that are purely organized.
• 23:48
  affiliate of the International Play Association I was not aware that there was an international play association but she's the U.S.
• 23:56
  affiliate spokesperson she said every part of a young person's development is harmed by some robotic voice it even hurts their eyes it's so dangerous what we are doing right now and she's not she's not wrong we've talked about the research on what um well she says it that you know that the screen she's referring to the screens here when she says it hurts their eyes their uh the the the visual wiring portion of their brain is developed at a quicker rate than the rest of their brain um and you know this is this is not a good thing we've we have followed the study that longitudinal study out of Singapore tracked um children ages zero to 13 and what they discovered uh after at the end of this longitudinal study is that holy smokes this is uh this isn't actually uh great what we're what we're exposing our kids to it's not great the American Academy of Pediatrics uh works closely with the international play association now with with the with the American academy of pediatrics working closely with your organization it puts your organization in a um I don't know in a in a position of I don't want to use the word suspect but it does uh I mean do we do we really trust the American Academy of Pediatrics here all right I'm gonna uh yeah I'm digressing that's all digressing uh Lawrence cited guidelines that the uh that that state children under two should avoid screens and digital devices entirely except for Zoom or other video conversations involving loved ones uh I mean that's true I think that they should children under two I'm on board with this I don't know that they should have a screen in front of them now I get it you know we do that um uh a lot of times parents will you know they just need something they need their child to stop crying or to stop whatever parents need a minute and so they give the child the the screen I understand the rationale I'm not trying to be a yeah you know uh I I just I just want you to know I I get it I I understand why we go about this and why we go down this road but I I'm suggesting that there's an alternative that instead of the screen what did we used to do I know I didn't have screens when my two were little and when they would cry about something uh I would you know although you know what you know what this uh I guess I'm not completely innocent here I mean Elizabeth would there was this particular cartoons that she'd want to watch on repeat and I'd I'd let her watch it on repeat but not two I mean she was a toddler at that point you know four you know three four five um I don't know two was she watching Barney the dinosaur uh maybe that we had a cousin who had a a special Barney the dinosaur videotape made that uh where Barney would actually say the name of the child you know I don't know there was this company doing this and they would dub in the child's name so Barney would say Elizabeth on this video and it's almost as if Barney's breaking the fourth wall talking to Elizabeth she loved it I mean she she watched that thing all the time so you know I'm not completely innocent here it was just different it was just a different screen so I understand I do I get it but you know she wasn't in front of it 247 you know we'd we'd read to her and we read to her a lot and she had books that she wanted to read and she'd crawl to her bedroom and she'd grab her favorite books and and we would I mean this was a routine um and parents today are inundated more so than how it was when I was
• 28:00
  Completely innocent here.
• 28:02
  It was just different.
• 28:03
  It was just a different screen.
• 28:04
  So I understand.
• 28:06
  I do, I get it.
• 28:08
  But she wasn't in front of it 24-7.
• 28:11
  You know, we'd we'd read to her.
• 28:13
  And we read to her a lot.
• 28:14
  And she had books that she wanted to read.
• 28:16
  And she'd crawl to her bedroom and she'd grab her favorite books.
• 28:20
  And we would, I mean, this was a routine.
• 28:24
  Um, and parents today are inundated more so than how it was when I was a young parent.
• 28:31
  I understand that.
• 28:32
  I do, I get it.
• 28:34
  Uh, and this is why we're encouraging parents, even now more than ever.
• 28:38
  Hey, you know, take a break.
• 28:40
  Uh, let's have a let's have a daily limit, maybe an hour.
• 28:44
  Let's just maybe 30 minutes, an hour and a half.
• 28:47
  I mean, at some point we've got to, we've got to put up these guardrails.
• 28:53
  Uh Lawrence also noted in recent studies of high functioning, high performing school children in Finland.
• 29:01
  The students participated in 15 minutes of outdoor recess for every 45 minutes of instruction, regardless of the season or the weather.
• 29:11
  Those kids are going outside.
• 29:12
  Now that's decent.
• 29:14
  I like that.
• 29:15
  Researchers found that those incremental break periods with physical activity benefit short-term memory.
• 29:23
  Uh, they need processing time.
• 29:26
  This is the truth.
• 29:27
  They do.
• 29:27
  They need to get out and just unwind and you know, just run around for a minute.
• 29:33
  We used to say they need to get out some energy, but you know, that's probably true.
• 29:38
  But they do.
• 29:38
  They need time to process uh and just let their brain do something else.
• 29:45
  Uh Lawrence, who has worked as a kindergarten teacher before joining the faculty of the teacher training program at Delaware Community College in Pennsylvania, had been observing the growth of this movement since it originated as TV turnoff week in 1994.
• 30:06
  TV turnoff week.
• 30:07
  So that's how it started.
• 30:08
  Well, I didn't hear about it.
• 30:10
  I mean, there weren't a lot of people talking about TV turnoff.
• 30:14
  If they were, I don't remember it.
• 30:15
  And it would have been excellent advice, I think, for us young parents back then.
• 30:22
  Uh it is now morphed, though, into turn off smartphones, video games, social media, all the ubiquitous digital classroom and workplace screens that negatively affect behaviors uh for both children and adults.
• 30:40
  I mean, we're in this too.
• 30:42
  We are in the mix.
• 30:43
  Uh Lawrence recalled a recent incident where a young mother, clearly tired after a day of of work, handed her phone to her three bored young children as she tried to finish grocery shopping.
• 30:57
  And this is this is the picture that I have in my mind.
• 31:00
  I mean, the parent is frazzled, they need a they need a minute, they need a break.
• 31:05
  They're still in the process of of doing something.
• 31:08
  And the kids are whatever, bored, you know, crying, screaming.
• 31:14
  And that I get it.
• 31:15
  The mom just, the mom or dad just hands the phone.
• 31:19
  And this particular story within a few minutes, the kids fought over control of the device, uh, prompting their mother to shout at them in the public grocery store.
• 31:30
  Uh, she said, parents are tired, but they don't recognize the dangers and the bad behavior that's just going to escalate.
• 31:38
  And that's why we're in this trap.
• 31:42
  A family hike might be the thing.
• 31:45
  Game night might be the thing, or just good old fashioned storytelling can be a great break from the madness.
• 31:52
  Uh Lawrence recalled daily conversations with her mother as dinner was being prepared.
• 31:57
  They conversed every evening over the course of a decade.
• 32:02
  She said, watching my mother cook for five people every night.
• 32:05
  It gave me this internal timing mechanism.
• 32:07
  We just talked for hours.
• 32:09
  I didn't realize that making Thanksgiving dinner would be a cinch for me years later.
• 32:16
  And I and I I don't think it's those moments that are the problem.
• 32:20
  I think it's the moments that she cited just a few minutes ago, the mom in the grocery store.
• 32:27
  I think it's the moments where the parent is somewhat frazzled and they just they need a minute.
• 32:33
  And little Johnny and little Janie won't stop doing whatever they're doing.
• 32:39
  And so just, you know, the mom just pulls out a phone.
• 32:42
  I've I've watched this unfold here.
• 32:44
  I've been in conversations with parents here at the school, and they've had little ones who are not yet school age that have been with them as we've been talking.
• 32:53
  And the little one just you know tugs on the on the on the coat tail or tugs on the sleeve.
• 32:59
  And and you know, the mom has said, you know, wait, wait, you know, mommy's talking, and and finally, after this repeated activity, mommy pulls out her phone and just says, here, you sit down and stare at that, and then that's it.
• 33:11
  And then the child's quiet.
• 33:14
  And mom has a moment to actually have a conversation with another adult because the child's quiet.
• 33:22
  It's these are the moments that can be the most dangerous, maybe.
• 33:30
  And I it's it's silly, I think, to think of this moment in this discussion as dangerous.
• 33:36
  It might let me say it this way.
• 33:38
  It might seem silly, but I don't think it is silly, because that those moments are what start the trend.
• 33:45
  So then there's got to be some forethought.
• 33:49
  What can I do instead in in this moment where frustration is building?
• 33:55
  What can I do instead of giving the child the phone?
• 34:00
  Well, Cindy always had some type of crayons and coloring book, always.
• 34:05
  There was always something that if we were going to be somewhere, and and her and I needed to have conversations, you know, with other adults or people.
• 34:12
  Uh Joshua and Elizabeth had something to draw on.
• 34:15
  That was the go-to.
• 34:17
  They had a coloring book, they had crayons, they had paper, they had pencils.
• 34:21
  They there was there was some type of something that was going to engage their mind, engage it well, and at the same time.
• 34:31
  It was an activity of some sort.
• 34:33
  Cindy was great at that.
• 34:35
  She was always prepared, very much prepared.
• 34:39
  And Joshua and Elizabeth were just kind of used to it.
• 34:42
  Uh, so I think that's that's the thing.
• 34:44
  It's in those moments, those moments of built-up frustration that uh that we need to be prepared for.
• 34:55
  All right.
• 34:56
  Uh I'm on board with this, this um, you know, taking a pause.
• 35:00
  A pause, they're suggesting a few days.
• 35:01
  They're suggesting a few days.
• 35:04
  Let's just take a few day pause here.
• 35:04
  Let's just take a few day pause here, and then we will uh we'll see what happens on the other side.
• 35:06
  And then we will uh we'll see what happens on the other side.
• 35:11
  Um there, there was a clip that I that I wanted to play for you.
• 35:11
  Um there was a clip that I that I wanted to play for you, and uh I think I'm gonna hold off.
• 35:16
  And uh, I think I'm gonna hold off.
• 35:20
  I think I'm gonna hold off on that on that clip.
• 35:20
  I think I'm gonna hold off on that on that clip.
• 35:24
  I'm just, I mean, there's other stuff that I want to I want to get into that that relate to that.
• 35:24
  I'm just I mean, there's other stuff that I want to I want to get into that that relate to this somewhat.
• 35:31
  Um novelist Mark Helprin was interviewed recently, and you know, one of the questions he was asked was, you know, about about learning.
• 35:43
  What where are we at here in this in this state of of learning in young people and education?
• 35:49
  And how do we go about maybe changing things up a little bit?
• 35:53
  And helpern has some interesting comments that I would like to uh highlight on the other side of this break because I think they're helpful.
• 36:03
  I think they're they're helpful and they're important.
• 36:06
  But before we get there, I want to I want to ask you how is your immune system functioning?
• 36:13
  Are you doing well?
• 36:14
  Did you I mean, you know, cold and flu season's over, we're coming into springtime.
• 36:20
  There is a thing.
• 36:21
  Springtime colds are a thing, they exist.
• 36:25
  Uh I was talking to someone the other day with the sniffles, and all I could think of was, oh, I'm so grateful for the Bowen protocol.
• 36:33
  Anecdotally.
• 36:35
  Uh, take my anecdotal advice.
• 36:37
  It's not medical advice, but there's I've got a protocol, and there's certain things that I use.
• 36:41
  One of those things is the daily V stack brought to you by our friends at Chemical Free Body.
• 36:47
  This is an oral IV of vitamin A, C, D zinc, a host of goodness, and it it gets shot to the cells almost instantaneously.
• 36:58
  When you use code out loud at the shop, America Outloud.shop, you'll get 20% off of your first order if you're interested in having your own protocol.
• 37:07
  I mean, you might want to look into these things because having your own protocol is an excellent, excellent idea.
• 37:14
  It's an excellent way to go about things.
• 37:16
  All right, my friends, we'll pick up more on the other side of this break.
• 37:19
  You're listening to the dean's list on America Out Loud Talk Radio.
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• 39:47
  So I want to get into this uh these comments by uh Mark Helprin.
• 39:54
  He's got a new book coming out entitled Elegy in Blue.
• 40:00
  And um there's a scene in this book that in this interview he gives with Epoch Times.
• 40:09
  There's a scene in this book that I think is um, I think it's telling.
• 40:15
  Uh in elegy blue, a father walks with his young son to the city, patiently answering endless questions.
• 40:24
  You know, we've all been there.
• 40:25
  What's that?
• 40:26
  You know, why is the why is the sky blue?
• 40:29
  You know, questions about water tanks, storm drains, other objects.
• 40:34
  Uh this these are the questions that this dad is uh fielding as they as they walk through the city.
• 40:40
  And he's he's answering patiently.
• 40:42
  He's turning ordinary sites into lessons.
• 40:46
  And it it's straight from Helperin's own playbook as a dad.
• 40:50
  He's kind of writing this as based upon his own experience, where he turned everyday walks into a classroom.
• 41:00
  He said, That's what I did with my own kids.
• 41:03
  Toddlers are information sponges.
• 41:06
  If you spend hours with them that way, you ignite curiosity.
• 41:11
  Curiosity is the one thing that absolutely guarantees intellectual development.
• 41:18
  A lot of people just aren't curious.
• 41:21
  Is curiosity here something something that we can instill?
• 41:28
  I would say yes, it is.
• 41:29
  I think we can instill wonder in the hearts and minds of kids.
• 41:35
  And I think it happens every day with the right teacher in the right classroom.
• 41:45
  I think math is a perfect place for this to begin.
• 41:49
  Now, if if you're like me, you you asked this question while you were taking algebra.
• 41:55
  When am I ever going to use this?
• 41:57
  What's the point?
• 41:59
  And I had a math teacher that was like, Oh, you're gonna use this in everyday stuff.
• 42:00
  And I had a math teacher that was like, Oh, you're going to use this in everyday stuff.
• 42:03
  I mean, look at this story problem we just did.
• 42:03
  I mean, look at this story problem we just did, and and so-and-so solved for X while they were grocery shopping or whatever.
• 42:06
  And so and so solved for X while they were grocery shopping or whatever.
• 42:10
  I mean, yeah, it was it was in the story problem.
• 42:10
  I mean, yeah, it was it was in the story problem.
• 42:14
  But really, did Sally need to solve for X to figure out how much flour she was gonna buy?
• 42:14
  But really, did Sally need to solve for X to figure out how much flour she was going to buy?
• 42:21
  Just go buy the flower.
• 42:21
  Just go buy the flour, and you may have extra.
• 42:23
  And you may have extra.
• 42:24
  You may not have enough.
• 42:24
  You may not have enough, you may have to go buy more.
• 42:25
  You may have to go buy more.
• 42:26
  I mean, that's the way people live their lives.
• 42:26
  I mean, that's the way people live their lives.
• 42:30
  We don't uh we don't get out a notepad and solve for X.
• 42:36
  That that isn't really the best answer.
• 42:38
  When the kid says, When am I going to use this in my the best answer is not, well, yeah, of course, you're going to be solving for X one day.
• 42:46
  I mean, quick, non-scientific pull.
• 42:49
  Raise your hand if you've ever solved for X.
• 42:52
  Now, if you're a mathematician or you teach a math class, you don't count.
• 42:58
  Okay, I'll I'll buy that.
• 42:59
  If you're a construction worker, you may, you know, you're going to use math and you may solve for X, right?
• 43:05
  So I don't know, maybe not.
• 43:07
  But there might be some occupations where you have to do this.
• 43:11
  Generally speaking, however, I would say 99% of the population has never solved for X.
• 43:19
  No, that does not mean we should not teach algebra.
• 43:23
  And the reason that doesn't mean we shouldn't teach algebra is because math is more than solving for X.
• 43:30
  Math is beauty.
• 43:32
  Math gives us an opportunity to create wonder in the hearts and minds of the child to create awe, to create curiosity.
• 43:44
  When we start talking about math as being the language of God, and we start talking about the beauty that unfolds, the order that unfolds when we start doing things mathematically, the universe was created in order.
• 44:09
  Now, there are some people that talk about the book of Genesis.
• 44:13
  And in verse one, in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth, and the earth was without form and uh void and darkness was on the face of the deep.
• 44:24
  Um I don't know if it's the word without form or void.
• 44:28
  I'm not sure which one of those words can refer to chaos, that there was there was chaos involved until God stepped in and created.
• 44:39
  And it can be argued that when he spoke things into existence, that he used the language of mathematics, because mathematically there's order to the universe.
• 44:52
  And mathematically, there's order in our nature.
• 44:55
  There's order uh outside, and and there's there's order in the way the human body is shaped and formed, and there's order in the way the trees grow and the way the plants grow.
• 45:10
  There's order in the way that the birds fly through the air.
• 45:15
  And you know, you've seen those those blackbirds as you're driving down the road, and they're all just flying in these in these patterns, and they're staying together as one great big group.
• 45:25
  There's order in the way the geese fly south for the winter.
• 45:31
  There's order in the way a school of fish will swim.
• 45:34
  There's order in our world, and that order can be explained, it can be described mathematically.
• 45:42
  And if you have the right math teacher who is able to explain the beauty of mathematics, the beauty of Fibonacci, the beauty of uh of that golden mean spiral.
• 45:59
  I, you know, the the beauty in in music and math and how they're intertwined.
• 46:06
  If you've got the right teacher, that curiosity can be born in a in a child, it can be implanted in a child, it can be birthed, and that child can then be filled with awe and wonder.
• 46:18
  Because once a child is filled with awe and wonder, the sky's the limit.
• 46:23
  Um, yeah, and and he he says that here curiosity is the one thing that absolutely guarantees intellectual development.
• 46:30
  It's guaranteed if you're curious about a thing, you're going to be intellectually stout, as it were.
• 46:37
  You're going to be a stalwart of intellectualism.
• 46:42
  But it starts with curiosity.
• 46:45
  Oh, I'm going to, I got to, you know what?
• 46:47
  Hang on, I'm going to I'm going to make some notes here because I've got a talk coming up, and I've just, I think I might focus on this word here for a second.
• 46:59
  Just pardon me while I well, I make some uh mid-show notes because I, you know, I've got a little thought that I think I would like to develop.
• 47:08
  All right.
• 47:09
  Uh Helperin added another essential.
• 47:12
  He said, read aloud to your children every single day.
• 47:18
  We do an hour before bed.
• 47:20
  He said the kids sat between my wife and me following along.
• 47:24
  Uh we we read an hour, an hour before bed every day.
• 47:31
  Um that is tell you what, that is an um that's an art that is overlooked.
• 47:41
  Reading to your children is an art that is ignored.
• 47:45
  And I I think it's something that we just need to bring back.
• 47:50
  We absolutely need to bring it back.
• 47:52
  You know, I've I've talked here from time to time that uh this is something that I did with both Joshua and Elizabeth, and sometimes we would do it together.
• 48:02
  Um, and when you know, when Joshua and I have talked about this, that we started reading the Hardy Boy books.
• 48:09
  Um Elizabeth was with us for a little bit, you know, because you know, Callie Shaw, Iona Martin, two of the the female characters in the Hardy Boy series, but they were not regular, so Elizabeth just, you know, she didn't last with us, but um, but she would, you know, go off and and and read on her own.
• 48:27
  Then she would read to us.
• 48:29
  I remember there would be nights that she would read the American girl books.
• 48:36
  She loved them.
• 48:36
  And she would say, I want to read.
• 48:38
  And so we'd all come and let you know, be on the couch.
• 48:41
  And those were some of my most favorite evenings was listening to her read the American girl stories to us.
• 48:50
  And she enjoyed it, and she did it because we read to her.
• 48:55
  This, I think, is one of the most important things that as parents we can do for our kids is to read to them and then let them read back to us.
• 49:00
  That as parents we can do for our kids is to read to them and then let them read back to us.
• 49:06
  Elizabeth's vocabulary is it's spectacular.
• 49:06
  Elizabeth's vocabulary is it's spectacular.
• 49:10
  It is.
• 49:10
  It is.
• 49:11
  It's just um, and it's it's because of all the reading that she would do.
• 49:11
  It's just and it's it's because of all the reading that she would do.
• 49:18
  Uh so helperin says, um uh, number one, curiosity.
• 49:19
  So Halprin says, um, number one, curiosity.
• 49:26
  Let curiosity be instilled in them.
• 49:26
  Let curiosity be instilled in them, help them along with that.
• 49:28
  Help them along with that.
• 49:29
  Number two, read to them.
• 49:29
  Number two, read to them.
• 49:30
  Number three, he says, as his own kids grew, he taught them practical skills, riding a bike, sailing, shooting a rifle, balancing a checkbook.
• 49:40
  He said it's the most satisfying thing we do, teach our children.
• 49:45
  That's why we exist.
• 49:47
  The tragedy here is the modern families are structured.
• 49:51
  He said they watch separate television programs in separate rooms.
• 49:56
  Uh, and we need a return to traditional family structure instead, where we eat together, uh, where we spend time talking and teaching.
• 50:06
  And that's a key part of any solution to education problems, is that we you know, on the on the family front, is that we do it together.
• 50:14
  I mean, there's something that I've tried to instill at my house unsuccessfully just because I love the ambiance, and that's having candles at the at the dinner table and lighting candles.
• 50:25
  And everyone's like, Dad, really, why do we need candles here?
• 50:28
  I just think it's cool.
• 50:29
  I want to dim the lights, and I want to I want to light some candles.
• 50:33
  I don't know.
• 50:33
  I think it adds to the discussion.
• 50:35
  It's it's akin to sitting around a campfire.
• 50:38
  And sometimes you're just mesmerized by the fire and you just want to sit in silence, but there are other times that sitting around the campfire invites, invites conversation, it invites discussion.
• 50:51
  Uh Helperin said that he sees secondary education uh as too soft.
• 50:59
  Uh he rejects the binary debate of academics versus trades.
• 51:05
  He said, What you have is this destructive polarization.
• 51:09
  One side saying we need an academic curriculum, and this is most of what we have, where the other side says we need people in the trades and and and vocational schooling.
• 51:21
  Uh he pointed to his own school experience with both demanding vocational and academic tracks.
• 51:27
  If you're learning both academic and practical things, that's very good, because one reinforces the other, and both are a great boon to forming character.
• 51:37
  And in the classical movement, I feel like the vocations kind of get the shaft.
• 51:45
  You know, they're not in the classical education, there aren't electives.
• 51:51
  There is at least generally speaking, you know, we don't have electives.
• 51:56
  Our our electives are, you know, you everyone takes them.
• 51:59
  There, you don't elect them.
• 52:00
  You you have an art class, and or you have a music class, and or you you have a gym class.
• 52:07
  And we we provide these classes not as elective choices, but as co-curricular, which are designed to shape the brain, shape the mind and and shape human character, form our souls, their their soul formation.
• 52:24
  And so, in all of this, the trades kind of get the shaft.
• 52:29
  I'm not because I'm classical, uh, me personally, I'm not anti-trade.
• 52:35
  I think the trades are important.
• 52:38
  Uh, I think personally, if you can uh, you know, somehow have a skilled trade class and a classical education in a classical environment, you're all the better for it.
• 52:49
  And we've done that in the past, where we've, you know, we've had people that that could teach it, and you know, we allotted space for it, we allotted time for it because you can also build character while in you know teaching somebody a skilled trade.
• 53:07
  Uh I I think traditionally the classical movement shies away from the the trades because the classical movement is centered around not necessarily uh creating uh what's the word I'm looking for?
• 53:26
  It's not interested in teaching you skills to that would then project you into the workforce.
• 53:32
  Classical education is interested in teaching you skills that form and shape your soul, which then allow you to go into the workforce, but it's not a particular work skill.
• 53:43
  It's not a particular vocational skill that makes sense.
• 53:47
  I think it does.
• 53:49
  But but uh to helpern's point, I think that the the skill trades are important, and if they can be worked in, then you know, so be it.
• 53:58
  He also noted that 19th and early 20th century English public schools taught Greek.
• 54:05
  They taught the teens, the Greek, the Latin, advanced mathematics and history at levels matching or even surpassing those of today's college undergraduates, and we know this to be true.
• 54:18
  We know there's an eighth-grade history exam.
• 54:21
  You can go on the internet and look it up.
• 54:23
  It's you know, from the you know, 17th century, and it asks questions of eighth graders that our college graduates could not answer today, because they just had a higher level of learning.
• 54:40
  They they were taught Greek, they were taught Latin, and they didn't question it.
• 54:46
  They didn't, you know, bemoan it and poo-poo and say, why do I have to learn Latin?
• 54:53
  Again, it's the same with math.
• 54:55
  I mean, you're not going to speak Latin to somebody, you know, you're not gonna go to the grocery store and speak Latin to anybody.
• 55:04
  You might read Latin, you know, you might pull up a Julius Caesar and and you might read original works.
• 55:11
  You might read original Virgil.
• 55:13
  You might if you wanted to, if you knew the language, but like algebra, there's beauty in it.
• 55:21
  And there's there's uh a mental formation happening, this mental process that's taking place.
• 55:27
  Your brain is being formed in ways that it otherwise wouldn't be uh formed.
• 55:35
  Halpern said children and adolescents are enormously capable of learning.
• 55:40
  We just don't demand enough of them.
• 55:42
  If I founded a school, he said it would be rigorous, very demanding.
• 55:46
  Uh of course he goes on, and I'm I'm running out of time, but but he's right.
• 55:52
  I I don't I don't think our education system demands enough of them.
• 55:57
  I think if you set the bar, they will achieve it.
• 56:00
  They will achieve it.
• 56:01
  If you set the bar, they will rise to it ultimately.
• 56:01
  If you set the bar, they will rise to it ultimately.
• 56:06
  And maybe um maybe we just need to shut the screen off, you know, take a pause for a few days.
• 56:06
  And maybe we just need to shut the screen off, you know, take a pause for a few days.
• 56:15
  Um maybe you know, shut TikTok off for a few days.
• 56:15
  Um, maybe, you know, shut TikTok off for a few days.
• 56:19
  And I know they want to go, you know, find scholarship information, but maybe we just need to dial it down.
• 56:19
  And I know they want to go, you know, find scholarship information, but maybe we just need to dial it down.
• 56:24
  That's it.
• 56:24
  That's it.
• 56:25
  Just just say goodnight for a minute.
• 56:25
  Just say goodnight for a minute.
• 56:27
  All right, uh, just some thoughts.
• 56:28
  All right.
• 56:28
  Uh, just some thoughts there.
• 56:30
  That's all.
• 56:31
  Just some thoughts.
• 56:31
  All right, my friends, that's it.
• 56:33
  We are out of time.
• 56:34
  Thank you for joining me on this glorious summer day.
• 56:37
  I hope you have a fantastic day.
• 56:39
  I know I said summer, but it's springtime.
• 56:41
  It all blends in to be the same.
• 56:43
  Encourage your friends and family to get on the Dean's list.
• 56:47
  Let's unite to renovate the age.