We have all heard the catch phrase, "Each One Teach One."

This phrase originated in the United States during slavery, when Africans were denied education, including learning to read. Many, if not most slaves were kept in a state of ignorance about anything beyond their immediate circumstances which were under control of owners, the law makers and the authorities. When a slave learned or was taught to read, it became his duty to teach someone else, spawning the phrase "Each one teach one."

What happened to that concept? I understand that the origin of the saying referenced reading and writing, but it has been duplicated in other areas.
This phrased coined many years ago, was executed for quite sometime in our community. What happened to teaching our sons and daughters what we’ve learned? For example, if a father was a carpenter, his sons grew up learning the business, they knew carpentry. The same held true for mothers and daughters. If the grandmother or mother was a seamstress, you could almost bet that it was passed down to the daughters and so forth.

In the 1960’s young men received government grants to take up a skilled trade. Some became electricians, some plumbers and even iron workers. These were skilled, technical jobs that drew a decent pay.

We cannot rely upon the school system to prepare our children to live in the world. This same educational system has severely cut back on vocational education and courses such as mechanics, shop, cooking, sewing, etc. Let’s face the hard cold fact that not every high school graduate is going to college. Every path is unique.

How do we fill in the gaps? There was a time when a high school education could secure you a decent job for a decent wage. Today, college grads are competing for the jobs once open to those who completed their secondary education.

Maybe it’s time to revisit the “Each One Teach One” principle and pass along these skills to the younger generation.

I would like to see my plumber, carpenter, or electrician mentor and train up a young person.

The concept that many of us taught our children, “ to go to school, get a good education, get a good job is falling through the cracks.” The harsh reality of the current economic climate is dictating something quite different. We are running out of time. We have run out of excuses.

Each One, Teach One… Let’s reclaim the village!

Til next time…

Clarence Matthews
Elder's Ledger

Reclaiming the Village, One Topic at a Time!

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