The Washington Post today reports the results of a new survey by the Girl Scouts of America. Their summary?
A new nationwide survey of girls and boys found that a majority of children and youths in the United States have little or no interest with achieving leadership roles when they become adults, ranking “being a leader” behind other goals such as “fitting in,” “making a lot of money” and “helping animals or the environment.”
The challenge of inspiring these young people lies at the feet of parents. It is parents who must inculcate the desire (a) to make a difference, (b) to do the hard work of preparation, and (c) to look for opportunities. Too often, however, parents leave the inspiring to someone else: teachers, coaches, pastors, friends.
While other people have an important part to play in a child’s development, there is every reason for parents to take the lead in each of these areas. In fact, the most important reason is that Scripture says that duty belongs to parents, in Deuteronomy 6, Ephesians 5, and elsewhere. But children spend less and less time at home; and time there is spent watching TV, playing video games, and the like. And that’s one area where parents seem to be teaching their children. On average, according to a 2004 UC Berkeley study, Americans spend almost three hours a day (170 minutes) watching television.
And I’m not s
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