Right of nations to exist is founded on force

I always enjoy the rich irony of the letters that appear in the Camera explaining to us that Israel has been the Jewish homeland for 3,000 years. These Americans never allude to the fact that North America was similarly the homeland of a flourishing native civilization for a like period of time. Americans teach their children that the eastern seaboard was a vast trove of natural resources largely uninhabited and ripe for the taking, for which we give thanks every year as we repeat this cherished myth. Historians now tell us there was a large and sophisticated native culture of thousands occupying our eastern coast and that our great nation is, not to put too fine a point on it, founded on ethnic cleansing. Let us be honest: The right of nations to exist is founded on one thing only, force of arms.

— Earl Noe, Boulder

Americans need to learn foreign languages

As famously quoted by Charlemagne, “To have a second language is to have a second soul.” The art of bilingualism has fallen short for our American K-12 students.

As we look towards the future in a world where English is slowly transforming into the global tongue, a question must be asked: Why should our youth continue to learn Foreign Languages?

American students are learning foreign languages at significantly lower rates compared to that of European or Asian students. I strongly believe that requiring foreign language courses in high school will close this gap. I took four years of Spanish; at my high school, it was required that all students take two years of Spanish. Thus, all students who went through my high school began to gain knowledge and understand the value of a secondary language. Through learning Spanish I found that I was much more connected to the culture of my native Spanish-speaking peers. As I continue to learn Spanish, it will strengthen my marketability for future employment.

The reason to implement required foreign language courses in high school comes down to these reasons: language changes thought, language creates a sense of inclusion versus exclusion which relates to culture, and lastly, a foreign language is a valuable skill to have in our current economy. Learning a foreign language will give American youth a greater understanding of diverse populations and help them stand out in a continually globalizing world.

— Piper Lawrence, Boulder

The normalization of overachievement is difficult

Traditionally honors programs were established to challenge academically gifted students. Allowing them to engage in more difficult and stimulating coursework. And while these programs undoubtedly offer much-needed intellectual stimulation, they also inadvertently contribute to the development of imposter syndrome, a condition characterized by the inability to internalize success, among students. The intense academic environment, stimulation and high expectations can lead students to question whether they truly deserve to be among their high-achieving peers.

Societally we are building an environment where students are expected to be perfect. The honors programs put in place for academically excellent students are now expected to be taken by everyone. The systematic normalization of overachievement and perfectionism is extremely damaging to the mental health of students. The fear of not measuring up to perceived standards can be overwhelming, impacting students’ mental health, self-esteem and overall well-being.

The single greatest investment we can make in our future is education but without change the academic expectations that have been socially prescribed to every student across the country could end up causing more long-term harm than we could ever expect.

Making student mentors and counselors more accessible, or even mandating them as a part of a degree, especially for honors students who are more at risk of these issues, can have a massive and lasting positive effect.

We need to prioritize the education necessary to combat imposter syndrome due to perfectionism and to maintain positive mental health so we can make an investment in the future of students everywhere.

— Alexander Mommer, Boulder