On student councils and international competition ...

As the K-12 education reporter, I often find myself debating with folks about the quality of American education in comparison to other countries.
I've heard dozens of anecdotes from educators and teachers who have been to China, Japan, Germany and others, and have returned with stories of factory-like students marching through a regimented 10-hour school day before coming home to enthusiastically renew their studies before dinner. And we've all read the reports of American students lagging behind their international peers in everything from reading and math to science and engineering.
I can't debate the accuracy of those reports. But what I can debate is the fact that American education includes more than education - and that's significant.
On Tuesday, the Mankato East Student Council held its fall blood drive. Council members organized a small army of nurses and cots, brought in boxes of doughnuts and cases of bottled water, and set a goal to collect 110 units of blood.
But the interesting thing is that Tuesday's blood drive is only the first of two drives the Council in sponsoring this year. Because East's National Honor Society decided to focus its service projects elsewhere this year, the Council made the decision to continue the spring blood drive themselves (which is normally sponsored by the Honor Society).
That one decision could save dozens of lives. And it illustrates a broader understanding of what's important to a community.
The point is this: In American schools, education goes beyond reading, writing and 'rithmetic. In this hyper-standardized and assessment-heavy era of education, it's important that students are taught about the world that lies within arm's reach.
We should all value a competent American student who can compete with the best and brightest on a global scale. But we should also value a student who understands the world outside a textbook.
And while a blood drive won't change the world (well, it might for the patient who needs the transfusion) - it does show that Mankato is teaching its students to value community and the role they can play within it.

Co-worker won't cough in the crook of their arm? Car won't start? Having a poor day? You need heartwarming stories of Mankato students:

- Loyola students remember a fallen friend: http://www.mankatofreepress.com/archivesearch/local_story_044174443.html
- Mankato elementary students brighten the holidays: http://www.mankatofreepress.com/archivesearch/local_story_352220315.html
- Mankato soccer jerseys travel the globe: http://www.mankatofreepress.com/archivesearch/local_story_025220340.html