Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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..opinion? Reliqious cults trap unsuspecting victims The public became alarmingly aware of the dangers of religious cults when Jim Jones and his followers committed mass suicide in Jonestown, Guyana. Today, cults are commonplace in American society. Jones claimed to be a messenger of God sent to save the world and deliver mankind from its sins. In the beginning, it was all so simple: Jones provided homes for the homeless, food to the hungry and friends to the lonely. Then he demanded payment in the form of welfare checks, sexual favors and complete lovaltv. When almost 900 people drank the cyanidelaced Kool-Aid and died, Americans were in shock. How could such a thing slip by without notice? Nothing goes unnoticed now as religious cults are constantly under scrutiny by the public, and rightly so. With the clearly evident dangers brought forth by cults, the public needs to be keenly aware of what is happening. The Reverend Sun Myung Moon is the leader of the Unification Church, an organized cult society. His followers, the Moonies, receive much public attention. A mass wedding was held recently in Madison Square Garden for about 2,000 members of Moon's group. The marriages were prearranged by Moon. The couples did not know each other orior to the marriages. A Religious cults are viewed as a dark secret. Little is known about their doings except what is publicized. When speaking of cults, the typical image of a person with long hair wearing a white robe and selling flowers on the streetcorner comes to mind. But is there more? Any member of one of these groups will tell you there is. Yet they offer no proof or sound evidence to lead others to believe that cults serve some functional purpose. So many questions remain unanswered. What happens to all the money collected by these groups? Is it given to starving children in India or donated to local hospitals? We all want to know. Non-believers have trouble understanding how anyone can step blindly into an organization tnat will change one's lifestyle, one's beliefs and one's family loyalty. As in the case with Jim Jones, the answer is simple. The cult seems to be there always at the right time. A youth has been rejected by his parents and peers; an elderly person has no home or job; someone else doubts his religious faith. All these situations become prey to cult members. They lure potential members at a time when they are most vulnerable. Defenses are broken down until that person is eventually convinced that being a member of that group is the best possible thing for him. From that moment on, his life is centered entirely around the cult. All ties with his past life are broken. Convicted murderer Charles Manson was the leader of a group that he brainwashed intc murdering innocent victims. Manson's group has been referred to as a cult. Today Manson is serving time in prison for the murder of actress Sharon Tate and others. Manson's followers were easily swept into his stronghold. They sincerely believed they were helping relieve the world of unnecessary evil. There should be some sort of law regarding cults. Their purpose should be clearly defined and followed, but cults appear to have no pur pose other than satisfying the leader. Cults claim to be religious organizations, thus allowing them freedom offered under the separation of church and state principle. Too many people are harmed by cults. Mur der, suicide and extortion are just a few of th< evils brought forth by cults. Other crime: against one's will are the most evident and oftei as damaging as murder. Loss of control ove: one's mind is devastating and disastrous. A former Moonie is speaking in Russel House tonight on how he finally escaped from th< cult's hold. Let us hope that his message is en couraging am' offers hope for those who hav< not been so lucky IK _letters_ Teacher certificatii Rv Minhanl n Rnwls The South Carolina Department of Education currently is attempting to alter radically the way in which teachers in South Carolina periodically renew their teaching certificates. The changes the department wants to make will have a direct effp>ct on every public school child in South Carolina, and many professional educators in the state believe these changes have the potential for lowering the quality of instruction in the public schools. In order to teach, teachers must obtain certification by going through an accredited college or university teachcr training program. In South Carolina, teachers must also meet recertification requirements to remain licensed by taking six hours of college or university credit every five years (the equivalent of two courses). Teachers must be licensed (or certified) by the state, just as doctors, lawyers, and other professionals are. Like other professionals, teachers must maintain their skills and keep abreast of new developments in educating our children. Obviously, the quality of this training is crucial, for it has a direct bearing on the quality of instruction the children in i South Carolina's public schools receive. The new plan devised by the State Department of Education would allow each school district to plan and conduct its own recertification training programs for teachers. In effect, this plan would result in each school district's offering credit-bearing teacher training programs ' now offered only in colleges and universities. ? The department's plan also would allow school districts to ; circumvent virtually all national and regional accreditation I standards colleges and universities must meet to ensure hieh quality educational programs. Such a plan has both the potential for driving up the cost of education in South Carolina by duplicating educational programs and the ! potential for undermining the quality of professional training > South Carolina offers its teachers. 1 Why would the state department offer such a plan for ; recertifying teachers? The reason most often heard is that colleges and universities are not sensitive to the individual needs of school districts in the state. But even if the colleges * and universities could train teachers differently for different school districts, it is not logical to assume that this is either a good idea or that the school districts themselves can im[ plement such training programs for their teachers. I Do people who devised the new plan seriously believe that individual school districts can do a better and cheaoer iob of teacher training than Winthrop, Clemson, the University of * South Carolina, and the other institutions which offer acJ credited teacher education programs? Several states have tried to give individual school districts the authority and control over the recertification of teachers. e In many, many instances teachers in these states have been S awarded recertification credit for field trips to zoos, written ^ reports on current movies, and visits with out-of-state P relatives. We must guard against teachers in South Carolina being given advanced certification for similar kinds of activities. 2 What are some ways we can improve our system for . providing continuing education for teachers? There is only one answer to this question: by encouraging, and even requiring, collaborative and cooperative relationships between school districts and colleges and universities. We M rm\i. themes *mwm 1. f-tWdkK HOTS. in faces change guest editorial must bring to bear all of the resources of the colleges and universities in solving the problems that exist in the public schools. Florida has passed legislation that requires such cooperation between the public schools and the universities. Yet when the S.C. Department of Education used part of the Florida plan as a model for changing recertification in this state, it ignored the most critical part of the Florida plan: the encouragement of cooperation among professional educators at all levels. While many of the criticisms leveled at the colleges and universities regarding teacher education programs are justified, teacher education institutions in South Carolina are working hard to improve the training they do. In fact. Dr. Cyril Busbee, former state superintendent of education in South Carolina, has worked closely with the University of South Carolina to develop a comprehensive plan for helping the state's public schools. Busbee recognizes the important responsibilities the colleges and universities have to the public schools. He has a vision of what public education can become if higher education, the public schools, and other state agencies are encouraged to work together for the benefit of the children of South Carolina. It is crucially important that Dr. Busbee's ideas be given a chance to work. But without the encouragement and support of the State Department of Education, any such plan is doomed to fail. We must all keep firmly in mind the purposes of the public schools, as well as teacher training institutions. Public schools are responsible for educating our children, not our teachers. Colleges and universities are responsible for providing technical and other kinds of training assistance to the public schools to help them fulfill their purpose. When we confuse these roles and purposes by allowing individual school districts to recertify teachers, we divert attention and resources away from educating our children. The author is an associate professor in the Reading Department of [JSC's College of Education. I Gamecock -i Editor-in-Chief Kicnard Meyers ] Copy I)csk Chief David DeWitt Opinion I'age Editor . Vicki Jinnette News Editor John Braun Wire Editor Sydne Waller Asst. News Editor Jeff Draine Photo Editor Mike Fisher Asst. News Editor. . . Forrest Hrown General Manager Ron Emler Ent. Editor John Vaughan Adviser Mark Ethridge, Jr. Asst. Ent. Editor Chris Handal Ad Manager Linda S. Haines Sports Editor Tom Coyne Business Manager . . . Jean Hatchell Asst. Sports Editor. . Dennis Switzer Production Manager Mark McEwan Newsroom 777-7181 Advertising 777-4249 Business Office 777-3888 Production 777-2833 The Gamecock welcomes letters and guest editorials. All letters and guest editorials must be typewritten, triple-spaced on a 65 space-line. Letters should be no longer than 300 words and guest editorials should be limited to one. newsworthy subject no longer than four typed pages. Letters and guest editorials MUST be signed with the writer's name, telephone number, mailing address, class standing or faculty position ond major. Pseudonyms are unacceptable, but the writer's name may be withheld upon request if the circumstances warrant We reserve the right to edit guest editorials and letters. Address letters and columns to: Opinion Page Editor, Gamecock, Drawer A. USC, Columbia, S.C 29208.