In a time when education is pulled between trends, mandates, and ever‑increasing demands, Dr. Brad Johnson has emerged as one of the most trusted voices reminding America of what truly matters in the classroom. His message is not only timely—it is deeply aligned with the values of communities like Saluda County, where relationships, development, and the whole child still matter.
Who Is Dr. Brad Johnson?
Dr. Brad Johnson is one of the most sought‑after education speakers in the nation. With more than 25 years of experience as a teacher, professor, and school leader, he has become a leading advocate for teacher morale, student development, and servant leadership. He is ranked #3 on the Global Gurus list of top education leaders and has authored 15 influential books, including Dear Teacher, Empower Students, Learning on Your Feet, and Putting Teachers First.
His work centers on themes that resonate deeply with rural districts:
- Relationships before rigor
- Developmentally appropriate learning
- Teacher empowerment
- Restoring joy and humanity to the classroom
It is important to note that Dr. Brad Johnson is not the same individual as Brad Johnson, the assistant principal at Saluda High School. While our local Brad Johnson is a respected educator in his own right, Dr. Brad Johnson is a national figure shaping conversations about education across the United States.
Learning Begins in the Body, Not the Device
Dr. Johnson’s recent reflections on early childhood learning speak directly to what many Saluda County teachers have been saying for years. He writes:
“In the early years, learning is physical before it is academic.”
This is not nostalgia—it is neuroscience. Children learn through movement, touch, exploration, and play long before they learn through screens or standardized assessments.
He reminds us:
“Paper, pencils, books, and play are the foundation deeper learning is built on.”
In Saluda County, where many classrooms still honor these foundations, his words feel like affirmation. Teachers here know that handwriting builds memory, real books build stamina, and play builds the very capacities reading requires—attention, language, self‑regulation, and persistence.
These are not luxuries. They are the building blocks of literacy.
When Foundations Are Removed, Children Struggle
Dr. Johnson warns that when schools replace pencils with keyboards too early, books with screens, and play with more testing, the consequences show up later:
- Weaker reading endurance
- Shorter attention spans
- Difficulty sustaining meaning across longer texts
- Students who can decode but cannot comprehend deeply
He writes:
“That isn’t a motivation problem. It’s a developmental one.”
This truth matters in Saluda County, where teachers see these challenges firsthand. Our children are not broken. Their development simply needs the right conditions.
The Testing Trap
Dr. Johnson also speaks boldly about standardized testing—a pressure point for rural districts.
He explains:
“Standardized tests were never designed to capture the full range of how students learn.”
They measure performance under narrow, timed conditions—not curiosity, creativity, reasoning, or real‑world problem‑solving.
He writes:
“A test score is not a measure of learning capacity. It’s a snapshot of performance under artificial conditions.”
And then the line every parent and teacher in Saluda County needs to hear:
“When we confuse the two, we don’t just misread students. We mis‑teach them.”
This truth matters deeply in a community where many children are hands‑on learners, relational learners, and creative thinkers—strengths that standardized tests rarely capture.
Why His Message Matters Here
Saluda County is a place where:
- Teachers know their students’ families
- Learning is personal
- Community values shape the classroom
- Childhood is still honored
- Relationships come first
Dr. Johnson’s message aligns with who we are and what we believe:
- Children thrive when learning is hands‑on
- Real books build real readers
- Play is essential, not optional
- Development must come before data
- A test score cannot define a child, a teacher, or a school
His voice gives language to what our educators have long understood: the basics still work.
A Community Call to Action
If early literacy truly matters, then we must protect the conditions that make literacy possible. And that means speaking up.
Saluda County families, educators, and community members can take simple, meaningful steps to advocate for developmentally sound education across South Carolina.
Contact the South Carolina Superintendent of Education
Let your voice be heard through:
- A handwritten postcard
- A respectful phone call
- A thoughtful email
Share why handwriting, real books, balanced technology, and meaningful play matter for our children. Share your experiences. Share your hopes. Share Dr. Johnson’s message.
When communities speak with clarity and unity, leaders listen.
A Message to Parents: Your Children Are Not Broken
Every parent in Saluda County deserves to hear this:
Your children are not broken.
If your child is struggling, distracted, restless, or discouraged, it does not mean something is wrong with them. Many children today are bored, overwhelmed, or simply mismatched with systems that were never designed for the way they learn best.
Sometimes the problem is not the child—
it’s the environment, the expectations, or the pace of a system that has forgotten how children grow.
Your child is capable.
Your child is gifted in ways a test will never measure.
Your child is becoming exactly who God created them to be.
A Message of Hope for Children, Parents, and Educators
To the children of Saluda County:
You are more than a score. You are more than a label. You are more than a moment of struggle.
You are learners, builders, creators, thinkers, and image‑bearers of God with a future worth fighting for.
To the parents:
You are not alone.
Your advocacy matters. Your voice matters. Your instincts about your child matter.
To the educators:
You are the heartbeat of this community.
Your calling is sacred. Your impact is immeasurable.
And to our whole community:
There is hope—real, practical, powerful hope—when we return to what works, when we protect childhood, when we trust development, and when we stand together for our schools.
We hold fast to this promise from Scripture:
“Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it.” — Proverbs 22:6
This is not just instruction—it is assurance.
A reminder that what we build into our children today becomes the strength they carry into tomorrow.
The path forward is not complicated.
It is a return to strong foundations, wise leadership, and the belief that every child can flourish.
And here in Saluda County, we know how to build strong foundations.
