Sir Ken Robinson
Many great thinkers have concisely concluded that modern education is not great. They realize that some aspects of human life are deemed less important than others in schools, public and private alike. They think that a subjective view of value is not subjective, but rather unchangeable. What this means is that some great men that have used science and math for the advancement of humanity have concluded that these are the best ways to express what we need to say and solve the problems we want to solve.
I think this view of life is completely wrong. Humans and animals are beings that might look the same from the outside but we can all agree that we are all born differently; we are not the same when it comes to values and preferences. What we share is a desire to become better and to end our suffering, whatever that suffering may be.
Are all humans benefiting equally from the current system of education? The short answer is no. The long answer is that this current system has created an elitist filter that deems people unfit based on a limited set of abilities. I do not mean to say that we should not learn languages, but that sometimes we move into topics that are very specific and have no real value when it comes to the individual. Someone who feels great pleasure in helping animals will not feel good if he attends a class of taxidermy even if the teacher thinks that the skills are great for his own life. We need to abandon this childish feeling that we are all created equal. We need to create a system that nurtures communication, creativity and difference. We need to expose the new generations with general culture and let them decide what they deem most important.
The solution? Create schools that foster interests and promote forward thinking. How is that even possible? Elementary school provides the foundations for our education. We need to build that part of life into one that teaches us the basics. Basic science that helps us understand the world, languages (probably two) that help us communicate effectively and basic math to help us make daily calculations that make our life easier. Then make a school that separates children into their natural talents. Don’t force the separation; make it something intuitive and catered to the each child. This will increase the amount of people that feel satisfied with their lives and put talents where they are most needed.
This will not be a short process. We need to start valuing teachers for what they really are. We need to hold them as the creators of society and we need to bring the best of our kind to the forefront of education.
Schools are littered with people that became teachers after being frustrated with their life; they are not internally driven to help children. A lot of things need to change, and we need this change to come soon.
I think this view of life is completely wrong. Humans and animals are beings that might look the same from the outside but we can all agree that we are all born differently; we are not the same when it comes to values and preferences. What we share is a desire to become better and to end our suffering, whatever that suffering may be.
Are all humans benefiting equally from the current system of education? The short answer is no. The long answer is that this current system has created an elitist filter that deems people unfit based on a limited set of abilities. I do not mean to say that we should not learn languages, but that sometimes we move into topics that are very specific and have no real value when it comes to the individual. Someone who feels great pleasure in helping animals will not feel good if he attends a class of taxidermy even if the teacher thinks that the skills are great for his own life. We need to abandon this childish feeling that we are all created equal. We need to create a system that nurtures communication, creativity and difference. We need to expose the new generations with general culture and let them decide what they deem most important.
The solution? Create schools that foster interests and promote forward thinking. How is that even possible? Elementary school provides the foundations for our education. We need to build that part of life into one that teaches us the basics. Basic science that helps us understand the world, languages (probably two) that help us communicate effectively and basic math to help us make daily calculations that make our life easier. Then make a school that separates children into their natural talents. Don’t force the separation; make it something intuitive and catered to the each child. This will increase the amount of people that feel satisfied with their lives and put talents where they are most needed.
This will not be a short process. We need to start valuing teachers for what they really are. We need to hold them as the creators of society and we need to bring the best of our kind to the forefront of education.
Schools are littered with people that became teachers after being frustrated with their life; they are not internally driven to help children. A lot of things need to change, and we need this change to come soon.
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