On Education
Some of our early settlers and, indeed, entire states, felt that through education, we could create a society of thinkers. What would it be like to have commoners intelligent enough to make sound decisions, digest an argument, and find its flaws? How could a government control its subjects if they were as intelligent as those attempting the control? Our Founding Fathers not only shared this view, but made the government and those who work for it subject to the people, rather than the other way around.
In those early days, America had one of the highest percentages of educated people in the world, when reading, writing, and basic mathematics were the primary subjects. An average Joe walking down the street had the mental capacity to follow an argument and comprehend its meaning. So the question is, what were they doing that was so different? How would their schools compare with ours today?
The first, and I believe the most important, is that they read physical books, used pen and paper for notes, and took tests, not for a score, but for knowledge of a subject. They were taught HOW to learn, not WHAT to learn. They used Grammar, Logic, and Rhetoric, commonly referred to as the Trivium, to help guide learning. They read complex literature and poems and learned to analyze them, breaking them down into pieces to determine their meaning.
In the mid-1800s, Friedrich Froebel introduced the concept of an Elementary school system in Germany. He suggested that children, from a very early age, should be introduced to things in a playful way and that this introduction should be continued throughout life. He argued for continually increasing the difficulty of the material and commented that “Education consists in leading man, as a thinking, intelligent being, growing into self-consciousness.” In his book, “The Education of Man,” he lays out details and provides examples of how to ensure a child’s early life prepares them for what’s to come.
Froebel further stated: “[I]n every human being, as a member of humanity, lies and lives humanity as a whole; but in each one it is realized and expressed in a wholly particular, peculiar, personal, unique manner.” Yet, our education system does the opposite. It treats every kid exactly the same, as if they all have the same interests and desires as everyone else. It removes the fun from everything and focuses instead on blind obedience. It groups kids by age, limiting their ability to learn from older students, and interrupts that time by ringing bells, giving 300 seconds of movement before locking them into another box and a different subject.
Even time outside of school is dominated by homework. Time kids should be spending with each other, playing and participating in society, is instead spent in a room, alone, studying a subject they’re not even interested in.
It begs the question: Should education consist of so-called professionals choosing subjects and designing tests, or should it focus more on how to think? How to read something and dig out its meaning. How to communicate your ideas to others through speech or writing. How to debate a subject while remaining respectful and attentive. How to study, take notes, remember, and research. None of this is taught in our schools today. That is why the author of “Dumbing Us Down,” John Gatto, an award-winning school teacher, calls our current system a “Schooling” instead of an “Education.” We are not teaching our kids how to learn and think; we’re teaching them to follow orders, move around, stay in groups of like-minded people, and, above all else, respect authority.
It has become commonplace to discuss revising our education system, but it can’t be revised. Too much money is at stake, and most everyone inside the system has already been corrupted through years of schooling themselves, so they believe it is the only way. We complain about the kids burning down cities and being incapable of conversation, without realizing it is the very schooling we are discussing that created them.
Many parents shy away from homeschooling, thinking they don’t have time to cover all the different topics that need to be taught. But who said they needed to be taught? Who decided that algebra, calculus, and the myriad of other topics are required? What do they provide your kids to prepare them for life?
If every parent taught their kids nothing more than reading aloud for an hour a day, followed by a short discussion of what they read and requiring them to communicate it properly, the kids would be much more prepared for the real world. They’d have more time to participate in society and become more human.
Removing cellphones, iPads, and computers and returning to physical books is another major requirement, and not just physical books, but books from the 1800s. We need our kids to think of learning as fun and rewarding, not a bore to be done under threat of punishment. We’ve had over a hundred years and produced a society incapable of communicating, which is more than enough to prove our current system has failed and the professionals have no idea what they are doing.
Every teacher and parent should purchase and read “Dumbing Us Down” by John Taylor Gatto and “The Education of Man” by Friedrich Froebel. These aren’t new ideas; they’ve been around for a long time. We just need to start applying them and stop showing so much respect for the unknown “Experts” that created our current system.
By: Glenn Hancock. I can be reached at glennh@fastmail.com