For those of us who had an adequate experience in a public
traditional school, we might think “it didn’t seem so bad, it did the job for
me.” Well, what is the job of the traditional educational process? You got your
diploma, maybe a college degree, and hopefully a job. Could it have been
better? Would you want more for the future of our children?
Here are a few video clips I mashed together. I think each
bring up good points about traditional schooling.
After doing some reading and research about the original
purpose and goals of schooling, I see a couple that are still way too powerful
in today’s schools.
1. Conformity: There is still an initiative to make
all students alike. Unfortunately I think many teachers fulfill this
unknowingly (me included). Too often I have robbed students of having a choice
and have at times told them what to think and insisted the best way of doing
things.
2. The Selective Function (Darwin’s natural
selection): Students are closely compared and judged. Are we basing our
assessments on how the individual student is developing or are we blinded by
how they compare to others? Do we look at the whole student’s broad range of
intelligences and abilities or are we narrowly focusing in on their ability to
take multiple choice tests?
Some teachers still
believe that they hold all the information the students need to know for the
year and it is there job to simply transfer it to them. This practice usually
leads to every student learning a preset, universal curriculum, all the same
way. In this classroom, would you be engaged, inspired, reaching your full
potential? This is an absurd way of teaching in today's informational technology age with complete connectedness.
It’s like telling an ambitious fisherman that he is only
allowed to fish in a small stocked pond while the ocean is 100 yards away.
Don’t get me wrong; there are some foundational skills the fisherman should
learn at the pond before taking on the ocean. Even when given access to the
abundant waters, there is still a need for guidance, support, and encouragement
regardless how skilled the student is.
I think this final quote sums up the traditional approach
quite well. Seth Godin cautions modern leaders with this: “Trying to lead
everyone will result in leading no one in particular.” Most public schools are
achieving this, leaving students disconnected, disengaged, lost, and at-risk.
There IS a way for EVERY individual to be passionate about their learning with a
curiosity to inquire, determination to discover, and an eagerness to apply!
Traditional education is not it.
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