Ah, education. I love your pure form so much that I despise your current state.
On my banner at the top of the page I've listed education as one of the things that "wants to kill me" because I see a pretty hopeless mess when I look at it.
Parents are at war with school boards, arguing about what should/should not be taught. Many teachers are losing their jobs. But, even the educators who remain employed have to defend themselves constantly when their students are failing. (As if it's solely the fault of the teachers.) Test scores are dropping. Schools are closing. It's ugly.
And, since I don't like messes, it nearly kills me to think about all of it. The government wants to throw more money at the problem. Parents seek help from doctors writing prescriptions for Adderall and Ritalin. But few people question the practice of putting 25 kids in a room to hear lectures 7 hours a day.
However, Ken Robinson says kids weren't made to learn in mass-produced fashion, and if you have 20 minutes, this is a worth-while video:
Ken Robinson says schools kill creativity Video on TED.com
Robinson doesn't have any solutions other than a "radical" change of thinking and overhall of the education system--one that embraces diverse types of intelligence rather than solely the three R's.
But it's a good place to start. And it gives me an introduction for suggesting specific changes in later posts. :)
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