Why school sucks

16 years ago

Entertain me:

I know many other countries besides the United States have compulsory education laws and I'm sure that in many of those "learning" in public schools is also heavily standardized. I've reached the conclusion that standardized curriculum based education, and to a lesser extent compulsory education, serves no purpose whatsoever other than than to limit the imaginations and thoughts of young people. Through such things as tests and grades schools, instead of helping the future generation of leaders, are harming them by squashing the thirst for knowledge.

Instead of simply learning to expand their minds today's young people are subjected to a system where "learning" means making good grades. It's absolutely horrifying that a system largely influenced by 19th century Prussian conformist idealogy is seen as something useful in the quest to progress humanity. It comes off as some kind of sick and twisted joke. Instead of being forced to compete against each other when it comes to grades and tests, and only memorizing some relatively useless facts people should be free to learn what they want. Schools should be a place where the people choose to learn and not learn what they want. If a first grader wishes to explore outer space, I say we should encourage him or her. We should provide him or her with the resources on astronomy and allow the student to decide what to do with those resources.

If a tenth graders dreams of curing cancer then by all means that student should be free to study and learn all he or she can without interference of tests, grades and homework. The point is that allowing students to study what they want is far more useful to society than having them memorize facts for a test.

The short version: Schools should be a place of learning, not of torture.

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Comments (3)

oilpainter
16 years ago
Seems to me you are living in Utopia, not the real world. If every child were interested in learning and had the same capacity for learning,if all parents were interested in seeing their child learn, if schools weren't so crowded, didn't have to deal with drugs, violence, and kids from all ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds your ideas might have some merit. If teachers weren't so burnt out from all the garbage that is thrown at them, it might be a different story.

You learn the basics of every subject in grade and high school and study your interests in College.

I can just imagine a school with no tests or grades, and how those kids would come out of such a school. Would they come out having a knowledge of only things they were interested in like astronomy or computers, and no Math skills. How could such a person live in todays society.

The country would be in chaos. How would an employer know if the employee had the knowledge to work in his company.

The schools can't do everything. It is up to parents to teach disipline and foster a love of learning, but many don't. Tests are just a way of guaging what a child knows and grades are to separate children into classes of what a child knows and has yet to learn.

Can schools be a better place--sure they can but it would take all parties involved--the parents, schools and boards and government--working together. It would take parents and the government putting learning and education at the top of the list instead of at the bottom where it usually is.
sheilajoyce_gw
16 years ago
I agree with oilpainter. And I would add that students need to be taught that they have responsibilities to learn and do their best too. Everyone has a responsibility in the teaching and learning process, and parents and students definitely have their share of duties as do teachers, administrators, teacher colleges, school boards, and state legislatures too.
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Why school sucks

Comments (3)

oilpainter

sheilajoyce_gw

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