The following was written between classes sometime in 2015, during my time spent working in the Japanese public schooling system.
There was a boy in the English class I just taught, who had just received his graded test from last week. He had failed. He said:
「やっぱり、英語ダメだ。」
"That's what I thought. I'm just no good at English."
This boy is a very clever guy, and I couldn't help thinking what a shame it is that now, because of this essentially arbitrary and stupid test, he believes that learning English is not an option for him. I wanted to tell him, Hey! You can do this! You can watch some movies and get a dictionary and get good at this if you want to, and not worry about all these flies buzzing in your face.
Schooling.
Compulsory schooling. A totally backward and stupid institution, designed to prepare masses of humans for factory labor. Taking very bright lights and turning them down, convincing them that to burn at full glow would be similar in form to some sort of inconceivable or blasphemous endeavor, which should not be thought of, let alone spoken of or tried.
~KafkA
Graham Smith is a Voluntaryist activist, creator, and peaceful parent residing in Niigata City, Japan. Graham runs the "Voluntary Japan" online initiative with a presence here on Steem, as well as DLive and Twitter. (Hit me up so I can stop talking about myself in the third person!)
The problem with public schooling is not only how to study, but also what to study? No one can relate to every peace of material handed to him.
Knowledge is diverse, as well as our faculties. In other terms the diversity of human faculties allowed for the diversity in knowledge. For some people, learning foreign languages is the same as climbing a tree for the elephant. The challenge is, can there be a society where every one is respected, appreciated and having a decent way of earning his living according to what field/s of knowledge he excels and despite lacking knowledge in other fields?
If this young man was taught how to learn, which you mentioned some options, instead of focusing on what he learned, the world could be opened to him. We are heading that way. No doubt about it. Nor is there any doubt that is will be a dubious journey.
Agreed boss.
I have seen a video tape and that was absolutely amazing.
Kind of reflected the real picture, related with the fish quote you mentioned.
I would have to agree. We are homeschooling/unschooling my granddaughter. It is the here that we must register for homeschooling and there is crap to follow but she knows far more than what is required and she laughs when she gets the tests. She is a free thinker an can think outside that damned box. She speaks three languages fluently. In math, she is at a grade 5 level and she is only five years old. She socializes well too. Who needs to sit ina class of same-aged kids all learning how to climb that tree with different skill sets...
Yep.
There is an excellent talk on this subject from Sir Ken Robinson. Have you see it? Here is a very good animation taken from it.
This is an excellent video. Thank you!
It's the same problem here in South Korea
In principle I agree. I will say, though, that if a child doesn't learn to read, write, and do basic math, they are pretty badly hobbled.
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Correct, I live in Honduras and we have a significant percentage of kids who basically receive no education, even if the education might be biased I think it is way better if they do receive at least the basic elements, math, reading at a certain level etc. And the only way they can get it is at public schools.
BTW, when you called me slimey, I muted you, so I won't see your further responses.
Kafka, you grew up in this society, too. You shouldn't have been forced into this association, but you were. What I'm talking about is a realistic way to get from where we are to where we should be. If you think that's slimey, then that's because you're just a useless person.
Why wouldn’t they learn these things? Every unschooled child I know can read just fine, thanks to self-interested pursuit of knowledge.
Ultimately, if someone has half decent parents, they will be taught to read write and math. There are plenty of people who don't have decent parents. Now, I'd be happy to see curricula get de-federalized, school vouchers get implemented in the state level, and, eventually, privatize education. But my point is that these particular skills are actually fundemental.
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Then the fault is with the parents, and not with the absence of compulsory, theft-funded public schooling. Regardless of whether parents are good or bad, compulsory schooling is immoral.
Sure. So are a lot of things. But you can't ask a heroin addict to go cold turkey and expect good results. You have to have a roadmap to get from where you are to where you want to be. Government is immoral, but we depend on it. Until society has created enough institutional and contractual infrastructure to displace government, getting rid of government is not a good solution. I was in Russia in the 90s. I've seen what happens. You have to grow out of government as a society before you get rid of it.
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I am not advocating heroin addicts going "cold turkey," though. To be fair, that analogy is highly incongruous. I am simply stating that parents and children should have a choice, and that how they choose to be educated is nobody's business but theirs.
And no, you are incorrect. I do not have to "wait on society" for it to be my moral right to live free. This is the same as saying " We can end black slavery as soon as we figure out how the cotton will be picked without slaves! Until then, we need slavery!"
Nope. Nope. Nope.
Completely wrong.
If you wish to wait in that fashion, you are free to do so. Those of us who wish to exercise our natural law human rights are also free to do so, RIGHT NOW.
You have no right to tell me I must wait.
I don't think I'm the one drawing incongruous analogies, here. Having to pay for public schools regardless of whether you send your child there is not just or moral. But it is something that a lot of people are depending on right now, and yes, cutting all funding for public education right now is something that would be analogous to quitting heroin cold turkey. With society being the way it is right now, a lot of children just would not get any education of any kind, and that would be a disaster. We still have to do something about the injustice of redistributing money to pay for "free" public education, but that's something we have to do intelligently and methodically.
On the other hand, comparing public education to forcing vast swathes of the population to do hard labor for free, and to treat them like chattel is really kind of a stretch, by comparison.
First you fail and then you start to believe in Failure.