A lesson missed? Rethinking education.
I wasn't a great student, and if I went back to school now, I doubt much has changed. Perhaps I missed a core lesson?
Maybe I can get it now as Steemit is full of highly skilled people with many that probably made it to all of the lessons at school. I am sure that someone here can remember enough to fill me in on the lesson missed. I am not sure why I missed it, perhaps I was ill that day or at the dentist but for whatever reason, I did not get it.
What is the lesson? How to learn.
In all of the years I was at school, there was not one class I remember that focused on even rudimentary general methods on how to learn. I remember many lessons on what to learn and being told what to remember though.
In year 4 at about 9 years of age, we spent 10 weeks doing a report on Australian states. We had to research the main rivers, the state flower and animal, distinguishing features, population and a whole lot of other information. I would tell you all of them, except I don't remember much other than me having to rewrite it three times completely before being 'failed' for non-completion.
The reason was my continuing to write in cursive. My mother taught me to write, not a school, I write like she did, except messier. When she got the note about me failing to conform and write like the other children as the teacher had ordered, she smiled. Unsurprising I write what I do, really.
My point is, that we spent ten weeks gathering information from encyclopedias without first learning even the basic skills on how to learn them or even commit them to memory. The lesson I do actually remember had nothing to do with what was actually taught but taught me much more than the project work.
So, did I miss a class that everyone else received?
My question is (and I have had this question since early high school), how come they do not teach how to learn in school?
There are several scenarios perhaps but none are really satisfying. Maybe it is because there is just no good general information that applies to most people, maybe it is because teaching it is extremely hard, perhaps they use it as a sorting mechanism to find natural talent, it could be they want to retain their position in society and self-sufficiency destroys their educator role or, the governments do not want a populace that can learn whatever it wants.
There may be others but out of those, the last three or combination of are the most feasible to me as there are a myriad processes that can aid learning to learn and it isn't terribly difficult to at least start the process.
For me, Learning to learn would be the single most important lesson at school and should be developed as a compulsory class that is built upon until which point the children themselves take the responsibility to continue. And they do continue because they understand the importance and the way they develop further is to take the general lessons and tailor them for their own unique person.
The reason is that no matter what you know today, you are likely going to have to keep learning throughout your lifetime and the longer that is, the more things will require learning.
A straight example would be a phone. My grandfather in Malaysia would have had quite a steep learning curve to begin to use one in his 40s, one that my father didn't require for he was born at a time they were commonplace. My father however was okay up to basic mobile phones but never got hold of SMS, something I have no trouble with and I am quite competent with a smart phone but, in 30 years what device will my daughter understand 'naturally' that I will not?
That is a simple example of course and there are many much more complicated to be investigated but it is a simple demonstration. Imagine that at each generation, each had learned (to the best of the time) how to learn. Throughout the entirety of their life they would have been continually developing their learning ability and would continually test it by learning more.
How much can a human learn in a lifetime? We will never know because it is a boundary that will always be moving outwards from where we are.
Now, when I talk about knowing, it isn't just remembering information and useless statistical data, it can be applied to practically anything. Every skill starts at not knowing and progresses in depth and width as learning takes place. Even the physical skills benefit from knowing how to learn them efficiently and effectively.
Currently, general school is usually taught over a space of 12 years and has been for many decades. Have they not learned anything in all of those decades, all of those universities either about how to teach more effectively or to teach how to learn more effectively?
They sure spend a lot of time teaching about gender equality and bullying, why not learning? I am not saying that those things shouldn't be broached, I am saying that if all the kids knew how to learn, they would probably reach a very quick and effective solution to their own biases and prejudices. And if they didn't the lessons taught at school on these subjects would be learned efficiently.
It seems to me that there is a major hole in the curriculum and perhaps filling that hole is the key to personal growth, individual brilliance, reaching potential and a life where a person can have full agency over their decisions and outcomes.
That sounds terrible for institutions and authorities that want free reign over people's decisions and outcomes instead.
But, if we know this now, is it too late to learn? Definitely not. We can no longer get the depth of understanding that we could have if we started at 5 but we can go a hell of a lot further than we are currently.
The problem however is even though we may want this learning skill, it takes personal investment and the majority of us are too lazy to even look into it. We equate learning with boredom, but having skills as personal success. Quite an internal contradiction has been created.
When we here 'learn or invest in yourself' we tune out and instead fill our mind with whatever drivel is on the news, TV or latest app. We want to be entertained rather than learning how to entertain ourselves by learning more about our natural world, our lives, our mind, ourselves.
We live in a bubble that is designed to keep us in the dark but feeling like we understand. Take the time, at least to research a little. I think most will find that under scrutiny, the school systems globally do not measure up and require at the very least supplementation by parents.
The problem is, most parents do not know what that means.
Taraz
[ a Steemit original ]
Well my dear friend @tarazkp, you finally did it.
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So, as an appropriate punishment, you now will have no choice but to click here to know in more detail my feedback, opinion and full comment to this article of yours. }:)
Cheers!!
Finally.
I think much of this is a natural by-product of a "product based" educational system. We organize our desired goals to be reached per grade level and per course (usually specific content knowledge and skills), then create tests to assess that knowledge, then design curriculum and train teachers to teach to the test. Mainstream education is rarely investigatory, community based, or process oriented. As you say that you never learned "how to learn" - it is probably because teachers were so focused on delivering content to meet their objectives, they neglected to first understand where the class - and each individual student! - was in their own learning process. I don't fault the teachers for this, as it takes great strength and creativity to work within the system while working against its values.
The teachers are products of the system so their only fault is not being able to break free. Like you said, those that do must work against the rules. I don't think most teachers have the chance even if they did understand to teach individuals completely, that is why I think that they should teach to the point the children can teach themselves. I don't think the lessons ever need stop either.
My father was a teacher his entire life from 16 to 81 this year and still going. If anyone went to a school he taught at, they know him. He taught life within the bounds of the system allocated and was appreciated greatly for it. I am glad I never had him as a teacher though my brothers did.
Because you would figure out that school is obsolete ;).
I would even go to far and argue that school is the only reason while most people associate education with negative feelings. I often witness people (me included) trying to cover up their gaps in knowledge rather than trying to fill them up. In school you need to have all the answers if the teachers asks you, thus most of us got the reflex to pretend to know.
That is a good point too and I agree. Learning was fun until school because it was natural and driven by interest. Once the external authority, fixed content and punishment for not doing well enough began, the interest to learn fell away and it became a must do chore, like clipping finger nails.
I had really bad marks in english and thought "there is no reason to learn this stupid language, I won't study economics". I started to actually learn english by watching english series and movies two years after I got out of school... Oh and I was always good at math but still hated the class because of the homework, that I never did.
Some teachers can make an exception to that rule, like the awesome philosophy teacher I got from 7th-9th grade.
It is interesting how much control we put in the hands of teachers who have rarely been outside of an institution. There are so many ways to learn that no teacher can target them all. This is why for one person the teacher is brilliant, for another the worst on earth. I tried to think that if one person can learn from the teacher, it is me that has the issue.
You got a philosophy teacher?
Yes :D, in germany if you do not take a religion course (catholicism or evangelism), you have to take a philosophy class.
One of the best classes I ever had. We had a speakers list that even the teacher had to honor if she wanted to take part in the discussion and we did really interesting stuff like analyzing "Das Fest der Völker" (Olympia 1936 Docu) for subliminal brain washing.
On that note Philosophy in colleague was very, very dissappointing.
Excellent article! A friend told me a long time ago that we all have "learning gaps" and that's normal and expected. Everyone is an individual and has their own strengths and interests. Each one of our children are very different and they will each persue their own "education" which will reflect who they are. Just like it would be silly of me to expect the veterinarian to understand how to install a roof...it's just as silly to expect every child to memorize the same propaganda facts. Just wake up everyone and turn off the tube we truly do live in the information age and everything we ever wanted to know is at our fingertips. It's exciting to think about the access to true "knowledge" that my children have and the time freedom that they have to persue it.
if you get a chance, check out the article I just wrote on Unschool
upvoted & resteemed!
The last point you mention is excellent. Time is an important factor and these days many fill children's time space with activity before they even have the chance to understand what their own interests are. People are begining to wake up to this though, I am trying to continually push the ball faster :)
Part of the problem is people learn differently. Teachers who learn by listening are not allowed to teach repetitive lessons etc. I took a total of 5 pages of notes in college. I passed, except for physiology. Others took massive notes and after hours of review still did not understand. Schools watch children and try to keep them safe. Perhaps a little danger would allow them to learn how to learn. Gee, maybe Billy should have stayed out of the mud?
I can't comment on 5 pages of notes, I tried to take notes but found I am not great at that.
I agree that a little danger would help a lot, a skinned knee is a lesson in itself.
This is a really good point. I have had to do extra 'lessons' at home with my kids to help them discover their most competent learning styles that fit the way their brain works. I agree that it is needed in the education system and would probably save kids countless hours of frustration over the course of their schooling
It would probably save countless years in schooling not to mention the value added to a workforce that learns independently and continually.
That's absolutely true. It seems like this younger generation tends to feel defeated very quickly when they try something new and can't excel at it immediately. It would be wonderful to teach better tools to problem solve but also to persevere and keep practicing. It breaks my heart when I see kids stop themselves from advancing just because something doesn't come easily right away
Yes, and I think it is by design that so many children are taught to succumb to challenge early. I plan on writing some posts about it too. So many posts to write ...
personally, i love learning. love it. 12 years of mind control camps is what passes for school now. they didnt teach much other than to obey. that way we are good slaves.
being less negative about it, there are a whole bunch of different topics that i didnt do very well in- like math, or science. im much better at both these things now that i have learned about them... for some reason they couldnt teach me algebra or long division or multiplication or chemistry or biology. i thought i was "bad" at math and science.
i just wasnt engaged and they werent able to explain it any way other than the way they learned. so is that my fault or the teachers or the system?
probably the system
do teachers become teachers because they love it?
do doctors become doctors to help people?
the entire system is broken lol
Yes, I had a very similar experience with school and I still struggle to learn school style if that is all that is on offer. I do most of my learning autonomously though, it is much faster and the tests are easier, until life happens. :)