Editor’s Note: July/August 2009: Back to School
I hated school when I was young. As far as I was concerned, the only good thing about school was that there were boys there. I was that kid to whom teachers were always saying, “why are you doing this, you have so much potential.” I graduated from high-school with a solid D average, and only after taking 4 night-classes in the last semester of my senior year to make up for the classes that I failed as a result of not showing up.
To say I was bored is an understatement. I was also really annoyed at the idea that I should spend my time learning things that I knew I would never care about – the quadratic equation? PLEASE! I have never ever used that thing. The periodic table? Not even periodically.
To quote Simon and Garfunkel, “when I look back at all the crap I learned in high-school, it’s a wonder I can think at all!”
Not surprisingly, when I got to college, I graduated top of my class. Why? Because I got to study what I wanted to, on my own terms, and do what I wanted with the knowledge that I was then consuming like a previously starving child at an all-you-can-eat buffet.
So here’s the question. What can we do to bring dedicated and enthusiastic learning to kids of all ages? Our education system is in crisis. That’s not news to anyone. But I think people are looking at the symptoms, not the causes. There are a few things that I’m pretty sure of, though I readily admit I have little but instinct to go on.
1. Education is about helping people find out who they are and what they want to do, while giving them the tools and personal faith to become the best they can be.
2. One size fits all is as stupid in education as it is in clothing.
3. Our job is to teach kids HOW to think and learn, not WHAT to think and learn.
We seem to have forgotten that education is the means to an end, not the end in and of itself. Test scores and letter grades masquerade as achievement. But the question isn’t how kids do in school, it’s what they are able to do with the things they learn in school.
Education should be as diverse as our population. There is no reason why a teenager can’t learn to be a chef, or intern with a vet, or pursue a passion in technology in such a way that they are employable and fulfilled without a college education that they may not be able to afford.
We also need to broaden our definition. Education is not something that happens just in school. It happens in living rooms, on sports fields, and in community centers. Education is ANYTHING that helps a child find their strength and the courage to pursue it. In this issue, we’ll look at education from the perspective of internships, mentors, after school programs and charter schools, amongst other things.
And as always, we’re doing it because we believe in the future and are excited by the people who are working to make it better. The future is ours to make, and that’s a JUST CAUSE!