Kids and School

If a child cannot sit still in a classroom, we have a solution: drugs that will change the way they function and interact with the world. Because obviously when they are six years old, if they cannot sit still like all the "good" kids, something is wrong.

If a child is more interested in digging in the dirt than they are in reading at age seven, they quickly fall behind "grade level," and must receive special attention, perhaps by getting them to sit with a reading specialist instead of going to recess and playing in the dirt.

If a child likes to do math problems differently and not follow the method prescribed by the teacher, they are often told that they are wrong and must follow the "right" procedure or else there will be problems later down the line, or any other of a myriad of other explanations. Whether or not they got to the right answer is irrelevant.

It is because the school system, teachers, administrators, particularly in this case legislators and even the President of the United States has far too much power over children that our educational system is so poorly equipped to handle the changes coming in our world.

I work in a school system with tons of money, tons of computers and technology, lots of really wonderful teachers who work very, very hard to help students do well and succeed. Having been in a few other schools, I can honestly (and based on more than just my opinion) say that this is one of the best public schools in the state, likely the country.

But it's also terrible. There are no classes where the kids who like to work with wood or build things or even to tear things apart can explore their passions. There are very few, if any places where a student could explore their desire to write great fiction or poetry. Some of my very best students do not stand out as great students because their transcript doesn't fit the community's definition of "successful," and they aren't likely to be at an Ivy League institution this fall.

Our entire educational system is designed to help kids be successful, but then the system defines success rather than the individuals in it. That success is based on admission to certain universities and then further success is defined by the amount of money stated on the front of your paycheck.

We see commercials on TV every day glorifying those who "don't just talk about innovation" but actually go and do it. Then we look at how we educate kids and its all about trying to get them to stop innovating, unless of course that innovation fits within the very narrow terms of the system. As Ken Robinson says, we are "educating kids out of their creativity."

Until kids are given the freedom to explore and develop and test themselves against more than "standardized tests," teachers cannot even do what their title implies. Teachers are supposed to be helping kids grow and learn to understand the world around them, not telling them what it means, not telling them how to react to it properly, not forcing them to think only about acceptable things in acceptable ways.

The problem is not students having too much power but in fact having no power at all.