Schools shouldn't be like schools...

This week's article (Kincheloe and Steinberg) made me think of this article that I read about the negative implications of treating pre-schools in the US like schools as we know them by definition. 

http://www.slate.com/id/2288402/ 

The arguments raised in this article about young children needing the space to be creative on their own and find their own answers to problems does not cease to exist once they start kindergarten and move further through their education.  It surely becomes more of an important skill.  These skills may need to be acquired as young children, but they certainly need to be developed as adolescents too.  

 Too much standardised testing that focuses on giving students the 'answer' so that they can progress to the next pre-determined place in their educational careers, is of course not just something that is a problem in early education.  Students are rarely given any opportunity to think for themselves or to discover the answers to questions that they wish to ask and that are real to their world. 

Under the system we offer to our young people today, be that in Korea, the UK or elsewhere, students either succeed or they fail.  In fact, in the UK there are more young people leaving 11 years of compulsory education without being able to read or write than ever.  A shocking state of affairs in one of the richest countries in the world.  Yet, this fact seems to be ignored by the government (the current Tory government and the 'Labour' one that preceded it). As the debate continues about what to teach under the national curriculum, the focus is still heavily on getting students into universities through academic means, something which is just not a reality for many young people (and ever more so now that university fees have been inflated).  There needs to be a rethink about what will serve the young people that enter into these institutions without marginalising them and setting them up to fail.  Alternative curriculums that focus on basic and vocational skills are simply a necessity.  Yet, Michael Gove, the Schools Secretary is pushing for the introduction of Greek into the curriculum claiming that all students have a right to access the traditional subjects.  If this is the party line then surely the subjects need to change to fit the new generation. 

The introduction of an alternative curriculum would of course mean the empowerment of teachers and students themselves.  Teachers need to be given more power and authority to make professional judgment calls about their students and their needs.  This unfortunately is looking unlikely as the teaching profession is becoming increasingly deskilled, another upshot of the public spending cuts in the UK. 

Society as a whole needs to embrace changes to such standardization in schools so that employers, parents and others recognize other subjects as valid.  Unfortunately, change is slow and while MPs stand in parliament and argue over these issues more of our young people sit in classrooms, just waiting to be failed. 

Everyone is a genius. But if you judge a fish on its ability to climb a tree, it will lead its whole life believing that it's stupid.  Albert Einstein