revolutionising education
I’ve just been reading a really thoughtful post about religion and education. I agree with everything she says, but something is missing. My personal experience of school, and indeed university, was looking for the ‘right’ answers to everything so I could get good marks. I was pretty successful in my educational life, but I didn’t learn that much. I was well into my 20s (ah, the shame) before I realised that I should be able to think about things for myself, and not just find and restate the ‘correct’ conclusion that someone else had reached.
Education is great. Education is vital. But teaching people how to pass exams is often what it comes down to – both for the students and the teachers. So, I have a new idea for the world. I think ‘logical thinking’ needs to be added to the school curriculum in every country in the world. Language, Maths and Logical Thinking – the three-pronged axis to Build Better People (oooh, sounding like a scary totalitarian state there).
The most basic human skill we need to hone, in order to negotiate our way through life, is logic – indeed, more so than reading or counting. I don’t mean the fancy logic of scary maths or dreary over-thinking philosophy, I mean the day to day rational thinking required to work through the possible consequences of potential actions, and choose those with the best outcomes.
Really important subjects like History, Geography, Religion and Psychology aren’t prioritised in schools these days. These are subjects that people need to know about to make sense of the world and they are sorely neglected. But incorporated into this revolutionary new core subject that will undoubtedly change the world, they will take on a new relevance and be given the importance they deserve. We’re talking about kids learning as a matter of course how to critically analyse situations, weigh up possible consequences and make sound decisions. What can be done to improve conditions in developing countries and what are our politicians doing? What makes people behave like that and what’s a useful reaction? Why did people believe their god wanted them to burn witches in the Middle Ages and would I have done it? What are the consequences of the Catholic Church calling contraception a sin and is it justified in their holy book?
Of course, the teachers won’t like it, because the kids will constantly talk back with their clever ideas. The parents won’t like it, because the kids will challenge every rule and give them good reasons. And I don’t think they’ll want to teach it in religious schools because they’ll be churning out atheists. But it will Build Better People. And the world Needs Better People.
Just replace Logical Thinking class with Technical Physics and I think we’ll have all the problems worked out. 😉
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We don’t want to get carried away here. Something kids are interesting in and have a hope of understanding would be good. Also, don’t think that usually includes healthy portions of History, Geography, Religion and Psychology. 🙂
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Hey, I can get any kid interested in physics. =P
But I get what you mean. I majored in physics and minored in history. Two of my best choices ever.
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Excellent combination! I think that qualifies you to lead the educational revolution.
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I tried to reblog this, by the way. Unfortunately, it inexplicably failed.
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CLARE:
Ol’ Eddie was just re-inventing the wheel.
Even as a Maltese in English he should well have known that the English language holds the word “suppose” which possibly is where he got his po from. I think po is a crock … but I suppose we will never know.
Suppose we ask him? Oops, po we ask … aaaargh! Never mind, I’ll go bite somebody …
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Not just logical thinking but lateral thinking. Edward de Bono had the idea of a Po: a statement which was not valued as to whether or not it was true, but whether it provoked useful thought.
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That’s a very useful idea. They can move onto that in 2nd year.
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Bugger! Missed! Shift target, fire again …
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CLARE:
Ol’ Eddie was just re-inventing the wheel.
Even as a Maltese in English he should well have known that the English language holds the word “suppose” which possibly is where he got his po from. I think po is a crock … but I suppose we will never know.
Suppose we ask him? Oops, po we ask … aaaargh! Never mind, I’ll go bite somebody …
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Well, it kept me entertained when I was 11. I am aware of the expression “Thinking outside the box”- can you recommend ideas on how to provoke creative thinking?
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I read this this morning and could not think of anything worthwhile to add. I still don’t believe I have.
However…I will say I agree, but is the point of the post to inevitably get people to question religion, or are you aiming at something larger?
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Of course it’s something larger! It’s to get people to question *everything* in an intelligent way as a matter of course throughout their lives. (The whole thing’s slightly tongue in cheek as usual because it’s wild speculation. But I like the idea of Building Better People – it has a pleasingly sinister ring to it.)
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I only asked…..
But then it brings one back to the adage…if you want something done do it yourself.
You haven’t mentioned (that I know of) what your degree is in – teaching, perhaps, or Geography?
Use the same tools as your opponents to change perspective.
What was that saying ? Give me the boy at seven etc etc….” Augustine? I can’t remember and can’t be bothered to look it up.
Start with oneself – be the change you wish to see in others -then help your child.
One step at a time…
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Well of course that’s my plan for my child. But changing one child at a time would be a rather lengthy process. The embarrassing thing about that Jesuit nonsense you quote is they wanted the child for some brainwashing exercise – stick Christian morality in a child’s head and they’ll be set for life! Children need to be thought how to think, not what to believe. The beauty of the internet is that you can spread and refine ideas without having to do the work yourself. I know diddly squat about teaching (beyond language to adults) but expect they’re supposed to integrate critical thinking in every subject. I don’t think that’s good enough – I think it should be a separate and core subject.
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And the Mantra for such a class would be…”Anarchy in the UK” by The Sex Pistols.
The one child at a time might seem a slow process but this presumes that you are the only one with such an idea – unlikely. Besides , your child will learn at an accelerated rate simply because, you as the mother are practicing what you preach. Which would go for all the other ‘logic’ parents.
The internet is an excellent tool, but it is lacks the one on one of mother and child.
And who knows, your kid might go on to be the next minister of education somewhere and legislate change i school curricula.
Jamie Oliver became so popular in the UK that he was able to change the government views about the way schoolkids ate!
Not too shabby, right?
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Indeed!
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Phew…you have 13 comments and my OCD was giving me migraine.
Nice cloud photo by the way. Doctored on Photoshop was it?
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Phew again, thanks for getting me past that!
Given that my point and shoot digital camera is one of the cheapest on the market from 5 years ago, I think it’s only fair to the keen viewers that I take the liberty of boosting contrast and saturation on my free FastStone picture viewer, in order to reflect the genuine colours of the original delight which I got with mine very own eyes.
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I have no idea what most of that means so your smarty pants comment went over my head.
I have an Olympus OM10 that I hardly use ‘cos it costs too much to develop the film and the people are mean at me at the photo shop and snigger!
Emily has a posh Canon and a fat lens that I am no allowed to touch. 🙂
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Haha, I can imagine.
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You’ll have to speak up a bit … New Zealanders don’t know the word ‘geography’ and history is only relevant if it has Maoris in it. The various discippl— topics are lumped together now under the title ‘Social Suckies’. (Oops, I looked it up—that was ‘Social STUDIES’). Bad dog, silly dog …
Better people? Better than what, who? If you need better people just come down here, but there’s only four million of us so you can’t take any home with you. Mite lern something about edicatoin thuogh.
As for how to think? What IS there to think? Why waste the calories when it’s all their in books? We already no we have the best sailers in the world, the best mountin climers and unarguably the best rugby players …
Sorry, I just don’t understand your concerns?
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I think you sell New Zealand short. You have a charming way of pronouncing ‘fish’.
Thanks for commenting on the ‘better people’ bit, it’s still making me cringe, I feel like a political policy jingle maker with no imagination.
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You can’t sell New Zealand short. Enough. We the People hereof are devastating in our exemplary humility—no-one nowhere is more humbler than us. And that’s because of (a) rugby, and (b) our world beating education system.
Took me a long time and a lot of miles to even begin to think for myself yet still we are pumping ‘education’ into our kids. You make a very good point in your post, that folks are taught merely to regurgitate the current paradigm (CP)—promotion is dependent on being word perfect. The CP is always controlled by vested interests and if the kids aren’t word perfect in their catechisms they get no advancement, hence our four million individualists are possibly the most indoctrinated in the ‘free’ world. NZ is justifiably famous for its sheep.
As for ‘better people’ … nothing wrong with a slogan, slogans are good. Much more double-plus gooder than time consuming thought processes sometimes, which is important when in an age of ‘sound bites’ most people have the attention span of a dockyard rat— oops, where was I? Bugger …
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You’re good at this … my head hurts.
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