http://www.oliverquinlan.com/blog/2011/02/24/purposed/
I missed something there in my comment. When teachers present history, it is generally without reference to trends and cycles, without interpretation, or value judgement: its relatively dull. Britain "did" that, and Britain"was". There is no: Britain "is", or Britain will be.
It is left to the individual to make a value judgement. That judgement tends to be Britain is a decaying, living, breathing museum: it is history. Rather than to be British is to be an innovative pioneer of industrial technology and modern society: bring on the next problem.
This doesn't happen because in the main teachers see society as a perfect machine, meeting the needs of the people: there is no future, we are there already, just make more cogs for the machine. Collect enough tokens off the back of Kellogg's and exchange for a job. The degree is just a ticket to employment, the learning is irrelevant. Further more many teachers, simply go from school, to teachers college, back to school: they haven't seen the real world of making a living: they have stayed within a protected system.
Heritage is the foundation on which we build everything. Our ancestors instead of building a house generation after generation, retained a house from generation to generation, they therefore had time to spend on improving agriculture: which in turn provided more time.
Computers, mobile phones, the Internet and social networks, which teachers currently appear to be in awe off, is just so much junk. It is current, it is now, it is not the future. The future is something we have yet to create, and that requires unleashing the imaginations of the students. Not teaching what you know, but allowing them to learn what they need to know. They have a minimum of 10 years of compulsory education, in which they have a choice of scraping by with 50% of what was presented or learning some 2 to 5 times more. When dumped into the real world, are they going to slot into that imperfect machine, or are they going to be fighting for their place under the sun. The principal place for all those cogs, is sat in a warehouse collecting dust, waiting to be put to use. That's the problem of training employees. But business will be up in arms, if trained superior competitors, funded by taxes.
Before can answer the question: what is the purpose of education? Need to question the purpose of society and nations. Remember are origins are tribal, we have legs and are mobile. Nations are geographically constrained, businesses are becoming the most powerful political entities on earth, they have no geographical constraints. Which tribe are you going to join? The one anchored to earth, or the one which will survive beyond the life of the planet and move into deep space and cross the universe?
We have decline in people taking up farming: who is going to produce our food? We supposedly have a shortage of engineers: but engineers to do what?
There is a conflict between meeting necessity and meeting desires. Actors, sport stars, and video games, may all be considered to be a waste. But only 10% of population has access to the land on which to produce our food. So what is the rest of the population to do, what activity has value of exchange to get the food they need? With no dreams, no unfulfilled desires, there is no activity. The dreams, the desires are the product of tomorrow, and the businesses supplying. People have to be pursuing such dreams, and allowed to do so. Where is the freedom, when we have so much regulation that we are hindered from doing anything. We could have done what was needed to survive but we weren't allowed to.
The Americans and there declaration of independence are amusing. What is so important about that scrap of paper? When the war for independence was fought, did not have the right to bare arms, but did so any way, so why was it important to write such down on paper? If the cultural attitude that gave life to that document is lost, then it is worthless scrap paper.
The West has become akin to the ruling aristocracy of ancient times: and there is a good chance we are going to be sent to the guillotine. Its time to wake up. Forget this rubbish about rights, we have no rights, just a choice: fight for a place under the sun or not. It is a war. And last year just about every president and prime minister declared war on the world. Not one mentioned education for the benefit of humanity, all made reference to their nation beating the rest of the world.
How do you teach a child who knows more than you do?
http://www.oliverquinlan.com/blog/2012/02/14/how-do-you-teach-a-child-who-knows-more-than-you/
Teachers Reflecting on Reverse Mentoring
... Context is King
