Libertarian Teacher

Sir Ken Robinson - Changing Education Paradigms

The following TED talk video is from Sir Ken Robinson.  This individual does a fabulous job of trying to explain the root problems in education, and offer a solution out of them.  He sets forth the theory that
our education is still stuck in the early 20th century model of industrialism.  Schools are factories that are designed to fashion students into a certain way, just like how a car factory creates a car a certain way.

Side note:  Here are a few videos about how kids aren't cars.

What bothers Mr. Robinson the most is that our educational system doesn't take into account the diversity, creativity, and intellectual abilities of students.  But instead wants students to be good listeners, follow orders, and pass the state tests.  For example he mentioned how the arts take a back seat to this type of education, or anything that isn't deemed by the education establishment as "productive".

I believe that Sir Ken Robinson does a wonderful job of describing our problems as an education industry, however I still believe that there is room in our educational system to sit, listen, and think (not memorize as an end in itself).  However, siting, listening, and thinking need to produce real world application.  There is nothing wrong with training the mind to think for itself, which is the opposite of just trying to memorize a bunch of facts to pass a state test.  The model of the independent thinking individual is something every citizen should strive for just because they need to be able to sort through all the information that they are bombarded with on a daily basis.  This will allow for citizens to be critical thinkers when politicians, corporations, and other people begin to tell them what to think.  The arts of course will aid this critical thinking process, since the arts focuses on creativity and individualism.