I got into one of those dangerous-at-work conversations: Education. Okay, sure, it isn't generally lumped in with the Big Three topics, but still. It's something I feel very strongly about. That's all the red flag you need at work. Mind you, I stayed civil and vague and caught myself before ranting. (So I might as well do it here, eh?)
He wants his kids to go to public schools. It's not about cost. It's not about wanting to avoid anything religious. It's not even really about the prestige of the school. He wants them to excel at standardized tests.
He doesn't want his child Left Behind. But it's more than just that.
Here's some of his reasoning:
College admissions are heavily influenced by test scores. The people he recently went to college with (Masters Degree in Information Systems) seemed to succeed or fail based on whether they had mastered multiple choice questions. During his college years, he has witnessed a virtual disappearance of essay questions--replaced by multiple choice, standardized tests. ((I did hold back my suggestion that maybe he encountered a lot of idiots at college because the college admissions staff were just looking for students with high test scores...)
He recently had to re-take his driver's license test. He failed it the first time. There were no questions about turning into a skid, for example, but rote memorization questions like, "How much is the fine for parking in a handicapped space?" He seemed pretty sure that was the one question he failed the test by.
He feels strongly that in today's world, in order to succeed and get ahead, you have to know how to memorize, repeat, and score well on standardized tests.
(Maybe on our tax forms we'll just have to fill in the circles? Wouldn't that be so much simpler?)
He has even had trouble getting jobs because of his degree. Master's Degree, less experience and in today's job market? "Overqualified." He took the degree off his resume and suddenly started getting interviews.
All this paints a picture for him of the world his children are growing up in. He wants to prepare them for it. Can't blame him for that.
So I hid my horror. At least I think I did. I hope I did. But it was there, as real and cold and unavoidable as the omnipresent overcast gray sky outside.
And just as horrifying, I could understand how he could see the world like that. I couldn't argue that the world of today looks any different than that.
And yet (at least I really hope), that isn't the world my children will live in. Today is just now. It's the world of ten to twenty years from now that the children of today need to be ready for. I'm pretty sure it will be a very different world than the one we have today.
I'm pretty sure that world will need innovators, problem-solvers, creative thinkers, and articulate expressors--people who can have a unique new vision and be able to manifest it, people who can collaborate in a team and genuinely lead, not just manage people. I don't think that rote learning and standardized test skills will have a lot to do with that...
Posted by fictionman at April 15, 2009 11:49 AM | TrackBack (0)