Multiple Intelligence

"Much of what we in the U.S. call "learning" is just BINGE AND PURGE mental consumption that mirrors our Consumer Culture. To turn learners into consumers rather than creators, a common practice is to force feed topics that don't matter to the learner, to condition people to accept imposed ideas." - Allen Green

“One had to cram all this stuff into one's mind for the examinations, whether one liked it or not. This coercion had such a deterring effect on me that, after I had passed the final examination, I found the consideration of any scientific problems distasteful to me for an entire year.” - Albert Einstein

Wow! How true is that... I went through the public school system primarily because I could master the art of the "binge and purge" system. I knew how to work those old Scantron cards. Everything in our system was designed to teach to the test, because it was the "test" that determined if we were smart or not and if the educators would be promoted or fired. It was my goal to "beat the system" so I could resort my time to more intersting things. In some places in the world, the "test" has consumed people and driven them to horrible fates. We know that there have been many that have attempted to overhaul the traditional education system and have lost to the big behemoth. No Child Left Behind sanctions this mathod and punishes helpless schools that cannot perform. Those that have struck out on their own with home-schools, charter schools, private schools should be commended. They are noble innovators. We know that what children really learn is so much that is found in the simple things of life, and has nothing to do with the rigid standards that exist in a school setting. We need to appreciate those who look outside the box to accomplish the same ends as eductors attempt - to bring up a competent generation to lead a nation into greater prosperity than the generation before.