Comments for sursumcorda.salemsattic.com/post/sir-ken-robinson-creativity-and-education

Comment #1710

2009-01-18T02:42:36Z

New book from Ken Robinson

"The Element: How Finding Your Passion Changes Everything"

I haven't read it yet, but wanted to let you know about it.

Comment #1709

2008-04-04T10:12:44Z

You never had to convince me that schools assume you are guilty until proven innocent, nor that they teach submission to authority. It's been proven time and time again that public school students are stripped of rights the rest of us take for granted when they walk in the door.

It's a horrible story, and the child's parents ought to pull her out of that school immediately (perhaps they did). I loathe the litigation-happy attitudes that have spoiled so much of our modern society, but even I have to admit suing the school seems a reasonable action.

Still, even this example isn't so much about state, or even general, subservience as subservience to school authorities. Parental authority, for example, is only supported when it happens to coincide with school policy, and tends to be undermined otherwise. You're quite right that some will then transfer this unthinking subservience to the government, but I believe it's more likely to be preparing students for subsequent submission to employers with equally intrusive policies.

Don't get me wrong here. I'm all for supporting one's government and obeying both the letter and the spirit of the law, and for serving one's employer wholeheartedly (thought not with "all your heart, soul, mind, and strength"). What I fear most about schools, perhaps, is that so many students emerge with neither the mental skills nor the knowledge base necessary to discern when authoritative requests and policies are right and reasonable, and when they are wrong or needlessly intrusive. Nor the moral foundation, but that's another issue and not one likely to be well handled by a secular school.

Comment #1708

2008-04-04T07:59:13Z

If #2 is correct, my guess is the following is yet another example of why government schools fail:

http://www.reason.com/news/show/125786.html

DO YOU SEE WHAT I MEAN ABOUT GUILTY UNTIL PROVEN INNOCENT? And how govt schools are teaching state subservience?

Comment #1707

2008-03-31T17:34:28Z

Except that I think you mean we teach to the left side of the head -- what he said I don't recall, but I'm sure that's what he meant -- that's an accurate summary of what struck me, too.

Comment #1706

2008-03-31T16:46:41Z

It's worth a watch. A few things struck me.

Everyone has a vested interest in education. It's like religion or politics. It helps me understand the extreme reactions I get from so many people when I mention I was homeschooled and dare to plan on homeschooling my kids.
"If you're not prepared to be wrong you won't do anything creative."
All over the word the hierarchy of education is the same: math and literacy at the top, then science and humanities, then the arts. Even in the arts music and art are more important than dance and drama. As he said, we start by teaching the whole kid then progress to teaching from the waist up and then on to the right side of the head.
In the 19th c. there were no public education systems. They were a product of industrialization.
He makes the point we all know about academic inflation and how a masters is worth what a bachelors used to be.

All this is from memory, I might have misquoted slightly, sorry.

Comment #1705

2008-03-31T10:43:53Z

That's strange; I can still see it, both directly and on YouTube. Try this direct link instead. I was particularly thinking of you when I posted it. :)

Comment #1704

2008-03-31T05:38:16Z

I'm too late. The video is no longer available. Internet time is faster than real time!