Did you know that
school system is only able to meet 50% of student learning needs? That’s right! - only 50% of student population is in an environment at school which enables them to be successful learners.
The reason for this is not because of bad teachers.
There are many excellent, dedicated teachers in schools, whose life’s work and passion is to educate their students to best of their ability. Teachers want to see their students successful, that is why they have given years to training and service. It is not fault of teachers that many students do not reach their potential in learning.
It is not a result of bad parenting.
Many parents spend a great deal of time and energy trying to ensure that their children have best education possible. Parents help with homework, provide many extra-curricular opportunities and keep in touch with teachers and school in order to help their child to be successful. However when all is said and done, it is child who needs to be able to learn and pass curriculum requirements.
Some parents themselves may have sailed through their own school experience and been successful in academic requirements for graduation, and gone on to further education. Isn’t it reasonable to expect that their children would follow same path and achieve good grades? For some children, yes it is a reasonable expectation, and many, of course, do follow in their parent’s footsteps. However this may not be true for every child, even in same family. I, myself, was a good student, enjoyed my school experience and I love to learn. I went on to become a teacher for over twenty years in school system, was a Principal of two schools, and successfully pioneered an independent school. All my three children are intelligent and have been given equal opportunities with regard to their education. Out of three, only one is following in my footsteps. Was I less diligent with two of my children, didn’t I help them? Didn’t I give them support they needed to be successful at school? Of course I did! Were their teachers uncaring and unsupportive of their education? Not at all! The problem is as parents we can’t go to school for them. Sometimes it seems parenting would be easier if we could!
Is school system bad?
There are many excellent schools, in which some students are able to thrive and excel in their learning. For those students school environment meets needs of their learning styles and motivates them towards success in their educational experience. The school system is not bad for these students, it is good. However very nature and structure of school system means it is only able to meet needs of some styles of learning, and personality traits of its students. For a fairly large number of students to get through a school day is an achievement in itself. Intelligence and motivation to learn are not issue for them, but school structure and environment itself. An example of such a student was Albert Einstein. He found school incredibly boring, as tools of learning in those days were to do with repeating and learning by rote. He learnt more from reading he did outside of school, and talking with interesting people he met, than from school itself. He spent most of time in his classes day dreaming. The system had no room for creativity and imagination, or allowing him to learn about what interested him. There was no provision in his school system for people who thought differently.
