The purpose of school is a rather loaded question that has been difficult for me to fully unpack for a long time. So much of what I had been taught during my own education seemed to be the only possible way to do things, and I think that was because it was likely purposefully presented as the only clear option.
My views now are mixed. I do ascribe a certain loyalty to the way in which I was educated, which looking back on it now was mainly based on essentialist and progressivist philosophies.. I believe a rigorous academic curriculum that pushes students to their full potential is extremely valuable in today’s competitive society, and that part of essentialist philosophy makes a great deal of sense to me. However, I also believe that a great deal of things are best learned through direct, hands-on experience, not from endless book study or lecture. An ideal environment would take the best parts from both disciplines to create a curriculum that challenges students, while presenting the information in varying methods to suit student’s diverse learning needs.
I believe schools today have mostly the right ideas and intentions, but they are greatly held back because of standardized testing, which limits the amount of time and focus they can spend on material not covered by those things. In the future, we would need a massive movement to shift our schooling system’s focus from standardized testing, but I think it remains possible, although unlikely right now. All I feel I can do for the meantime is share my views, and hopefully influence others to talk about the issue as well.
People in the field of education have argued for decades over the role of schools in a student’s moral, social, and patriotic development. In our readings, several authors argued over the scope of such responsibilities, and if they should even be education’s responsibility at all. I think the same sort of questions remain today, and I honestly feel that they may never get completely resolved. However, if communication exists between all parties, we might come to a better middle ground consensus in our communities.
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