My Education Philosophy

Kids First

Not the parents.  Not the teachers.  The kids.   They should follow their interests, their curiosity, their passion, their dreams, if they have one.  I believe in specialization and focus on what is interesting, being motivated to learn.  They should also get a liberal education that spans all the bases of the traditional curriculum, focused on critical thinking, writing, getting into college, passing tests, if that’s what the kid wants.  

Teachers should be ranked second, in forming an educational programme.  They should only be teaching what they’re interested in, enjoy, and can effectively convey passion about.  Not anything else.  If the teacher loves a subject, the student probably will, too.   The best teachers can be made available to all, online.

Parents already have the greatest influence on their children, and don’t need to be given any more, in my view.  They can choose which school to pay for.  If they have a specific syllabus they want emphasized, they can move to a place that shares their values, or even home-school their kids, themselves.  Parents can ask their kids what they’ve learned, what they want to learn, and play vital roles in the growth and formation of their kids.  But they don’t have the only say, and shouldn’t have even the final say, in my opinion.  

The internet and libraries are centers of learning.  Wikipedia and Ted and YouTube and free college courses online and instructional resources abound.  Google, Alexa, Siri, Chat GPT can answer questions, as well as message boards.  Education is already free.  A motivated kid will earn good grades, and should therefore qualify for financial aid, based on merit, which grows naturally from youth being excited, engaged, motivated, and learning, actively, daily.  

The best model of learning is teaching what the kids are interested in.  They should generate and submit questions daily, to teachers, to libarians, to the internet, to parents, and anyone else.   That is the joy of learning (and of teaching).  Ramp up the curiosity, and motivate kids to engage in finding and acquiring the answer(s).  Question by question, as a class, as a community, with their peers, as well as individuals.

As an adult, I collect trivia cards, have a kindle that has the NYT and Economist.   I have a computer, a phone, an Echo smart speaker, an apple watch.   I can ask questions as they occur to me.  My blog allows me to keep (and share) a record of my opinions, books I’ve read, interests, and compile facts, for others and my future self.  Chat GPT is a fun way to engage with trivia.  Libraries are a kind of heaven.  School shouldn’t be a kind of hell.