One of the battles I have observed in education for at least the past 25 years is over the question of which is more important, content or process. On one side you have people who believe that you must teach children information. On the other is a group that believe knowing how to think is more important. Rational people realize that both are important and responsible teachers work on both.
While I recognize that both are important, I think that the primary need is to teach information, especially at the lower levels. I can sum up my argument in the computer concept of GIGO. (garbage in, garbage out) This is important, not only because you need information to think with purpose, but it also goes along with the known development of the thinking skills in children. At the younger ages they only think in concrete terms. Somewhere, before they become adults, they will learn to think more abstractly and creatively. At least that is the hope. I don’t see much evidence of it in the teachers I work with.
Without a foundation of knowledge, you can’t make wise decisions. This is shown in the way so many people think that all the government needs to do is print more money, everyone can have everything available in health care without paying for it, that if you regulate guns the bad guys will be helpless, and in California as they keep raising taxes and expect increased tax revenue.
This week, while reviewing the Missouri Compromise of 1820, I asked the students how many states were represented in the Senate in 1819. The answer was in the book. One of my somewhat responsible students said the answer was eleven. No one had trouble with that. Think about it. Do you see why that is an obviously wrong answer? Let me ask you another question, “How many original colonies were there?” Now do you see the problem?
If you don’t have a foundation of knowledge, all the thinking in the world won’t help. Of course it doesn’t do any good to have facts if you don’t use them.
For 25 years the elites of education have been pushing to get us to stop teaching facts. Every year they have a new presentation that ignores that they tried the same thing last year. One by one the older teachers who learned to read and write and process are retiring. I think the elites are winning the battle. Watch for the new mantra in education, Common Core Curriculum. It is the newest attempt to dumb down the population so they can be manipulated and controlled.
homo unius libri
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Comments are welcome. Feel free to agree or disagree but keep it clean, courteous and short. I heard some shorthand on a podcast: TLDR, Too long, didn't read.