Why Our Education System Fails to Succeed
Like salad and high heels, the institutionalized education system sounds a lot better in theory than it is in reality.
Albert Einstein once said, “I never teach my pupils, I only attempt to provide them the conditions in which they can learn.” Unfortunately, this is not how institutionalized education works; rather it is built on subordination, obedience and standardization. Since the age of 4, students have been programmed to seek the path of security: get good grades, find a respectable, high-paying job and things will wok out. Unfortunately, that’s rarely how life unfolds. In reality, grades don’t gauge understanding or the ability to apply concepts to real life scenarios. Rather, they are indicative of how well students are able to regurgitate facts on their midterms and exams. Instead of providing students with opportunities to explore, the system expects them to obey strict guidelines on how they are supposed to learn. The system invalidates creativity, suppresses curiosity, and teaches students to sell themselves to the most appealing grad school. It seems as if learning is never the ultimate goal.
We’ve all heard this over and over again: making mistakes is key to learning. However, the current system discourages student from taking risks, because there is an emphasis in their minds on failing. It destroys any creative and abstract thinking that students may possess. When you give a student a failing grade because they didn’t do their assignment correctly (well, define correctly) they must conform to the professors requests and create an assignment exactly like their peers, just with a different name at the top. Hence, instead of embracing education, most students adapt to survive the testing environment.
We currently view our degrees as a carte blanche to stop learning; it signifies that we are done learning and that we know everything we will ever need to know. Surely this is a flawed assumption. We should never stop learning and growing, so why can’t our education system be more of a lifetime deal which guides us on our journey through life? A system you can fall back on in times of disorientation to help you get back on track, and which allows you to consistently grow as a person at your own pace. A system where teachers don’t simply teach, but are more like mentors. A system which combines learning with passionately working towards one’s personal, freely chosen goal. Students should be provided with an environment that helps build a life aligned with their strengths, passion, and dreams. Instead, students start school as artists and leave university as brain-dead sheep.
Peace & Sabar,
Mishaal
