I found it really interesting that when asked about the
reason for their boredom, students blame their teachers, and the teachers blame
their students. I believe that John’s grandfather had the right idea about
boredom. It is our own responsibility to amuse and instruct ourselves. Anyone
who is incapable of doing so should be taught a lesson or two from John’s
grandfather. I found it really shocking that Gatto’s views were so highly
opposed by his peers that a plot was enacted that cost him not only his job,
but also his teaching license.
Gatto’s take on the need for twelve years of school was very
interesting to me. I liked that he made a point of noting some of the greatest
people in our history, and the fact that they hadn’t “been graduated from a
secondary school”. He also illustrates
the difference between someone who is “unschooled” versus someone who is
“uneducated”. I was unaware of the
guidelines and goals that came from the history of the education system: to
make good people, to make good citizens, and to make each person his or her
personal best. He seems very interested in not only our present-day education
system, but also the history of how it all began. He even goes so far as to
discuss Inglis’ break down of modem schooling into six basic functions.
Basically, what Gatto is saying is that our education
system, and the reasoning behind it, is all hogwash. In the sense of career
paths and the economy, a 12-year+ education was never a guarantee that you
would have a great job or that you would be steadily wealthy. We are simply raised (and educated) with the
notion that is the answer to everything.
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