What’s worth learning at school?

 

I reckon this question would make a good jumping-off point for a debate. It’s a simple question with a wide range of answers some mutually opposing, and several not yet mapped out. Most countries have formal compulsory education systems. A simple question that I’d like to lob at teachers is, “What’s worth learning at school?” When I was a university lecturer previously, I would’ve said that the question is rude and disrespectful because teachers work hard at what they do. But at the same time, I find the question rather interesting.

It’s nice to learn things. At school, learning is drilled into students, according to a curriculum drawn up by somebody. By that means, the students are treated as objects. Parents and teachers develop an obsessive attachment to the curriculum, and the effectiveness of it is uneven. We teach a lot that isn’t going to matter and there’s also much we aren’t teaching that would be fruitful. This is some sort of a crisis. Learning should take one somewhere. But we tend to just pile up knowledge for short-term success such as scoring well in a test or winning a quiz. Sadly, knowledge is going to be useless if it is not being used. I find the current state of education frightening. The teachers just push students to build huge pool of knowledge without a passion for learning.

I think schools must expose students to knowledge and teach them how to think instead of what to think. The famed civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. wrote an article in 1942 entitled "The Purpose of Education." The excerpt that struck me from the article is this, “Education must also train one for quick, resolute and effective thinking. To think incisively and to think for one's self is very difficult. We are prone to let our mental life become invaded by legions of half-truths, prejudices, and propaganda. At this point, I often wonder whether or not education is fulfilling its purpose. A great majority of the so-called educated people do not think logically and scientifically. Even the press, the classroom, the platform, and the pulpit in many instances do not give us objective and unbiased truths. To save man from the morass of propaganda, in my opinion, is one of the chief aims of education. Education must enable one to sift and weigh evidence, to discern the true from the false, the real from the unreal and the facts from the fiction. The function of education, therefore, is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. But education which stops with efficiency may prove the greatest menace to society. The most dangerous criminal may be the man gifted with reason but with no morals.”

I’ve heard people question, “How much of the math you learn at school do you use in everyday life?” I gauge the problem lies in how teachers transfer learning. Why we fail to use the math we’ve learned, is because teachers often fail to teach children how to translate real problems into a format where we can apply school math. So, I thought of making a list of life situations where I encounter math problems.

1. Below Basic – Add/subtract two numbers in an arithmetic CAPTCHA to prove that I’m not a robot. The CAPTCHAs themselves are robotized, though.
2. Basic – Calculate the cost of three appams and stew using prices from a menu while placing a meal order. 
3. Intermediate – Calculate equated monthly installments for a home mortgage.
4. Proficient – Allocating budgets and estimating taxes.

You could also use higher math to solve a life problem. When your tailor takes your measurements, you’ll be told to extend your arm so that your arm and your body create a right angle. The arm’s length and the length of the torso are like two sides of a right triangle. The tailor uses basic trigonometry to measure the height of the dress. We consciously or unconsciously use algebra to do the simple task of scheduling our daily routine. Time taken for every task are real-life algebraic variables that we work upon. Calculus(derivative) lets us calculate how a quantity changes. We check our car’s mileage which is integral over time. In our smartphones, data usage is a derivative of total usage over a period. Several problems in life are concealed in the form of math equations, and if we know the math, it's rather simple to find a solution to those problems. Well, in the bigger picture of learning one must know what to keep and what to let go of for the journey. Skills and knowledge can only be sustained by usage.

There’s hardly any proof that writing neat notes, or regurgitated answers leads to success. Handwriting is no longer a determinant of an enlightened student. Copying notes is just an easy thing for teachers to assign. And writing good notes and essays seems to persuade a teacher about a student’s compliance. But, a simple chat interface can do it as well. Students should be taught to ask questions and refute arguments. In the real world, we often need people who take initiatives, who create things, and who stand up for something. Perhaps, the best way is to have them do that at school. ChatGPT can write interesting essays and notes. But businesses hire people who bring acumen and a lot of pluck to face compelling problems.

Schools are to make one curious, engaged, and perceptive. To become an informed citizen. To groom emotional intelligence. These are just starter points. What we learn at school, has a corollary, plan for the future. Understanding the risks and advantages of school is essential, therefore understanding the question itself 'What's worth learning at school?'