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To all the people who know they learn better outside of school than in it.
Kids are naturally curious. They love to learn. They want to know more. Before iPads, they would go outside and kick things around. They would create games. They would build community. They would roll in the dirt.
Adults aren’t curious. They go home and turn their brains off. They watch TV. They numb.
I’m going to argue that it’s not because we become less curious as we get older. It’s because of how we treat school. I say how we treat school because I don’t like blaming systems. Sometimes systems are shit, and we should change them. But a system being shit doesn’t mean you don’t do your best within it.
I am focusing on you as an individual.
Let’s talk about school.
You’re an Industrial Student!
Public schools were originally called common schools because they were for the common people. With the removal of child labor, you would expect business owners to be upset. But they weren’t. Why? Because common schools were designed to promote better employees.
Henry Barnard, one of the early leaders in developing the common school claimed that they should encourage habits of “industry, frugality, and respect for property rights.”
