The Relevance of Education

In a recent article I came across an interesting piece of information about a CEO who had both the means and, dare I say, forethought to create his own school where he sent his elementary grade children to study, along with a few other interested parties. Though obviously I expect this to be in its experimental phase I found this to be fascinating once I read further up on his reasoning behind such an extreme action that basically pulls the finger at the education system, and not just at his relevant resident country but one close to home as I discovered he was originally from South Africa no less.

However, Mr Elon Musk being previously from South Africa is irrelevant to my curiosity. What really intrigues me is his little experiment that he has started with his own children and the children of a few SpaceX employees, an experiment that, if done wrong, could jeopardize the future of a dozen or so tiny lives. Though something tells me this might not be the case.

The reason Mr Musk gives for taking his children out of the regular schooling system isn’t an uncommon one, after all how many of us who have attended, let alone those of us who are already preparing their little ones to attend, school have dreaded going to the place simply because the standards have dropped over the years and our expectations with it. In fact most influential people these days that become successful in the eyes of social media do it seemingly without the help of any schooling as they take to their interests and make it on their own. 

You can imagine how that can discourage the value of education in the eyes of the youth and the public who pays the taxes that should subsidize the education system.

Of course there is also the problem of the ‘standardised’ teaching of the general population as the system tries to cater to everyone equally and give them the supposed tools they would need to get by in their lives. However, with this type of teaching we see the stripping of innovation and creativity as sameness is promoted and individuality barely acknowledged. With such an environment can it be blamed that the ability to solve problems has declined generation after generation? Because let’s be honest, people are different and people change and more importantly than ever they evolve.

What I love about Mr Musk’s idea for his school where all grades are stripped is that it promotes equality across the ‘grades’ and in the same breath it also goes against convention and acknowledges the individual and gives it a place to allow innovation and creativity to blossom. Yes, it’s a risky move, but it could promise high returns if done right.

Another thing that wins me over with this experimental school is Mr Musk’s approach in how he wants the children to be given problems to solve. His explanation of how giving children the tools first is far more ineffective than it would be if we were to first give them the problem itself directly and allow them to go from there is very logical as it highlights the relevance of the tools required. His analogy of the engine and tools was brilliantly put as he explained how the children would benefit more from being given the engine and dissembling it than to being given the tools individually. This kind of thinking would no doubt encourage some pretty amazing problem solving abilities. In fact it would be the answer to re-discovering the relevance of education, if applied correctly.

But truth be told, these kind of specialised schools still cost money, and that is not something everybody has access to. Though I wonder, why can’t the government at least learn from Mr Musk and apply some of the methods to the education system. Who knows, maybe something amazing might happen?

Little Differences

Entitlement issues are a thing.

Why they are a thing can only be blamed on the prolonged exposure to the obvious treatment that is given to the haves and the have nots. That kind of blatant discrimination was always bound to create a mindset of some sort, don't you think?

In a recent comic strip I found in the interwebs, I read a beautiful depiction of this example.

The comic goes into a simple portrayal of two individuals throughout their lives, both at either end of the stick.

It goes out of it's way to highlight the differences in the environment around the individuals as they move forward in their lives.

Showing specific events that could significantly affect ones life choices and points of views as they grow into their own contributors of a society that already has them classed in a box.

It's truly an intriguing comic that makes you take a step back and look at how the little things from way back into childhood can affect what one does and think in adulthood, while realising that society may be far more cruel than we hope it to be as it fills more and more with people too ignorant to even know what their faults are.

Source: http://thewireless.co.nz/articles/the-pencilsword-on-a-plate

The Safety of the Mind

There is one thing that is desired by all and that is to be safe. In the recent days it’s hard to imagine anyone is really feeling very safe as we read about the cruelty that mankind is capable of, but the simple desire to have a place to rest your head and know you will wake untouched and alive in a place of safety can be nothing short of a basic human need.

But it turns out a small corner of peace to call your own isn’t the only thing humans require. According to a research paper I came across recently, we humans require far more than any physical place to rest our head. The study revealed that above the need for safety, we need the basic satisfaction of our psychological well-being.

There were two case studies conducted in which a group of young South African adults and a socio-economically deprived Chinese adult, were focused on and the results were surprisingly similar.

What the overall results came to show was that despite the general assumption that people would tend to prefer environmental safety or financial safety over psychological well-being, it was discovered that people prioritized psychological satisfaction above and beyond the effect of environmental or financial safety.

I find this to be very fascinating when I think of the many youths that go into their studies looking for a career that will bring them financial safety above all else or when I run across an old friend who is moving for the third time because, despite the cost, they’d rather live in a place that could guarantee them a safe environment no matter the trouble it’ll cause them later.

It’s interesting to see that people make these various decisions that first seemed to be based on psychological reasoning first before the cost is considered in terms of their environmental and financial stability. I guess regardless of what one does, you can never escape the reality of how things are perceived. We are creatures that are fully controlled by what we think and feel.

Curious, isn’t it? Despite the many assumptions one would have, it seems that the state of one’s mind is what makes us able to better deal with a situation than the environment we are actually in. It says a lot that our mental health is something of a large requirement before consideration can be given to that of our financial and safety needs. But I wonder if this is something many people seriously take into account as increases in mental illness seem to be the in thing in this generation.

Whatever the case may be, it is something to consider that our basic psychological needs are something of an important requirement when it comes to everyday living and despite our desire for a better job and safer home we should also consider if we like the work we’re doing and the people we work with as well as whether we get along with our neighbours or not.