Monday, March 11, 2013

What's holding back education ?

The parties are agreed( Q&A ABC TV) - its the teachers problem. Its not the parents problem or a paradigm problem ---its the teachers problem . I think we as society have a problem in identifying the problem. We talk about "denial' when its clearly someones else's problem - "that other unreasonable bloke".CC What about when the problem is closer to home .

I think we have a problem in identifying the problem . Maybe it has something to do with thinking too simply and the reactionary politics of our age ( cf prophetic politics of a previous age )

Let me cut to the chase - we are behaving like a bunch of old Greeks and allowing ourselves to be limited by words . . This was Chesterton's criticism of is friend Shaw .Shaw was too pedestrian, reactionary and rebellious - and yet he'd grown up.... or so he said . Is this true also of us and our generation? Somewhat sheepishly we graze 
Some pedantry 
  1. Should a man be serious for example ? Should we as a society be serious about education ? .If kids a parents took it seriously maybe then then the teachers could ?  Chesterton points out the word has  it has 2 meanings and a double meaning ." It sometimes means solemn and it sometimes means sincere . Most solemn people though are generally the most insincere . But a more delicate and detailed consideration will show that the most sincere men are generally not solemn." 
  2. Depth and context make all the difference to the meaning of statements yet men are still crucified on the mere meanings of words (Mr Bean's ( Rowan Atkinsons) liberating statement on the stupid use of insult in English law until recently) 
  3. Begging  It can seem bad but we all learn to do it at home, and from our mothers of all people . Maybe if we are going to help our children grow up we need to be the nag( dad's too) . When they say chemistry is hard we need to say " i don't expect anyone finds it easy to do at the start , but if you wanna enjoy life son,  its through a few hills -"its not about doing what you want"  ( TV is wrong) .
    Short term pain ---long term gain . When it comes to a good edcation its not about what you get in the end, but what you build on from the start ( You heard it first from EA march 12 2013) 





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