Education vs. Educating

I believe that justifying and defining the correct questions is the key to life. Shouldn't that be the direction we help our students with?  They have resources to find all the answers; they simply need to ask the right questions.

What is 1+1?  What is the area of a sphere?  Who was the first president?  Why was he important and what were his views on government?  Why is geometry important and where will I use it?  How can I pick up 2000 lbs using only my own strength?  How could that be really important to know? What is my purpose?  Is there more to life than this?  Why?

Sometimes the important questions vary from person to person, and sometimes the answer to the same question may be different based on who you ask.  That is what makes this world a great place; the ability to choose your own answers and follow those conclusions is what makes America such a great place to learn.  We should not be training students on what to think, but how to think.  Point them towards the important questions and let them go. 

I think that many educators are starting to see the light and want to help with the change, but how do we make it happen?  That is the tough question because we base our success in education on all students leaving the classroom with the same exact skills and knowledge.  Wow, is that the best for all students?  I would say no, but that is the best way to judge how much is taught, or is it?  Could we change the way that we teach to actually assess all students differently, maybe even on different topics, or just by talking to them?  What about having them simply write about and explain what they learned? 

I realize that these are new thoughts on education. Guess what?  I am new to education, so I don’t have predetermined ideas about what education is.  One of my favorite quotes comes from Albert Einstein, “Education is what remains after one has forgotten what one learned in school.” Education has nothing to do with tests or even school.  I believe that it is interesting that many successful and brilliant innovators, inventors, entrepreneurs, and businessmen were not successful in school, including Einstein himself.  I believe it’s because their ability to think was restricted to the classroom and content.  Isn’t it time to change our view of education and start educating?