Roots of education never changed

All fluff

Francisco Dao, founder of 50 Kings and columnist for Pando Daily (tech/start-up blog), writes another fluff piece that pretends to have deep insight...this time about how to fix education.

Dao writes,

While efforts have targeted higher education because of the spiraling costs, the most important part of the learning process happens at the grade school level. Here is where students are taught to learn, or at least they should be. But unfortunately K-12 education has become mired in an imprudent curriculum that drives most students away from intellectual curiosity.

Notice I said “taught to learn” and not “learn.” This is an important distinction because what happens during these developmental years is what sets us on our paths for the rest of our lives. Instead of teaching students what to learn, students and society would both be better served if we taught them why they should learn. A child who is instilled with the tools of critical thinking and an appreciation for learning will become an adult who seeks knowledge as a lifelong pursuit, regardless of the specific mechanics of how it’s found.

Basically, Dao thinks we can only reform education if we teach students critical thinking, to love learning, and how to think.

Sigh....

There are many theories about how to improve education - most are contradictory with each other - but everyone, from theorists to practitioners, already agrees about the importance of critical thinking and teaching people how to think and learn. In fact, for all educations failures, WE HAVE ALREADY BEEN DOING THIS Mr. Dao!

This isn't the first fluff piece by Mr. Dao. I'm not sure if Mr. Dao fails to take a meaningful stand on subjects to avoid controversy, or if he isn't a deep thoughtful thinker to begin with.*  I don't know him so I can't tell -- all I have are his blog posts which demonstrate he writes shallow pieces about important topics. This is disapointing to me...and a bit ironic... because he founded 50 Kings an organization of allegid tech/business elites  who gather together to discuss important issues of our time. If Dao's Pando Daily writings are as deep as the conversation goes, well....

*and where no one takes a bold stand with policy prescriptions

Bold statements and controversial stands on important issues should not be avoided if we want to make real progress and advance policy and society forward... especially if you have the emperical evidence to back you up.

Want real solutions, not fluff?...Read more of my blog, or better yet, read the work of people much smarter than me like Dr. Jay P. Green, Dr. Eric Hanusek, Dr. Paul Peterson, Dr. Caroline Hoxby (and many more) on proper education reform.


* UPDATE - it is also possible Mr. Dao doesn't know enough about education and education reform to offer meaningful insights. It is also possible he wants people to think of solutions themselves, but he offers to hint or invitation for his readers to do so.