Today there is a lot of talk about the fact that the school does not meet the interests of modern children and parents. Journalist Tim Lott expresses his opinion about what the school should be like in the XNUMXst century.
Our schools began to conduct so-called «lessons of happiness» for primary school students. It looks as if Count Dracula organized courses in which he taught how to cope with pain. Children are very sensitive. They react painfully to injustice, disappointment and anger. And one of the main sources of unhappiness for the modern child is school.
I myself went to school reluctantly. All lessons were boring, the same and useless. Perhaps something has changed at the school since then, but I don’t think the changes are significant.
It’s hard to study today. My 14 year old daughter is diligent and motivated but overworked. Undoubtedly, this is good in terms of preparing the workforce for the country. So we will soon catch up with Singapore with its intensive high-tech education. Such education pleases politicians, but does not make children happy.
At the same time, learning can be fun. Any school subject can be fun if the teacher wants to. But teachers are overworked and demotivated.
It shouldn’t be like that. Schools need to change: raise teachers’ salaries, reduce stress levels, encourage students to achieve high academic achievement and make their school life happy. And I know how to do it.
What needs to change at school
1. Prohibit homework until the age of 14. The idea that parents should be involved in the education of their children is not viable. Homework makes both children and parents unhappy.
2. Change study hours. It is better to study from 10.00 to 17.00 than from 8.30 to 15.30, because early rises are stressful for the whole family. They deprive children of energy for the whole day.
3. Physical activity should be more. Sports are good not only for health, but also for mood. But PE lessons are supposed to be fun. Every child should be given the opportunity to express themselves.
4. Increase the number of humanitarian items. It’s interesting and broadens my horizons.
5. Find an opportunity for children to relax during the day. Siesta promotes quality learning. When I was a teenager, I was so exhausted by dinnertime that I only pretended to listen to the teacher, while I tried my best to stay awake.
6. Get rid of most of the teachers. This is the last and most radical point. Because a variety of virtual resources are available today, for example, video lessons from the best teachers. These are those rare specialists who can talk interestingly about logarithms and dried up rivers.
And school teachers will follow the children during classes, answer questions and organize discussions and role-playing games. Thus, the cost of paying teachers will be reduced, and interest in learning and involvement will increase.
Children need to be taught to be happy. No need to tell them that everyone has sad thoughts, because our life is hard and hopeless, and that these thoughts are like buses that come and go.
Our thoughts largely depend on us, and children must learn to control them.
Unfortunately, happy children are outside the area of interest of our public and political figures.