Gatto & Rose

The two essays this week were very intriguing. I thought both offered interesting insight and opinions on the structure and validity of the a school system. 

Against School by John Taylor Gatto was an interesting piece because it came from someone who had firsthand experience working in the public school system. I thought Gatto made an interesting point when he noted that we could get rid of the school "system" and "help kids take an education rather than merely receive schooling." He suggests that students would more likely discover their genius if only the curriculum was more flexible. I'm not sure If I'm on board with his idea that the public school system is a conspiracy. However, I think his points on the structure of the system are valid. I think elementary and secondary education should give students more options in how and what they are learning. I think the most beneficial thing I learned from this essay is how to oppose becoming a product of the public school system. Gatto wrote, "I've concluded that genius is as common as dirt. We suppress our genius only because we haven't yet figured out how to manage a population of educated men and women. The solution, I think, is simple and glorious. Let them manage themselves."

The second piece, "I Just Wanna Be average"  by Mike Rose illustrated the great divide that occurs when we use testing to determine student's capabilities. I think the reliance we have on testing is one of the greatest fallacies of the American education system. Rose writes about what can happen when a teacher imposes a stricter curriculum and forces students to dig deep into the western literature. I think if more teachers taught the way Mr. Jack MacFarland taught, students would be more willing to engage themselves in finding their genius. I think the most powerful statement Rose makes is in his last paragraph where he writes, "Knowledge was becoming a bonding agent." I think this is his point in a nutshell. Knowledge is what brings us together or even what separates us. What we know is so critical to who we become.