A problem with education
Short of Christmas, Canadian Thanksgiving weekend is the time of the year where families gather and conversation bubbles. While visiting mom and dad today, my 11-year-old cousin shared a story with me regarding an experience she had with a new teacher, fresh out of her B.Ed.
My cousin recounts that, during a social studies class, she asked the teacher a reasonable question: something along the lines of why the Alberta PC government has a monopoly on democracy. I won’t brag too much on the clever kid’s sharp thinking just yet, but according to her, the teacher just rolled her eyes and told her not to ask silly questions.
“I have a right to have my question answered,” my cousin replied. “My parents pay your salary.”
“No they don’t!” the teacher chirped defensively. “The government does!”
There are two things wrong with this setting. First, the teacher’s factual fallacy on just where her paycheque comes from. It baffles me that a so-called educator is unable to make the sort of basic connection that an 11-year-old student is able to, and understand that parents are taxpayers, and it’s their money that goes to directly funding — you know what? I’m sure you’re smart enough to connect the dots here, too.
More troubling, though unfortunately common, is the teacher’s overall attitude. This isn’t an isolated incident, either. I myself can recount several instances where my questions that stepped outside the bounds of the teacher’s lesson notes was met with scorn and anger. It almost seems to be a natural defense mechanism, wherein an educator can’t admit that he or she is unable to deal with the kind of critical thinking that should be (but isn’t) taught in schools, and responds not with humility, but with a desperate clinging to what little authority their position grants them. Rinse, repeat, and multiply, and you’ve got an entire educational system that discourages children from thinking outside the box and questioning the world around them. It’s by no means a new phenomenon; it’s merely a disturbing one, and one that seems to be incredibly prevalent in the Alberta education system.
