Things You Really Need to Learn...

Ok, so I'm supposed to comment on Stephen Downes' post titled Things You Really Need to Learn, but before I comment on the content, I need to ask something. Does anyone else besides me struggle with reading things on their computer screens?? I was tempted to print out the darn post because it was so long, reading it was giving me a headache! Sorry, just needed a moment to rant.

Anyway, back to Mr. Downes.

So the post is a list of 10 things he believes are important to learn in life, but are not taught in schools. I agree that there are many tasks we perform that may not be the most meaningful (ie. colouring maps), but I do think schools are where we learn the most. Personally, I've learned the most, not from sitting in lecture all day, but from the conversations I've had with my peers. Learning from my colleagues is what has been the most enriching experience for me this school year as a teacher in practice, which IS my life right now.

Going through his list, I found many of his points to be disproven and outdated. Number 3 (How to Distinguish Truth from Fiction) says:

...this remains an area schools to a large degree ignore. Sometimes I suspect it is because teachers feel their students must absorb knowledge uncritically; if they are questioning everything the teacher says they'll never learn!

Oh puh-leeze! Everyday we as TECs are told that students need to be able to think critically and ask questions to have a better understanding of things. Teachers are training students to be critical, to ask questions so that they can learn. And questions are ALWAYS welcomed and encouraged in the classrooms I've observed.

In looking that the rest of the list, I think that lessons he thinks are important may not be in our curriculum documents, but they are taught in schools to a certain degree. Things like empathy, staying healthy, how to value yourself, etc... are demonstrated to students in the schools. They may not be explicitly taught, but they're definitely present and evident.