At a recent homeschool support group meeting we talked about discipline in education. Something about the discussion felt off to me, but I couldn't verbalize what it was at the time. The discussion started with one mom who said she used to think that if a child wanted to know something they would learn it due to their passion, but now thinks you have to push kids to learn or they won't really excel when they should.
She came to this conclusion after watching her daughter coast through math in a public school, never getting more than a B despite how easily she grasped the concepts. The daughter even tutored other kids and the teachers commented on how mathematically inclined she was. However the daughter never really loved math and today feels just ok about it - apparently she commented to her mom that she wished she had been pushed harder to excel by her parents (the implication being she would love math today if she had been pushed).
Another mom talked about how she told her son that he had to take piano for 5 years and how she pushed him through those times when he wanted to quit and hated practicing. Then when the 5 years were up, he realized that he actually liked how accomplished he was on the piano and decided to stick with playing it rather than moving on to something else.
These stories were told with passion, and while they sounded good on the surface there was something about them that just didn't sit right with me.
While arguably there is nothing wrong with training a child in what they will need to know, where I take issue is with the idea that by forcing kids to become disciplined in a subject they are then finally able to enjoy it. It sounds pretty on paper, but something tells me the girl never would have loved math the way it was taught and the boy doesn't and may never love piano (and may have loved another instrument if he had been given the chance). Just because someone is accomplished doesn't mean they will enjoy it nor that they will be prepared for life in that subject. It means they can parrot what they have been taught and pass a test with a good grade. I suppose they will be prepared for college and that is the goal our society emphasizes.
The second and more important thing that bothered me about this idea is you cannot discipline a child in creative thought and imagination. A child is born with the ability to reason and find creative solutions. We have to allow children time to explore and develop this part of themselves. By 'starting young' with timed tests and drill you are destroying this natural gift. So many kids go through the 'discipline' of education too soon and end up unable to think creatively. They are only good as worker bees, they no longer think of anything beyond what they have had drilled into their minds - as long as the soma (ie tv, sports, computers, the internet, etc) is available anyway. Once the soma of today loses its potency, you end up with depressed, anxious individuals who know something is wrong but cannot figure out what. Though we now have prescription drugs to boost the soma-effect for a few more years!
Universities were created for older people, not young children. A child can learn the basics they need - even for society today - in just a few short hours during their childhood. If they missed anything then they can pick it up as they get older. Yes, kids may pick things up faster when they are young, but I would rather that young children use their incredible abilities to learn and memorize on solving problems they face day-to-day (which include reading and math skills) and then train their minds for a discipline later, once they understand how to think creatively.
Sadly since I didn't figure out my problem with their form of discipline right a way, I wasn't able to express my concerns. I'm sure I will have other chances in the future which will give me time to work on developing my concerns more fully.
I get to do a presentation on Unschooling in May for this same group, so I may get a chance to voice my concerns after all.
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