Day 7: The Point Is...

My 365 Blog Challenge:  Day 7/365

It seems as though almost every conversation on Twitter leads to talk about Education Reform, which never fails to bring up many passionate arguments.  I am becoming confused with what the real purpose of education is; what are our goals?  I believe these are two questions that must be answered before we can truly "fix" education.

In my opinion, the goal of education is to teach our children to be productive members of society.  On a basic level, that includes the ability to read, write, communicate with others properly, basic math skills and social skills (we often focus on tested subjects; but recess, lunch, physical education and preschool/kindergarten are great areas for children to learn and practice these skills.)  Computer skills can now be added to this list because there are few jobs that don't require proficiency in this area.  Once, basic skills are taught, it all comes down to the ability and the desire to learn.  In the end, the ability to learn is what separates successful people from others is the ability and desire to learn new skills and concepts.

On a high level, school exposes and teaches students life skills: recovering from mistakes, responsibility, respect, time management, work ethic and team work.  These skills are learned inside the classroom, but they are also learned through sports, student organizations and the fine arts.  Our focus should be on teaching these skills and values.  The championships, awards and banners are icing on the cake.  In the end, winning a state championship in high school or winning awards at Solo and Ensemble is not in itself going to help you be successful in life.  On the other hand, the skills and knowledge mastered, will lead to success.

Once we know our goals, we can determine the path we need to take to reach them.  Standardized tests and work sheet packets make me question the end goal.  They do not match up with the goals I believe education should have.  I realize I am only one teacher in the world of thousands and I have no control over the path of education as a whole, but I do have control (mostly) over my classroom.  I can make sure that my classroom is aligned with my goals: exposing students to different styles/types of music, teaching life skills through music (sports), teaching the skills of reflection, giving my students a creative outlet and an area to find success.

What do you see as our educational goals?  What should our goals for education be?  Do our actions lead to our goals?  I would love to hear about your individual classroom reform.