The Bog

Whenever I refer to essays and literary analyses I've written, I'm almost invariably confronted with the phrase, "Oh, so you're doing better in school?" As I am a rather lackadaisacal traditional scholar, I can appreciate the sentiment and concern for my well-being implied in the statement, but at the same time feel agitated by the even deeper assumption that is made about the learning process. It seems that most people I come into contact with, despite vague notions of "research" and "research institutions," view knowledge as an essentially stagnant body, full of basic truths to be absorbed and then put into action in a career environment.

I blame this in a large part to the lack of dynamics in the high school environment. While a general knowledge base is essential to further learning, and most people will continue on with strict career-oriented goals, to call this education is almost an abuse of the term. My favorite teacher in high school was in English, and confronted her classes with a rather surprising assertion -- not only can you write with grammatical precision, you can write well. What's more, books aren't strictly imaginitive, historical, or for enjoyment -- you can accomplish as many goals as you set your mind to with them. There are essays to be read, viewpoints to be digested. I can only imagine how my interest, let alone my knowledge and grade point average, would have been different if I'd had a math teacher take a similar tract by showing how theorems were reached, rather than memorizing and applying formulae with mechanical absurdity.

It's nothing that hasn't been written on in the past. Standardized test scores, state curriculum, teacher and administrative tenure... But it makes me wonder why there is shock when technological innovation doesn't have the effect it theoretically should. After all, the information that is expected to be absorbed is little different than what can be obtained from the standard textbooks. I wouldn't be surprised to find there was no change, or even detrimental change, if a person were to sell their cart in exchange for an automobile, and then promptly harness it to a horse, and I'm not surprised here. Technological innovation requires changes in the process of implementation, and is not an end in and of itself. More thought experimentation in the class rooms, please?