Introduction and Thesis Statement
There is a big debate surrounding the importance of children attending school. Many scholars have argued for or against going to school. According to some, school is the only place a person can grow to learn how to interact with different people in the society. Those against schooling say that school wastes time for the development and growth of a child.
They further assert that in the olden days when there were no schools, people still lived and socialized without having any problem. Several things may make it bad for children to attend school. With the increasing cases of bullying that have been claimed to scar the lives of children, then there is no need for attending school.
This essay will compare and contrast two articles on the topic “School is bad for children.” The articles that will be used include John Holt – “School is bad for children” and Rachel Grobstein – “Why School is bad for Kids.” It will compare aspects such as deficiencies involved in the current education system and the role of school in teaching children about making mistakes and being wrong.
The aspects that will be contrasted in the two articles include learning as a continuous process and how it is applied in daily lives. The essay will further compare and contrast the two articles with two other scholarly articles. This will include the articles “Bullying at school can be good for you” by Paton and “Reclaiming Childhood: Freedom and Play in an Age of Fear” by Dr. Helene. The goal of the essay will be to provide a synthesis of the four articles in order to make my own argument about the topic.
Discussion
Similarities between John Holt “School is bad for children” and Rachel Grobstein “Why School is bad for Kids”
John Holt and Rachel Grobstein believe that education is misleading to children. For this, both writers claim that school does more harm to the child than good. They both give their personal views on schooling where they illustrate the deficiencies involved in the current education system. The two claim that education makes children to feel that it is a crime to be in the wrong. According to them, children in school can only work when under supervision.
John Holt in his article, “School is bad for children,” claims that school teaches children that making mistakes and being wrong is a crime(Mandell & Kirszner, 2010). This is further echoed by Rachel Grobstein in her article, “Why School is bad for Kids.” She says the child learns that, “to be confused or wrong is a crime. The school wants right answers, and the child learns countless ways to con the teacher into thinking he knows something he does not; he learns to bluff and cheat” (Grobstein, 1999).
In their articles, the two writers claim that by attending school, children miss learning essential concepts of adulthood. Their only interaction is solely among other children and people who have been trained on handling children. The children are shielded from many things that they need to learn to prepare them for adult life. A child they say needs to be exposed to some realities about life and this cannot be achieved in school(Holt, 1999).
Differences between John Holt “School is bad for children” and Rachel Grobstein “Why School is bad for Kids”
John Holt in his article claims that school is a place where children learn how to turn themselves off and this is why many in their attempts to seek awareness and responsiveness end up engaging in drugs. He says that school is mostly cold and inhumane where children learn to take orders and this hinders their curiosity(Mandell & Kirszner, 2010).
Rachel Grobstein, however, claims that the child learns to be lazy. According to her, a child before going to school learns to work without expecting reward but this is changed once they join school. In school, the child learns that a person does not need to do anything they do not want and they learn to be bored.
Rachel Grobstein claims that a child is taught in school that there is a difference in learning and living. She says that children learn while in school but outside school they live. This is different from John Holt’s article who asserts that learning should be an ongoing process and children should be able to learn wherever they are.
According to John, a child learns a lot away from school and he cites a child learning to talk. He says that through experimentation, the child learns the language without attending school. He continues to say that the child learns many other things that are complicated to be learnt in school (Grobstein, 1999).
Graeme Paton in an article written for the Telegraph strongly supports the need for children to attend school. According to him, school is the most important place where a child learns firsthand about real life. According to him, experiences in school such as bullying help a child to learn how to manage disputes and this helps them learn about interacting with others.
Dr. Helene Gulberge in the article, “Reclaiming Childhood: Freedom and Play in an Age of Fear”, states that the obsession about bullying among teachers and politician is robbing children the experiences they need to grow and develop(Paton, 2009).
Graeme says that school is a place where a child learns some of the basic requirements of the society. He says that even if a child is home schooled, he may perform better in the academic arena, but miss the social aspect that is taught in schools. Children learn at school how to cope with different people and this will be instrumental when they grow up.
According to Graeme, school offers the child more than a learning environment. The children go through experiences that shape their lives. If they miss these experiences, then we are going to have an understanding and resentful society (Sternheimer, 2009).
My argument about the topic is that schooling is very important for children since it helps them learn how to interact with people of different characters. In my opinion, I feel that the process of learning should be more involving especially through the incorporation of field trips since this helps students to learn hands-on. Learners should interact with one another as this helps them improve their performances.
They also need to be more responsible in learning by realizing their mistakes without waiting for their teachers to point them out. Learners need to be more confident and independent of their own capacities. If the above suggestions are incorporated in education systems, then this could improve the quality of education offered to our children.
References
Grobstein, R. (1999). Why School is Bad for Kids. Serendip. Web.
Holt, J. (1999). SCHOOLIS BAD FOR CHILDREN. Rouge Forum. Web.
Mandell, S. R., & Kirszner, L. G. (2010). The Blair Reader: Exploring Issues and Ideas. Boston: Prentice Hall.
Paton, G. (2009). Bullying at school ‘can be good for you. The Telegraph. Web.
Sternheimer, K. (2009). Reclaiming Childhood: Freedom and Play in an Age of Fear. Teacher College Record. Web.