Making Learning Fun!!

I'm trying to figure out when this society decided that anything that's not "fun" isn't worth doing? Because that's what I keep hearing regarding our educational system. All the armchair experts insist that we must "make learning fun!" They maintain that we can't rationally expect our children to do something that they have no interest in doing. It makes me wonder how things work in their houses, with their own kids. How do they make their offspring clean their rooms? How do they make doing chores "fun"? What's the most entertaining way to make the little ones do as they are told? I'd really like to know. I believe it would come in handy.

We are constantly deluged with the message that our educational system is not living up to the standards set by the rest of the civilized world. Our students don't read or write nearly as well as they should. They don't seem to have the basic academic skills that would provide them with the opportunity to succeed in the modern world of work. But it's not just our schools that display this fundamental lacking. Our workforce is indulged and prone to slacking off. People don't have the basic knowledge to perform elementary tasks. No one reads anymore unless they are forced to. They take no pride in their occupation. They flutter aimlessly from one meaningless job to another. They're attention spans are woefully short.

Yet our "experts" presume to offer a simple solution- "Make learning fun!" They point out that individuals have different "learning styles". Teachers are reminded of this "fact" by academics, administrators, parents, and students themselves. The boy (or girl) in the classroom is likely to explain that reading is not their preferred learning style. This is also the excuse that they bring home to their parents when their grades are inadequate. Subsequently the parents use the same argument to excuse the behavior of their kids. In their righteous and indignant tones they ask, "Why are you using the text as the primary teaching tool?" They offer "creativity" as the alternative. Where are the movies, games and parties that truly engage children? Just try to adjust to their conception of what teaching entails- later on they'll look at the media reports of failing district test scores, and wonder where the education went.

The reality of life is that there is much drudgery in it. Throughout your time on this planet, you will be asked to do things you don't want to do. The next time your employer asks why that report is not on his desk, or why the burgers you served up to the customer were undercooked... simply reply that your job isn't "fun" enough. It doesn't engage you. You'd rather be watching FOX television, or playing X-Box. What do you think his reaction is likely to be? Or what happens the next time your children want to be fed? Will they understand your disinterest in healthy cooking? Perhaps they will quit their whining and look for a way to make it all the more amusing for you.

Our future citizens might as well realize now that they don't have to "like" everything they are told to do. When a teacher assigns a reading or writing task, they shouldn't assume that it's going to be "fun". These are crucial developmental skills that they need to learn and practice. Teachers realize that they'd rather be doing something else. They don't need to be reminded of human nature. After all they themselves are working to add value to society. Don't encourage your children to believe that life will conform to their own self-indulgence. Instead of suggesting that teachers do things differently, support them in their efforts to give your children discipline, structure and character. Public educators have expertise and years of study to rely on when they go about their business. If you think you can do a better job... try home schooling for awhile. I'm sure you'd rather be at home than at work. That's more "fun"!

Going Back to School.

As August advances toward the end of another summer, many heavy hearts face the start of another year. It's always seemed to me as if New Year's Day was rather misplaced. While it's true that the season doesn't officially conclude until well into September, I'm certain the nation's students would echo my viewpoint. It is the time of the year that hordes of harried parents trot their kids to Walmart for the latest in Fall fashions and back-to-school supplies. It may no longer be the age of trapper keepers and number two pencils, but I'm sure the basics of this annual consumerist extravaganza remain essentially the same. Perhaps the teens are wearing thongs instead of boxers, but if you listen very closely you can hear the almost imperceptible swipe of a million credit cards.

I remember, as the years went by, how my varying reactions to these pre-Autumn shopping treks evolved. When I was very small, I absolutely hated going to the store for new clothing. I could have cared less what my mother set out for me to wear in the morning. I'm sure that the process of dragging me out to the mall was tense and grueling. There were probably occasions when I just quit altogether and had to be screamed at before I'd get up off the floor of the local K-MART. An inevitable transformation began as I started my approach to my teen years. I began to care about what the other kids thought about me.

I grew up not far from the outlet stores in Reading. This became the yearly destination just prior to the start of school. My parents gave me a ballpark figure of what they would like to spend, and I was left generally to my own discretion. Figuring out what would be that year's "cool" look was always a challenge for me. I was definitely conscious of being a sort of perpetual outsider. For at least the first two years of high school, I definitely got it wrong. I feel a sort of sad sentimentality for the person I was- struggling to figure out the connection between the right clothes and the popular cliques. Now I mostly feel relief that I left that mentality behind me years ago. It's clear that many adults I interact with have never quite outgrown those concerns.

But there was another refreshing side to that whole situation. Because you could fail time and time again, and still hold out a glimmer of hope that the upcoming year would hold some new kind of promise. You always had an outside shot at changing your identity. In retrospect, there was probably even more possibility than I realized at that time. Kids are notoriously fickle, and the time in between early June and late August felt like years. In conjunction with the palpable physical changes that maturation brought, there was the unquestioning acceptance of superficial cues... including the clothes one chose to wear. It really wasn't out-of-the-question to go from "zero to hero" in ten weeks time. Just try that now in adulthood.

Imagine if you had an annual option to transform yourself in other people's eyes. You would see the rules change immediately. You wouldn't be constrained by employment woes, home mortgages, parenthood or practical social networks. The success of the new identity you assumed and attempted to project would quickly be determined through your initial interactions with those you'd see daily for the next ten months. There would be a lot riding on those crucial first days. Imagine the excitement and anticipation you'd feel. With the perspective of adulthood, you'd be able to appreciate the opportunity to make a bunch of decisions that didn't carry the weight of lifelong consequence. And you'd have the wisdom to realize that the game was constantly transforming, and that you'd get another shot next year. In that light, it doesn't seem half bad, does it?