Unlearning school conditioning (or preparing us for society)
We finish school by having a grade next to our name and a bank of knowledge and skills. But, we also finish with a set of conditions that we are unaware of. I want to bring to light hidden lessons that our education system teaches us. Are they a form of programming or conditioning or is it a preparation for society?
George Mack, on a recent podcast, said the unlearning of school took him between the ages of 20-29 having to relearn the things that he was punished for in school but now are skills in adulthood.
Clip from the Modern Wisdom Podcast.
In this blog I have organised each section on moments in a school day. Some are backed up by research and some are just my opinion.
Following and accepting a timetable
By following and not questioning a timetable we do not allow ourselves to ask what is best for us at this moment in time. We assume everyone is ready to go at 9am and finish around 15:30 (UK schools). We are told what to do, when to do it and where to be.
When you reach adulthood there are two avenues that we can follow. The first is getting a job (or university) straight away and following the office timetable, be here at this time, go there at that time. The second is the holiday or limbo stage where you just don’t know what to do with your life. No one is directing you or handing you a timetable, you have just got to go and figure out your day by yourself.
If we take this a step further what happens to people in retirement? Some people get very lost. They crave to go back into work because they do not have a timetable or structure to follow.
I am not saying having a timetable is a bad idea. I think it is a skill we all need to learn. Some things need to be organised especially when dealing with lots of moving parts or people. But there is a skill to be bored, to find creativity in the stillness.
What would the world look like if we had a different way of organising? Maybe less of the circadian rhythm and more:
-lunar cycles
-menstrual cycle
-seasonality
Yes it might seem more chaotic at first but this does not mean everything changes, just a few things here and there.
Doing homework
I hated doing homework when I was younger. But now I sit on my computer without anyone telling me what to do and I write a blog or I learn French (slowly). Did homework condition me for this?
The truthful answer is that it is hard to tell. The difference between the two are the incentives. In school there is a punishment when homework is not done but now I want to learn (how to speak French).
I think if you’d ask any student from whatever age most of them would rather not have homework.
The register
The register, or clocking in on time for work.
Arguments for:
-It prepares you for work (you have to arrive on time)
-Health and safety knowing how many people are in the building
-Accountability for parents not missing or arriving late for school
Hidden conditioning:
-Conditioning the student to conform to the timetable and lack of imagination to ask how else can a day/week/month be organised?
-Keeping checks on students so they are not missing behaving outside of school
-Keeping track on parents by giving fines out to missed days in school
The UK government ‘From August 2024, the fine for school absences across the country will be £80 if paid within 21 days, or £160 if paid within 28 days (1)
-Hierarchy system establishing a boss or manager
-learning basic manners and communicating with others
Eating at a certain time
Who said lunch has to be at 12. You eat when you’re hungry right? When was lunch time invented and why do we stick to this form of programming?
Again, is there another way to imagine this?
Sitting at a desk
Are human beings meant to sit at a desk for the majority of the day? Why do we now have a workforce full of stressed out workers, with bad backs, neck problems, knee problems and an addiction to screen time? Are we meant for this?
The conditioning starts at school, to be sat at the desk. Anyone who can’t is labelled to have ADHD or a problem. Research from Tom Rosier a physiotherapist by training and a movement expert sees clients from all walks of life and most come in with these symptoms.
But why are we not addressing the problem?
Exam grades
Yes, exam grades allow us to move and have more choices when it comes to the next phase or our academics. But what happens when it comes to adulthood?
How often in the 40 years of work afterschool do we sit an exam, yet we ask our students to sit exams every year. You think the British system is bad, have a look at the French and Spanish system.
Streaming groups
Some students are better at Maths than Art so schools stream their classes so that the children who excel can excel and the others that need more help get more help.
This is by no way a bad thing. However, there is more importance placed on maths than there is in Art, therefore subtly you are telling students that you are not good enough. Again this is not negative as some students will grow resilience and others will switch off.
Everyone has a different set of skills that they are naturally good at but the emphasis on certain subjects creates an increasing gap on inequality.
Not being able to ask- why are we doing this?
A skill to ask when you are an adult is why are we doing this? If you don’t develop this skill of critical thinking you will always be a sheep.
In school asking the maths teacher why we are learning about pythagoras's theorem is a classic. When have we ever used this in the real world? However the beautiful thing about pythagoras theorem is that it teaches us to look at the space around the shape. Quite literally thinking outside the box (triangle). But our system teaches us to find the answer quickly, not explore the outside spaces.
This question is seen as disruptive and might incur some form of low level punishment, but in adulthood it is essential.
Prescribed curriculum: lacks creativity
In the 1997 education act the nation's curriculum was introduced
Part 4, Baseline Assessments and Pupils’ Performance- Chapter 1
A baseline assessment scheme may be so adopted if (and only if) the scheme has been accredited by a designated body in accordance with criteria determined with the approval of the Secretary of State, and published, by that body. (2)
Sir Ken Robinson explores the idea of divergent thinking (see my blog on Education needs to change). In our current education curriculum there is little room for this. We are preparing students for the world that has happened but not what is going to happen. We did not know that there would be jobs on tiktok, youtube and flexible working 20 years ago. You think we know what will come in the next 20 years?
The difference between knowledge, application and critical thinking
A school's definition of understanding is passing an exam. That is the measurement.
Passing exams is important but is only a fraction of what the world offers. Students not being able to have a debate, stick to their principles and critically think through concepts and events is not what the exam world offers.
Imagine an end of year exam for 18 year olds, taking place over a period of two weeks researching, filtering, debating, creating and presenting concepts on pythagoras theorem, farming and local news.
What things else does education prepare us for OR condition us? Tell me what you think?
