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August 30, 2005
Education, Facts, And Figures
Having just returned from my daily one-hour commute to take our son to school (his local public school is 5 minutes from home), I was in no mood this morning to find this NY Times piece profiling Dr. Jon D. Miller, who studies the state of Americans' science knowledge (hat tip: Instapundit):
While scientific literacy has doubled over the past two decades, only 20 to 25 percent of Americans are "scientifically savvy and alert," he said in an interview. Most of the rest "don't have a clue." At a time when science permeates debates on everything from global warming to stem cell research, he said, people's inability to understand basic scientific concepts undermines their ability to take part in the democratic process.
Dr. Miller's data reveal some yawning gaps in basic knowledge. American adults in general do not understand what molecules are (other than that they are really small). Fewer than a third can identify DNA as a key to heredity. Only about 10 percent know what radiation is. One adult American in five thinks the Sun revolves around the Earth, an idea science had abandoned by the 17th century.
Emphases mine. Well, who really needs to know all those facts and figures, anyway? After all, you can always look it up, right? "Progressive" educators refer to what E.D. Hirsch has called the "tool conception of education": the idea that facts and hard knowledge are not necessary and are even detrimental; it is far better to equip students with "critical thinking" and "problem solving" skills. But Hirsch responds:
This tool conception, however, is an incorrect model of real-world critical thinking. Independent-mindedness is always predicated on relevant knowledge: one cannot think critically unless one has a lot of relevant information about the issue at hand. Critical thinking is not merely giving one's opinion. To oppose "critical thinking" and "mere facts" is a profound empirical mistake. Common sense and cognitive psychology alike support the Jeffersonian view that critical thinking always depends upon factual knowledge. (E.D. Hirsch, The Schools We Need and Why We Don't Have Them, Anchor Books, 1999, p. 247.)
Again, the emphases are mine. These ideas seem self-evidently true, but no one's told the deadenders that extract from our household an outrageous amount of property taxes to support my local school district.
Here's a mission statement of a typical public elementary school in the Spring Branch Independent School District here in Houston:
Collaborative efforts help children reach their fullest potential by producing critical thinkers, academic risk-takers, problem solvers, and life-long learners. Every member of our learning community takes pride in Valley Oaks--a place where students are responsible for their actions, have positive self-esteem, and demonstrate a high regard for others.
Reaching potential...producing critical thinkers...risk-taking...problem solving...life-long learning. These are all processes--there's not one iota of a hint that any substantive, enduring, or measurable knowlege will be taught.
When I told my wife about the Times article she said, "Well, at least our kiddo won't have any trouble finding a job. Of course, he might have to move to Taiwan to find one."
And thus the hour commute each morning and evening.
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