I seem to be seeing a correlation.
Firstly, correlation doesn't mean causation. One doesn't necessarily cause the other. They may be totally unrelated, or be caused by the same, yet unidentified, factor.
Anywho, what I was gonna say was, there seems to be a correlation between
-The diversity of a person's experiences (Literature, family, people, experiences) and
-The more open-minded, diversely opinionated, or empathic the person is.
They could be the same thing.
But, I would say that those qualities is something that is much more important than, say, the hidden meanings behind A Tale of Two Cities, the inner workings of a cell, inertia in body masses, physical fitness, the Mongol Empire from 1150-1350 A.D., or logarithmic equations.
Modern schools do not teach that. They expect those with the natural talents of both sides to rise to the top, while the rest linger. The perfect person as defined to be one who can get good grades, has an active social life, has very defined (and good) goals, makes a lot of money, and is a productive member of society. An unproductive member of society is not valued.
If you have a good social life, but not good grades, you are pretty much doomed to the middle class or lower class. Same with good grades, except you're less happier.
That's the dogma.
Anyway, I propose, that instead of grading, testing, etc., children, especially in the early years, should be exposed to several different kinds of people, ideas, and opinions, through traveling and literature. Things valued by grade can then be chosen later by the child, who is competent to make that decision for themselves.
I call it "cybernetic education" ("cybernetic" means the study of networks, not the internet)
It'd be nice to put this in a nice parable, maybe I'll do that later, but that's the idea as it stands.
If you have any critiques or questions or comments, I'll be glad to hear you.
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