Viola's Dreamworld

Saturday, April 14, 2007

0 comments

Article Title: Einstein: The patron saint of distracted schoolkids
Date: 13 April 2007
Source: The STs

Is society placing too much emphasis on paper qualifications instead of training students to think creatively and challenge theories? This is what the writer of the article believes, as well as what I feel too. Paper qualifications are the norm nowadays, and as kids, we were constantly told by our parents and teachers that if we do not study hard, we will not do well in our exams, and then we won't be able to get a good job. Everytime we tried to protest against an idea that our teachers was trying to teach us during lessons, we were chided for being rude and clearly not listening. Thus, we grew up thinking that lessons from our textbooks will always be correct and we should never challenge them, because they will never be wrong. How can society expect us to grow up and "think creatively", then?

Here in Singapore, where education is given high priority, many new introductions have been made to our education system. But are we growing at too fast a pace? Year after year the syllabus for the various levels changes, and more content is always added in. Then they tried making some changes after getting feedback that our creativity was being held back. I am sure everyone will remember the time when new subjects such as Theatre Studies and Drama were introduced in secondary schools and at Junior College level, so that students may choose to pursue their field of interest, as well as to promote creativity among the students. But is this working? Small attempts here and there by the schools and teachers on their own to nurture creativity and critical thinking and observation skills in the students have not been very successful. It is inevitable that after so many years (ten years for students my age) of the old way of teaching, we are met with problems whenever the teacher tells us to "think out of the box". Many students look up with blank looks on their faces, and require the teacher to elaborate (with relevant examples) what the instruction means. Is this what we want to see continue on?

Einstein was a genius of his time because he challenged ideas that were taken to be truths and solid facts. He is a classic example of how one can still succeed in life despite not having excellent paper qualifications. He was not afraid to go against ideas everyone thought to be true, and despite not doing well academically, he was able to see things in a different light from everyone else. Can you imagine if he had been like the rest of the students and just listened to everything his teacher told him, without questioning for fear of being scolded? Where would that leave modern physics?

He made a breakthrough because he dared to be different. And this is what society needs to focus on when considering the training of its future generations to lead the country in the future. We are encaged in our own beliefs and ideas taught to us by our elders, and we remain quiet, accepting everything they tell us. Perhaps you will remember the heated debate between the standards of local and international schools after the finals of the television debate show, The Arena. The Singapore education system was criticised for focusing too much on paper qualifications, which was why they felt local students were unable to think well on their feet.

There is a need for us to break out of our shell and explore new opportunities we never thought possible. But the major change that needs to be implemented is to move away from paper qualifications and encourage critical thinking, observation, as well as creaitivity, too. The paper qualifications may be the first key factor for most employers when they are looking for potential candidates, but what happens next? Someone with outstanding academic results does not necessarily equate someone who can do a good job at work. We may be at the frontier for outstanding academic results on the whole as a nation, but if we do not match up when it comes to these crucial skills that can be applied to any job, any circurmstance, any person, what really is the point?

Labels: education system, einstein

-when are you coming back? ;