You were taught it!!!

> To overcome anything requires courage first,
> I feel. Where are you taught courage?

> It requires knowledge...the kind that only a
> individual can obtain on their own.

> It requires understanding the fact that you
> can succeed.

> But who is there to tell us
> this???????????????????

Children do NOT needs to be taught courage or the understanding they can succeed. They have it already. It's built in.

However, it is removed ovder time by our wonderful education system.

Johnny, what's the capital of California?

Seattle?

WRONG!!!

(laughter fills the room and Johnny now feels bad. So bad, he may never bother answering another question. Or may go into his shell)

Why did the class laugh?

Because our education system is designed around a right/wrong mentality. Get it right and you go to the top of the class. get it wrong and you're supposedly a dummy and placed in the class of dummies to be made fun of.

As has been stated, we learn by doing. And in the course of doing we make mistakes. It's HOW WE LEARN. It cannot be avoided. Do. Correct, Do Again.

School, on the otherhand, expects, Do Right. Do Right. Do Right. To be Wrong is BAD and if you are wrong you are dumb and not worthy of anything.

If school taught you to ride a bycicle they'd first make you study the history of the bike, study the manufacturing process, study people of note-worthy riding ability, then have you write an essay on the joys of riding. Only after this heap of nonesense would you even be allowed to ride... and you'd be expected to get it right, first time.

If you can't write, or the history of the bike holds no interest for you and so you retain nothing, you will "fail" the tests and won't ever be allowed to ride.

That is how our school system teaches.

It creates a dog-eat-dog world and puts student against student where to "get it wrong" is BAD.

After thirteen or so years of this, is it any wonder people are afraid to try something new. They've been brainwashed into believing that to be Wrong is just about the biggest crimes there is. When in fact, it's part of the natural learning process.

Children generaly fear nothing and have no limits.

School soon instills fear and forcess limits.

Oh sure, the parents do too. How can they not. After all, they are previous graduates of the faulty educational system which stifles the individual. So they'd naturally do what they've been tuaght to do by the system.

Michael Ross.

PS. As a side note... ADD... real or BS. My opinion is... it's a load of BS. Your attention will be captured and held if the thing you're "learning" is of interest to you. If you have no interest your attention will wander.

My interest in Model Trains is ZERO. So in a class which teaches about Model Trains I would have no interest. No interests means I won't pay attention. And I'll likely be given a ADD label. HA!

To use my Bike analogy... I couldn't care less about the bike's history, or the best riders of this century, or how they're made. I just want to ride.