May 16, 2013 12:15:09 PM cite

Schools are in essence, institutions which only teach us the past and the opinions of those who strayed from the normal views. In other words, schools encourage us to think in other people's opinions which limits our own take on what can be or what should be. Often we encounter schools which frown on a student's creativity and maybe opposing views. The reality seems dim but for those who refuse to conform, it comes in great achievement. We say people have the freedom to opinion but the opinion we allow them to have is limited. As students learning in school, there is nothing more crucial than allowing them to think outside the box but our own need to follow a set curriculum and time constraints do not leave room for creative and analytic thinking. In not allowing and teaching students to form their own opinions, we create a society of mediocrity.

by Inkingi

Mar 24, 2013 1:43:14 AM cite

You might reformulate this question. Critical writing classes teach forming an opinion. Perhaps you are combining what is taught with the quality of the learning resources? If one's history book is not accurate, the quality of the results of critical analysis will not be accurate. As you know, this question is not new. In the 70's, my high school days, I had written a quote from Frank Zappa on my text binders, something like: The educational system is a vast industry for creating trained consumers and technicians pawns for the benefit of other vast industries. If that were true, I wouldn't be writing this, nor would this website exist. Don't flip the bozo-bit. http://teachingtechnically.blogspot.com/2009/03/flipping-bozo-bit.html

by scathey1

Mar 2, 2013 1:22:42 PM cite

Education is suppose to invoke the art of inquiry- questioning - analysizing, moving along a spectrum- An opinion is rooted in personal thoughts. Personal ideas, education, age, morals, ethics , spirituality , family - these and many other values form our personal opinions. Education does play a huge role in your personal opinion. The more informed you are, the more global you are, the more understanding you are- your opinions will be more universal. Opinions are egocentric. You might ask yourself - are you sharing your thoughts and feelings (opinion) based on facts

by Teacherparent

Feb 24, 2013 12:22:44 AM cite

This question makes me wonder if one can teach the formation of opinions without influencing the opinions themselves.

by honeychild

Jan 31, 2013 2:50:32 AM cite

because schools can barely teach required curriculum now, how can they teach kids to be creative and assertive? I do agree that it is vital to an interconnected free society to be taught how to spot logical fallacies in arguments as well as formulate their own opinions rather than simply adopting whatever idea or philosophy is hurled at them from a TV or other media. It would be fantastic to bring that to everyone - the question is, how can you teach a person to think on their own when nowadays practically no one does and they may have someone to do all the thinking for them? If we could formulate an effective curriculum, this class would be essential for growing up in a rapidly changing world that is home to an infinite number of ideas.

by mightypopcorn

Dec 22, 2012 6:28:19 PM cite

TAM TAM is not properly a school because it doesn’t provides the most typical flow, like the the passage of ideas, models, techniques and methods that goes from a small group of those who know to a larger group of who don’t. The school doesn’t belong to those who know, nor to those who don’t, it doesn’t take place between teachers and students. Instead, it is only made up of people who don’t know, people who want to find out and discover ideas, models, techniques and methods which feel right to them. TAM TAM school has no structure. It isn’t collective, or obligatory, or authoritarian, or Public, or bourgeois, or working class, or ideological. It doesn’t provoke participation or create culture: it doesn’t send coded messages It can be or not be. It is a spontaneous event, and when it happens, it leads to unique and personal life styles. It is amoral, liberating, original, discontinuous. Its strategic aim is to enable each person to produce and consume their own unpredictable creative activity as a spontaneous act of communication, alone or in groups. Its tactical aim is to do away with institutionalized teaching which has shown itself to be unable to produce viable new criteria for the future. This doesn’t happen by stockpiling, but by resetting Its points of departure are children, the vanguards,the paranoids,the humanists, the uncivilized, the archaic cultures , our far classics.... TAM TAM school in particular is not made by pretty or ugly buildings. It doesn’t adhere to a strict timetable inside a classroom, but it’s something latent in courtyards cinemas, beds, at table, in cars. It’s a virtual space, psychophysical space, that each of us carries within us. So the TAM TAM school exists in the non-existence of school; it consists of living instead of learning. Milan, Italy info: alessandro.guerriero@tam-tam-tam.org

by warriorforpeace

Oct 23, 2012 6:25:24 PM cite

Governments have a near monopoly on education. People are taught what the government/monopoly wants them to be taught.

by hibby76

Jul 10, 2012 3:38:56 PM cite

The high school I'm currently stumbling through is painfully close-minded, but I know that not all are this way. My best friend through junior high was (and is) the only teacher who saw what I see in the system. He makes a serious effort to cover the assigned curriculum but also throw in some simply interesting information. More often than not, that interesting information is something the student body is NOT supposed to know. He is one step closer to anarchy, which I believe may fix this educational SNAFU.

by pensivetwirl

Jun 15, 2012 11:16:20 AM cite

Maybe because the teachers have not learned so either

by Namelesspeach

May 3, 2012 6:42:19 AM cite

They don't like it when you color outside the lines.

by onurb

Apr 19, 2012 10:40:10 PM cite

For example, Hollywood California has the movie scene but they also tax for beach use. Whereas Texas does not have beach taxes and does not have the same beach quality as California. So the question is should states have similar taxes for better environment all around the states?

by mewo

Apr 19, 2012 10:40:09 PM cite

For example, Hollywood California has the movie scene but they also tax for beach use. Whereas Texas does not have beach taxes and does not have the same beach quality as California. So the question is should states have similar taxes for better environment all around the states?

by mewo

Apr 19, 2012 10:34:53 PM cite

Then you would most likely open your own school and compete with them. They do not want to lose money.

by mewo

Mar 6, 2012 12:14:09 AM cite

They do not want you to have an opinion because it will not benefit the people high up in our food chain. They make it so that people are used to and agree with what their thoughts and opinions are because they like it to benefit them, not the community.- Yarisa

by yariyarisa

Feb 22, 2012 2:53:33 AM cite

Education was introduced to society as a form for people to learn many differing subjects which would make it more enlightened and progressive. However if you understand that enlightened and progressive are quite differing in different people's minds then you may understand what lead us to the current system. In the late 1800's and early 1900's it was considered imperative that society learned to read and write. Compared to today reading and writing are commonplace, so should we still judge the success of education on the same standards? As the needs of our society evolved we can trace a truly spectacular and horrifying trend toward profitability and expansion. As such subjects such as math and literature became increasingly important while arts and crafts became subsidiary in comparison. Now we see society in break-neck pace to judge a person entirely based upon material possessions and credibility. Our idols have moved from George Washington and Abraham Lincoln to Eddie Murphy and Britney Spears. So it is no wonder that "free thinking" isn't encouraged, for questioning the system does not improve status or credibility, and so are ignored except by the few of us who understand its true value. And I sincerely hope that we can share this gift with the world, so we can see a change in it.

by mymduncan

Feb 5, 2012 8:59:03 PM cite

This depends on what school you attend and who teaches you. Overall the public school system (in the US at least) is broken. Students with little money in poor neighborhoods end up in large schools with little one on one teacher contact and/or with teachers who don't care. Unions don't help as they emphasize the money in it for teachers if they stay for the long run but they don't really care about the kids and the education they are receiving. On the other hand, many students are used to this broken system and are taught to take advantage of it so that teachers feel that they must be a part of unions in order to defend themselves. It is a long and vicious cycle that requires true systemic reformation in order to change. Good reason to think about where you're going to live when you have kids, which again brings us to money.

by rwt

Feb 2, 2012 4:36:31 AM cite

Opinions are not reliable beliefs.

by Thai sean

Jan 13, 2012 6:07:07 PM cite

Because our Gov. is dependent upon teaching our children that they need the government and believing that the state knows better than they do as an individual for the rest of their lives. If they do not succeed in doing this then the Gov. will loose control and their every movement will be questioned.

by wymzie