Language Development - Journal II

     In Teach Knowledge, Not « Mental Skills », E.D Hirsh points at the lack of consistency in schools guidelines: « Because there’s no consistency in what children were taught in previous grades teachers have to […] either progress excruciatingly slow, or [...] leav(e) others behind. » They have to choose between content and skills. But there should be no hesitation. Content is something schools and teachers really have to work on for what to have skills for if you cannot use them. It would be like knowing how to write without having anything to say.

   Thus mental skills and core-knowledge depend on one another. One needs skills to use knowledge: « problem-solving are necessary. But they depend on a wealth of relevant knowledge. » No true development can emerge from competition and management of skills only. Empathy, tolerance, understanding and all human qualities come from awakening and awakening comes from knowledge (experience or learning).

   Furthermore, children need to have knowledge in order to be inspired. They cannot, and neither can grownups, create out of the blue. No master piece comes from nothing. To evolve one has to know about what already exists and then has to learn and integrate these things so that he can use them and develop them to a higher level.

   Accordingly, though education today does work a lot on the appearances such as results, strategies, structures and technologies, we must bear in mind the fundamental knowledge any child needs to build his own vision of things. Who would want a child to become a mere computer anyway?