There was a pink dog called Courage. Like it happens sometimes, he also fell in a day of mistakes. Then a black frock dressed proud lady came, to giveThere was a pink dog called Courage. Like it happens sometimes, he also fell in a day of mistakes. Then a black frock dressed proud lady came, to give him ' perfection classes'. He couldn't talk, walk, create pictures ,sleep , brush perfectly. Full of terrible dreams which made his eyes very red, he went to the washroom. A green fish saw him and said : courage, you are beautiful, as you are with all the imperfections.you can do anything. His fear departed. He was gleeful again. The teacher vanished. Alas! Not Everyone gets awakened to our own unique discoveries.
The brick and mortar regions popped up unnaturally. It was a well thought plan by men like John cotton, Horace Mann in USA. The purpose for creating these public schools wasn't the welfare of the kids. Schools in the industrialized age, has the function of controlling the thought, behavior of pupils(scientific management). the pupils were to be trained to be productive workers and active consumers. Such half-baked future adults would be ideal for the democracy and the corporations. Individuals are stones subordinated to built the mighty pyramid.
Schools have wide array of tools to create the perfect child. Gatto clearly states the seven ingredients of a national curriculum. 1.Confusion: rainfall of facts with little context and connection. Insane adult in making. 2.assigning class positions: hierarchies of clever and weak, standardized tests , seating positions 3.inculcating indifference: short attention spans created by short periods and the ringing of the bell. 4.emotional dependency: kid depends on teachers approval like smile, Pat for grade.a powerful control tool. 5. Intellectual dependency: thought control by the teacher. Creates a dependency on experts. Thus, a highly specialised but dependent society. 6.provisional self esteem built purely on grades 7.one can't hide: the surveillance device by the teacher constantly hovering over the kid. Even extending to his house , as homework.
This lifeless machine is the perfect reciepe for further disorders and pscyopathic society. The kids turn out to be indifferent to the weak, dried out, satisfied, deeply conditioned to rub nose before authority figures, very competitive, materialistic, isolated and hesitant for changes. Highly individualistic , they are useless for the society . The pschyosis of such schools justify even suicides by children on the dog eats dog premise.
TV is another powerful control tool of the kids After the prisondom of school. The kids fall under the trance of the box. They get exposed to violence,sex, drugs, reality shows, consumerism, nationalism etcetc. Enough, to perpetuate the same rants creating dysfunctional individuals.
Can such a gulag be reformed? The philosophy for setting schools is itself against life,humane,freedom of the child. Cosmetic reforms like putting up more money, teacher training, remedial classes can't challenge the centralized, coercive ideology. The writer is fully supportive of a democratic, decentralize, liberty driven way. the family and community must be fully involved in education. children are respected. Self discovery is the way to wonder,learn and grow as whole human beings. Community service,apprenticeship also make the child sensitive, sharing, kind, seriously engaged in the world. I am more of a skeptic about his community centred learning As very few parents disbelieve the schooling experts and are themselves highly trapped in through their own solid conditioning. The penetration of the idiot box, smartphones has in itself lead to a highly alienated enviornment in which communication is getting killed. Overall, it is a deeply engaging, full of life, critical questions text. Kept on thinking for two hours or so over the issues in the book.
* Gatto was given best teacher awards. In the end seeing the destructive nature of teaching. He left the system and has been advocating unschooling.
Anyone who is willing to look at the lives of the majority of mankind needs to read this story.this living tale will fill the reader with the way the Anyone who is willing to look at the lives of the majority of mankind needs to read this story.this living tale will fill the reader with the way the poor since birth live and the way they disappear with little concern by the other human beings. the wrath, insults,humiliation, great rage, fatalism, blind faith on god, the mental slavery defines the workers life. The visual depiction of the coolies as sweating, dusty bodies, the factory as a dark dungeon , of big cities , rich elites, pavements is striking and occupies a corner in your mind. I think the current situation for the worker is not different from the one mentioned by Anand. Kindly read this heart wrenching , brutally direct journey of Munoo,the coolie....more
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