Active Learning - The Only Option For the Middle School Student

Part of the scam of modern education is thisschool.
incredible belief that a child who is activelyYet, in my adult life, I am a woodworker, yes. I
engaged in doing interesting things cannot bestill hate metal working or anything to do with
"getting an education." At the same time, peoplemechanics. I continue to be indifferent to electrical
think that a child sitting at a desk, answeringwork, though I can wire a house. And designing
questions out of a text book, on topics that havehomes is a passion for me.
no present relationship to the child's life or needsYet here's the funny thing. I am a teacher. And I
is being educated.had no idea that I was a teacher until I was 28
Do not be fooled by this scam. Look, how manyyears old and was offered the job of teaching a
middle school boys, especially, unable to sit at aclass of 4 students English in a small Christian
desk doing insipidly boring and meaningless tasksschool. I had never been to college.
are then drugged so that they will sit there quietlyAnd I would never have known that I was a
and look like they are being "educated?" This isteacher if I had not stepped into that classroom
the modern system's answer.and tried it. College, including a Master's of
Don't buy it.Education degree came later.
The middle school child does not need a repeat ofWhat am I getting at?
the academic work he or she received over andNeither children, nor any of us, can know what
over in elementary school. Neither should they bemakes us sing, what things we truly love, until we
focused on "college prep."get a chance to do them. For every several
The middle school child should be learning aboutthings we get the chance to do once or twice in
the world in which he or she lives. They shoulda lifetime, we may really like only one. But we
get their hands dirty. They should be makingwould never have discovered that one unless we
things, building things, fixing things, growing things,had tried several.
operating things, raising things. They should beThat is why project-led learning is so important
running and shouting. They should be involved infor the middle school child, especially the boys.
large active projects that are both interesting andWhen I say that, I don't mean that girls do not
valuable to the people in their life.deserve project-led learning equally as much as
A child cannot know what he or she would enjoyboys. It is because girls are somehow able to
in life simply because they have not had thetolerate insipid boredom better than boys. Middle
chance to try all the kinds of activities that areschool boys just can't handle it and should not be
available in the world.forced to.
When I was in 9th grade, I took a vocationalIf a child does 14 projects a year across a wide
introduction course. The first quarter wasrange of activities, during half of 6th grade, all of
electricity, the second drafting, the third metal7th and 8th grades and half of 9th grade, that is
working, and the fourth woodworking. Electricitya total of 42 different projects. Out of those 42
was interesting, but I didn't connect. I lovedprojects, the child might discover several that
drafting. I hated metal working. I likedbecome life long joys, and possibly, even, the
woodworking, but not in a school shop with lotsvery thing they were made to do in this life.
of other kids. After the course was over, IBusy text book work can never give that to
forgot about all those things for the rest of highanyone.