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In Reply to: Re: Why is it so obvious these are TF? posted by Thorwald on December 04, 2007 at 04:23:12:
There's nothing wrong with getting a good education, but I'm not convinced that training a two-year-old to perform on cue to identify shapes and colors on a map constitutes a good education. What about her natural curiousity and need to explore things for herself? When does she get time for that? Will her parents also push her to learn about planets, stars and galaxies or how to do calculus? Wouldn't they be just as likely to teach her some crap about space city fitting into the moon?
Education isn't just about training the mind to regurgitate facts. Education also forms character, and it bothers me to see parents treat a child as an extension of their egos, whether they're in TF or systemites. As in, "See my brilliant toddler out-do her peers! Doesn't that reflect well on us, her parents?"
If you want to be sure your kids learn more geography than the typical US student, that's great. No one claims US primary and secondary education is anything to brag about. It's not hard to do better when you set a low bar for comparision.
Whatever you teach your kids, I would only ask that you give them time to daydream and explore the world on their own terms. Too much emphasis on rote performance has a way of stifling a child's natural curiousity.
