What I want to teach my children...

OK, a few years back there was a really interesting thread on HSA, "Things I want to teach my kids...", and I composed a reply. However, I've been exposed to some new things since then, which I would like to use. Here is my original post:

Sep 20, 2005
If/when I have kids, there are certain things I would like for them to know. To some extent, these are things that I have at least gained an appreciation of through my parents' teaching - though there are some areas where I wish I had learned more (particularly 3,6 and even 5 to an extent - but maybe these are the more masculine traits anyway). Before I write the verbose edition, here is a summary of what I would want me kids to learn:

"A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, con a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyse a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects."
-Robert A. Heinlein

...and here's another quote that I think goes with this topic. It's from a John Holt interview:

What subject matter do you see as essential?

None.1

[...]

1 Once when John Holt was speaking to a school audience, describing his views on the their structured curriculum, a student asked him, "But surely there must be something important enough that everyone should learn it?" He thought for a moment and replied, "To learn to say 'I'm sorry', 'I don't know', and 'I was wrong'." [unpublished anecdote]

Anyway, here's the long version:

1) How to know what is right.
    General teaching about God, faith, the Bible, etc, with an emphasis on empathy and general kindness.

2) How to think for themselves.
    This is so that they can take what they know is right, and apply it in their own lives. This would include the teaching of general knowlege or "The Subjects" (you have to have something to think [i]about[/i], know what the facts [i]are[/i], etc), and critical thinking skills (essay writing, logic, etc).

3) How to defend against evil.
    This would include both mental and physical evil. I would want them to be extremely good debaters when necessary (not just to show off, get their way, etc...), and I would probably arrange for classes in karate, basic gun skills, and that sort of thing. Also, teaching about the law, rights, and legal processes (how a lawsuit takes place, what the police can and can't do, etc).

4) How to be content.
    In a world full of commercials and many other subtly dangerous frivolities, I want my kids to know what they do and do not need, and what they do and do not want. I think that exploring ones own artistic, musical, poetic, or other creative abilities is a good way to fully appreciate life. Studying past art, literature, etc, helps you to keep everything in perspective. Constructing your own creations provides a form of self-confidence that prevents many temptations. Being good at something you love brings a passion that fills one of the holes in life - if that hole is filled with what it should be filled with, kids won't feel the need to fill it with anything else.

5) How to do things for themselves.
    Whether it be cooking, laundry, basic sewing skills, vegetable gardening, basic car maintenance, camping, first aid, or fixing the kitchen sink, I don't want them to be dependent on others for simple things. I want them to be able to live without electricity, plumbing, the grocery store and other modern conveniences if they have to.

6) How to make money.
    Something that will become a livelihood - also teaching about how to start a business or be self-employed, and the value of an independent income. That doesn't mean that I expect them to do that - they may choose to become employees  - but I want them to feel that they have that choice, and that they are equipped to make it either way.

So, that was the post. I still think the things I wrote were good things for any person to know. However, I don't have much experience educating anyone other than myself (and I haven't even done that as well as I would've liked). Former teacher John Taylor Gatto has lots of experience struggling against schooling institutions, and has written many books including The Underground History of American Education. In that book, as well as most of his others, and most of his interviews, he talks about how bad the public school system is, why it is that way, and how it was designed. Here is a short summary of what he defines the curricula to be that he taught in public schools:

The first lesson I teach is confusion.
The second lesson I teach is your class position.
The third lesson I teach kids is indifference.
The fourth lesson I teach is emotional dependency.
The fifth lesson I teach is intellectual dependency.
The sixth lesson I teach is provisional self-esteem.
The seventh lesson I teach is that you can't hide.

(I believe the expansion of this list was his book, Dumbing Us Down - an essay version is included on the CD-ROM mentioned at the bottom). So, those are obviously things that I want to avoid teaching to my children (or myself, or anybody), and they are obviously things that can be taught if you are not careful to avoid doing so (especially if they were taught to you). Fortunately, Gatto has also hinted in many of his books, articles, interviews, etc, that he knew what the most powerful private, elite, boarding schools in the country taught. He says that he did his best to use this curricula with his own classes (very average or below average students), and had wild successes! I wanted to know this, and I finally have started to find it. In an MP3 recording (MP3 Track 6 on the aforementioned CD-ROM, "John Taylor Gatto - Compiled Thoughts On Schooling 01-10-03.mp3"). Anyway, a summary of that curriculum is as follows:

1. a theory of human nature (what buttons to push, how to get what you    want) - history, philosophy, theology, literature, law
2. skill in the active literacies (speak for strangers, write everyday) - persuasive language CAN be taught EASILY
3. insight into the major institutional forms (courts, corporations, military, etc - details that drive them)
4. politeness/manners
5. independent work (public school = 80-90% teacher decisions, plus group work)
6. strenuous physical activity (to achieve a graceful presentation, NOT a luxury or a way to blow off steam)
7. finding paths of access to people/institutions
8. strong responsibility (grabbing for leadership)
9. arrival at a personal code of standards (never complete)
10. familiarity with master artistic creations
11. the power of accurate observation and recording (example: drawing reality)
12. the ability to deal with challenges of all sorts (this is VERY individualized)
13. a habit of caution in reasoning to conclusions
14. constant development and testing of judgements (make predictions, then follow up)

So, with some alteration, I think I would make a curriculum for my own children to fit this list. The main difference is that in my original list I emphasized things like knowing right from wrong, Godliness, empathy, general kindness; and that and power or skill gained should be used to protect and defend rather than just to show off, or get their way. I get the feeling that the powerful elites DO want to use their skills/power to control and get their way. The only way to effectively defend against that kind of agression is if the populace has exactly the same kind of power and skills. Right now I don't think that we do have that kind of a population, and my children (if I ever have any), will likely not live to see the day when we have that kind of population. Therefore, they will face the temptation to use what they know inappropriately. What would be the good of teaching people to empower themselves if they only use that power to enslave others? None, and I don't want to be any part of that kind of education for anybody.

The CD-ROM I keep mentioning is available for download via bit torrent. To my knowledge, everything on that CD is copyright free, and MEANT to be shared.