Summary

The provided web content discusses the evolution of education, questioning its current effectiveness and suggesting that it has become a tool for conformity rather than true learning and development.

Abstract

The article critically examines the state of modern education, positing that its original purpose of exposing individuals to knowledge and fostering personal growth has been subverted to enforce conformity. It highlights Kanye West's controversial statement on slavery as a metaphor for mental enslavement, emphasizing that true freedom and progress are hindered by psychological chains. The text delves into the concept of psychological slavery, referencing Dr. Na'im Akba's work on breaking free from mental servitude. It also addresses the challenges faced by the educational system, such as classroom size, poverty, and technology, arguing that these issues are often misrepresented and that love and open-mindedness are key to overcoming educational hurdles. The author suggests that the educational system has lost its way, prioritizing conformity over the cultivation of critical thinking and individuality.

Opinions

The author interprets Kanye West's statement on slavery as a commentary on the current state of mental enslavement rather than a literal endorsement of slavery as a choice.
Dr. Na'im Akba's book is cited to illustrate the persistence of a "mental slavery" mindset and the need to break free from it, with a particular focus on the role of religion in perpetuating psychological slavery.
The article criticizes the educational system for focusing on making people conform to a prescribed way of life instead of encouraging true learning and development.
The author challenges the commonly listed educational challenges, such as classroom size and poverty, suggesting that they are not insurmountable obstacles but rather excuses for a lack of creativity and love in education.
It is argued that technology in education is not lacking but rather mismanaged, and that students' tech-savviness could be leveraged to foster teamwork and leadership.
Bullying and student attitudes are acknowledged as legitimate challenges that can impact a student's ability to learn.
The "No Child Left Behind" policy is critiqued, with the author advocating for peer support systems to help struggling students.
Parent involvement in education is recognized as a complex issue, but not an insurmountable barrier to learning.
The author asserts that student health issues, such as obesity, should not be used as a scapegoat for educational failures.
Funding for education is mentioned as a concern, though its specific impact on teacher salaries versus student resources is not detailed.
The article concludes on a hopeful note, emphasizing that creative and dedicated teaching can overcome many of the listed challenges.

Education Isn’t Meant To Teach You Anything

We have eyes and yet we do not see. We have ears and yet we do not hear (Mark 8:18 )

400 Years of Slavery is a choice?

I finally listened to the full interview with Kanye West when he spoke on the topic of slavery. How in the world did people miss what Kanye was saying about 400 years of slavery? He wasn’t saying that 400 YEARS of slavery was a choice — he was saying that we haven’t truly progressed and that NOW where we are enslaved (in our minds) is a choice.

So many have lost their lives to maintain what we say is freedom, but are we really free?

Dr. Phil often says that the best predictor of future behavior is past behavior. When we look at our past, according to the Bible, 40 years in the wilderness allowed an old mindset to die in order to move the new mindset forward. We are living in a time where technology is moving faster than people can comprehend. We are still enslaved. The difference now is that some are questioning the changes. We are pouring information into machines that are rapidly taking and scheduled to take more of the jobs from people while telling people that this is all to enhance how we live. We are giving life and brainpower to Artificial Intelligence (AI) with little understanding of what this truly will mean for us in the future. We are being stimulated and over-stimulated to believe so many things. These things are coming so fast that we are not able to process and think for ourselves. This is meant to be this way.

Psychological Slavery

Dr Na’im Akba, in his book, Breaking the Chains of Psychological Slavery, discusses why blacks almost never get out the “mental slavery” mindset. He talks about the slave trade in the first part of his book and then moves to how that mindset can be broken. Dr. Akba then adds a third section where he discusses religion’s role in creating the psychological slavery mindset. The final section is an open section encouraging readers to draw their own conclusions as he explains his position as to how we have been educated to believe what we believe.

So what do we say about these things?

For decades I have said that education is not meant to teach you anything. It is meant to make you conform to a way of life.

Imagine that you have spent the last nine or more years of education and training: four years of undergraduate study, four years in your major, plus one year or more in residency or internship, taken out student loans, worked your fingers to the bone only to find that it has ALL been a colossal waste of time. In 2018 the average student owed over $27,000 in student loans, was unable to find a job in their chosen profession that would allow the minimum re-payment and or the medium income did not come close to what had been expected. Add to this the protocols for the chosen profession not lining up with the education received. What now? How do you justify all those years of what now feels like wasted time and energy? How do you process what you “learned” and reconcile it with what you are experiencing?

Was education ever really meant to teach you anything?

I believe the educational system was derailed. I feel that in actuality education was meant to expose you to different things with the purpose of you choosing “something” to focus on and then to expand from that point in knowledge. Along the way, education took a turn and began focusing on making people conform to a way of life versus actual teaching and development. In fact, in my formative years, if a student or ‘learner’ questioned the teacher, that student-learner was viewed as a troublemaker and as a disruption to the class. What I discovered later was that the teacher was often not prepared to teach and did not like being challenged which resulted in a missed opportunity for ALL parties to truly ‘learn’ something.

What are the challenges in education today?

There is an article that lists 10-major impacts on education: www.publicschoolreview.com/blog/10-major-challenges-facing-public-schools

Classroom Size.
Poverty.
Family Factors.
Technology.
Bullying.
Student Attitudes and Behaviors.
No Child Left Behind.
Parent Involvement.
Student Health.
Funding.

Quite an impressive list! This is not to say that there is no validity to this list — just that a major factor is noticeably absent — you cannot teach a child you do not love. You also cannot teach if your mind is closed off.

Once you have gotten love in place and opened the mind, educating is more than 90 percent accomplished. That may seem like a bold statement, but let’s look closely at what we have been told are challenges to educating.

Classroom size

Honestly, this one is laughable. Why? Let’s look loosely first. When we go to the movie theaters, concerts, churches and other gatherings we are able to discover, learn, enjoy, and participate no matter the size of the audience. Looking closer — college lectures hold hundreds of students for the expressed purpose of educating. So, is a classroom of 30–50 students really not manageable?

2. Poverty

I would have to ask a question here; have we really lost the creative ability to educate?

3. Family Factors

Where do they come up with these things? How many single parents find this ridiculous? In thinking of our present life narrative, I can say that with a larger portion of families being subjected to homelessness, a child does have additional things to consider. Then too, if this is a military situation, children move about frequently in these circumstances as well. even with family crisis such as divorce and other factors, To say this is a significant challenge as if it affects the majority is a stretch.

4. Technology

I have a question: Is there too much technology and that is causing challenges or are you wanting people to believe there is a lack of technology here in the 21st century? In this day and time there is no school without access to the internet, libraries and field trips. Also, in the cases where the students are more tech savvy than the teacher, one of two things should happen (1) the teacher needs to get up to speed (that is not the student’s problem) and (2) students can take the lead and share with teachers which fosters teamwork, cooperation and development of leadership skills.

5. Bullying

Finally one that may have some merit. In high school I was bullied for one full year of school. Everyday I dreaded catching the bus to school and catching the bus on the return trip home. I believe the fortitude my mother instilled in me allowed me to push past this obstacle so that I could maintain focus while in school. I can see, though, that without it a child might not be able to concentrate and fall behind in their studies.

6. Student Attitudes and Behaviors

This is another area that has merit. If the student does not come with a mind to learn or an attitude to receive, disruptions can present challenges.

7. No child left behind

I imagine this is being viewed as a challenge because the idea may be that it is not possible to keep a class on target and meeting metrics if all students are not on the same level of progression. This again, requires creativity. I can recall that when I was in school the buddy system worked. If a student was lagging behind, a student who excelled would be paired with that student to champion them. In other words, a fellow student became a coach and support. This provided the development of leadership skills and teamwork.

8. Parent Involvement

This one could get messy. The absent parent and the hovering parent are two opposite and valid observations. However, creativity in the classroom again can carry a student to the expected destination of learning.

9. Student health

This one is interesting. While I do concur that obesity is a problem, one has only to look around to see that it is not a problem for students alone. It is hard to point this as a problem to educating when all types of people are successful, educated and obese.

10. Funding

I would have thought this one would have ranked higher on the list. It is hard to note whether the funding or lack thereof is more of a concern for teacher salaries or obtaining necessary tools for students.

I have noticed that more teachers are adopting the creativity mode in classrooms. These teachers are motivating, stimulating and captivating students every day. They are making an impact in the lives of their students and I believe that we can accomplish what needs to be done with creativity in the classroom.