Education: It should mean something

More often than not, I'm a poster of few words on this blog. I generally don't use this space to relay my personal opinions about religion, politics, or life in general. Rather I like to make this little blog o' mine a fun, light-hearted place to share tid bits of my awesome life (if I do say so myself) and my small moments of creativity. However, there is this one thing that I love to talk about because I'm gigantically passionate about it - that being this menial little thing we like to call education.

I just graduated last week from the University of Utah with a BS in Communication Technology. I've now spent about 16 years of my life in the public education system and frankly, I've come out pretty disappointed with what it's all taught me. I've never been particularly pleased with my education. I've always been a "good" student, doing what my teachers have told me to do, writing on the topics they have told me to write on, taking what the text books say as fact and not raising any unneccessary questions. I thought I was doing myself a favor by getting all my assignments done on time, studying (aka memorizing lists of facts) hard for my tests and stressing to the point of tears about getting straight A's. But when I graduated from high school, I realized that my 3.97 GPA wasn't going to get me anywhere. I didn't feel any better off than the lowly 3.0 students. I didn't feel any better equipped to enter the "real world" than they were. I realized that my many years of hard work and obedience had all been boiled down into simple numbers. I had successfully learned to be the best slave*.

Having realized this, I went through my college years with a slightly different mindset. For the most part, I was less stressed because I honestly didn't care about my grades. I didn't care about the letter, just as long as I passed. Sure, I always wanted to do better than just pass because that's just my nature, but I had come to the realization that getting that piece of paper, whether it be with all A's or all C's, was the only thing I was working for. Isn't that so sad? That's what our public education system* has boiled down to - passing the test and getting the piece of paper. Heaven forbid anyone teach a student how to be unique, break the mold, and think for herself. No no, that kind of progress would be too difficult to track. We must put a label, a number, a letter ranking on everything our children do lest they be deemed "uneducated."

I've been voicing my frustration about this to a select few friends and family for a while now. But the problem is getting worse. I remember being frustrated in my AP classes in high school because my teachers wouldn't teach us anything that wasn't going to be on the test at the end of the year. From day one, I remember hearing "We don't need to discuss the answer to that question because you won't need to know it for the test," and all I could think was I'm not here to pass a test, I'm here to learn! But learning doesn't go on in our schools anymore. I'm becoming more and more convinced of that.

So now I'm left with the dilemma of what to do with my own children when it's time for them to enter the world of public education. I actually don't ever want them to enter that system and if it's up to me (which it actually is as of now...let's hope that that's not EVER added to the list of freedoms I've lost in this country), they never will. I've been a huge proponent of home schooling for a long time now. A lot of people think I'm crazy for wanting to personally educate my own children. Home schooled kids are geeks and social outcasts, right? People say that like home schooling is the sole ingredient that makes a child "socially awkward" - like those types of kids don't exist in public schools either? In my opinion, it's all about how and not what they are taught. If I teach my children good, strong values and morals, if I teach them how to ask questions and think for themselves, if I teach them that being an individual and having different ways of solving a problem or answering a question than the other kids is ok, then I think they'll turn out alright in my book. Both intellectually and socially. And I think they'll turn out alright in a lot of other people's books as well.

Home schooling my children is going to be A LOT of work and I'm actually pretty intimidated by it. But I'm starting to prepare now and I think in the process, I'll end up finally shaping my own education into what I've always wanted it to be. I don't know how to even go about starting to change the way we are taught in public school. By now, it may be a problem that's just too far gone to ever be fixed. But one thing is for sure, my children are going to know how important their education is to me and they will learn how important it should be to them as well.

*You MUST read these links...MUST I say!

Life Goal #53: Get Scuba Certified

Check.

Wet suits in 200 degree weather....check aaand check.

TX

I went out to Houston Texas with Mark's family a couple weeks back. His aunt

and uncle renewed their wedding vows and invited us all out to stay at their

lake house on Lake Livingston and join in the celebration. The ceremony was

simple and intimate - and pretty much the only planned event

in our weekend. We spent the rest of the time sleeping in the hammocks,

wave running, carving our names in the kitchen table, eating

delicious food, and having way too much fun with the party blowers.

I think one day I'll invest in a beautiful lake house like this one and invite

all my friends and family out to stay for as long as they like.

My Kind of Paradise

"I have always imagined that Paradise will be a kind of library."

Jorge Luis Borges

I just finished reading this book and I can't say enough about it. Because of school and other distractions it took me over a year to finish, but there wasn't a moment of reading when I wasn't completely absorbed in the drama, romance, horror and grand philosophy of Rand's masterpiece. If you're in the mood for an incredible (but pretty heavy) read, pick this one up. It will change your life. But hurry! They've started filming for the movie and I'm just not convinced that film can succeed in not ruining the majesty of the book. "Read it before you see it" will always be my philosophy.

Riding to Mesa

I spent the weekend before last back up in Island Park with Mark and his family.

We got up early Saturday morning and rode the 30 miles out and back to Mesa Falls.

The ride was BEAUTIFUL. Really. Amazing.

Riding into the Tetons on a clear road lined with trees and ponds on

a brisk, stunning Saturday morning? Yeah I'll take that.

These were taken with my teeny point and shoot so no artistic stuff this time.

Biking just doesn't really lend itself to lugging around a big DSLR, ya know?

Pencils Anyone?

Got a few extra dollars to help further a good cause? I know, I know,

there are SO many 'good causes' to put your time and money toward these days

that it has become somewhat of an empty phrase. But this one is genuine folks.

My friend Sam is heading to Kenya in 22 days and she's taking pencils for the school

children....lots of them. They need to be brand new and unsharpened. She still needs

about 2,000 more and she's only got 22 days to round them up. Check out her blog for

more details. Then get out there and buy those pencils!

This is my family

We get pretty excited about birthdays and other special occassions.

Thanks to Skype, we never have to miss a single celebration

no matter how far away our loved ones are.

Happy Birthday to my sister Erin in Washington. We love you!