Why School Is Bad For Children

Did school ruin your curiosity and eagerness to learn? The debate over whether to send children to school, for how long, and what they should be doing in school has long been an issue. Sending our children to school is bad for them according to John Holt. In his writing “Why School is Bad for Children” Holt argues his point of view on these issues. Holt was a teacher who taught at a private school in Colorado and wrote many books on the issue of education. Holt believes that, “traditional schooling suppresses children’s natural curiosity about life” (Holt 72). In this writing Holt uses repetition for effect, over exaggeration, and shows his biased opinion to make an effort to convince the reader that schooling for children needs to be …show more content…
He makes some remarks that have some truth but they are over exaggerated so much that it makes the writing seem like a total hyperbole. When he states, “He learns that to be wrong, uncertain, confused, is a crime” (Holt 73). This remark could have some truth but is mostly incorrect. A student may feel uncertain about asking and answering questions because he or she might feel like they will be judged or they will be wrong. This could occur but as the student grows and continues to learn in many different settings they are likely to grow out of this and not have many fears or feel insecure about themselves. Another point he attempts to make that is exaggerated is, “We sit him down at a desk, and what do we teach him? Many things. First that learning is separate from living...Secondly, that he cannot be trusted to learn and is no good at it” (Holt 72). This statement is slightly excessive, learning is not constrained to the classroom. Kids learn from each other on the playground, driving around town with their parents, or even just being at home with their family. According to the “outdoor classroom project”, “To nurture the whole child early childhood education needs to follow the fundamental principle that children are learning everywhere and all the time… Children need a broad variety of learning experiences and opportunities to grow in areas such as gross and fine …show more content…
Holt was a teacher himself but he taught for a private school and was a major supporter of the Home Schooling movement. Having this kind of background, influenced his writing and you can tell he has this sort of background from some of the remarks he makes about the school system and what it does to children. Holt believes that, “schooling suppresses children's natural curiosity” (Holt 72). We can see examples of this in his writing starting with the first sentence. He starts his essay saying, “Almost every child, on the first day he sets foot in a school building, is smarter, more curious, less afraid of what he doesn’t know, better at finding and figuring things out , more confident, resourceful, persistent and independent than he will ever be again in his schooling” (Holt 72). This statement truly lets the reader gain an insight for how Holt honestly feels about the school system. He inputs his strong opinion instead of providing some statistics. Holt’s viewpoint on the classroom is that is is an extremely dull and boring place. He states. “The most interesting thing in the classroom-often the only interesting thing in it-is the other children” (Holt 73). In the classroom, yes the other children are interesting but most teachers have decorated rooms and posters that dress up the room. Not all classrooms in the elementary schools and primary schools are dull boring empty