Hard to watch

Stephen J. Gould's book, The Mismeasure of Man, accurately reviewed the outrageous testing and false hope that the U.S. put in psychological testing.  Aldous Huxley's Brave New World portrayed the natural societal results of such outrageous notions as people being born with a certain amount of IQ and the jobs that that IQ was suited for.

To some degree American society listened to Gould, but for the most part, the populace and educational community, including those trained to teach America's children, have continued to perpetuate those early 1900s outrageous, unsubstantiated notions of the psychological community regarding IQ.  Copious studies of the brain exist from both medical and cognitive scientists that discount entirely the early notions of IQ.  It is clear that humans' brains are equal and that learning takes place across the world's populations regardless of the formality of the training.

I am so very sorry that the educational community continues to accept the notions of psychology from the early 1900s and ignore research from more specialized and better suited fields bearing on how people learn. It is hard to believe that 150-year-old ideas and techniques still inform modern teachers, curriculum directors, and educational businesses.  The 12-year, lockstep, uniform, curriculum with its accompanying tests to "ensure that everyone learns only the same set of ideas" leads to mediocrity at best.  It serves no one's best interest.

The world has changed and in the next 10 years will undergo such radical changes in information delivery that  to continue the current system of education will be certain doom for all those who perpetuate it.  Fortunately, people like Ian Dukes have spoken loudly enough for anyone with ears to hear.  Others like him are paying attention to the current, specialized research in brain studies and are laying out paths for people to follow so that learning in the US doesn't become antiquated and contribute to the country's demise.

I leave it to the business community to lead the way out of the mire that the public schools seem to be unable to find their way out of.  My hat is off to business leaders like those at Exxon and those who are associated with Bill Gates who can see some handwriting on the wall and react accordingly and timely.  I am counting on them.