Radio Commentary
Respected author Jonathan Kozol, who is an
outspoken supporter of public education, takes issue with the idea that the
primary purpose of education should be to create the next workforce.
He wrote: “The notion of kids as workers raises a
question: Is future productivity the only rationale for their existence?”
“A lot of the things that make existence wonderful are
locked out of the lives of children seen primarily as future clerical
assistants or as potential recruits to office pools.”
Certainly
education must prepare young people to be productive adults. But there is
danger in focusing exclusively on the employment aspect of their lives, he
wrote.
We can’t
overlook that they will also need to be consumers, voters, audience members,
and participants in our entire culture.
They may
well be parents or volunteers, and may have a hand in running a household or a
committee.
They may
coach, they may tutor, they may recycle. After they work, they will likely
retire and have more years to contribute and enjoy life well beyond the
activities of the workforce.
Kozol
argues passionately that we must remember all these roles that citizens fill in
our democratic society.
We must
absolutely acknowledge that most will be workers and must be prepared for those
roles. But we must keep that goal firmly rooted in the context of an overall
productive existence.
Otherwise, he warns, we omit the
joy that connects young people to their communities and gives meaning to their
lives.
