“Ideally, what should be said to every child, repeatedly, throughout his or her school life is something like this: 'You are in the process of being indoctrinated. We have not yet evolved a system of education that is not a system of indoctrination. We are sorry, but it is the best we can do. What you are being taught here is an amalgam of current prejudice and the choices of this particular culture. The slightest look at history will show how impermanent these must be. You are being taught by people who have been able to accommodate themselves to a regime of thought laid down by their predecessors. It is a self-perpetuating system. Those of you who are more robust and individual than others will be encouraged to leave and find ways of educating yourself — educating your own judgments. Those that stay must remember, always, and all the time, that they are being molded and patterned to fit into the narrow and particular needs of this particular society.” - Doris Lessing
Review this quote. Analyze what you think it means. How do you feel about Lessing's cynical perspective on educators? What are the advantages to being educated and to educate yourself? Is it bad to be molded into the needs of society? Why? Where do you see yourself and your education in regards to this quote? Respond in no less than 150 words.
I think that this quote is saying that we learn things in school and that is basically it because we do not think for ourselves. Which could mean that we have no common sense. We let the educators do it for us rather than learning things on our own and we are only taught what our current society or culture says we should be taught. I also think it's saying that if you don't start to educate yourself on your own than you will only know what you are taught and you will not be your own person, you will be what society wants you to be-Which I think goes beyond education. If you didn't have educators then you wouldn't know the things that society wants you to know and that's important in my opinion. However, educating yourself is equally important. I think that is the perfect balance because if you are educated then you are somewhat molded into society but if you also educate yourself than you are not completely molded into what society wants you to be which I think is good. I think it is bad to be completely molded into society but I think you should definitely be somewhat molded into society because I don't think it's an option not to be. I think that because you need to be somewhat molded into society to get somewhere in life but you also need to be self educated so you can be independent.
ReplyDeleteI've never really thought about education like this before but after reading it I think that I have been educated well and have also educated myself well.
ReplyDeleteBeing educated lays the foundation for what you will become later in life. Maintaining that education is something you can and should do on your own. The more you know, the more well rounded you will be. Then, not only can you fit into society's mold, but will also have different interests and thoughts of your own.
ReplyDeleteNice job Carmen.
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ReplyDeleteI believe Doris Lessing is trying to say that our education system is flawed. Through the manifestation of our perpetually declining engagement in society, our education becomes this type of flawed, so to speak, it becomes only what those instructors choose to teach. As the society increases its fatalistic state of laziness, a smaller amount of this information is being taught to the new youth of the country. While they may be making small adjustments to this system that seems to be improving, they are adding more regulations and checks to further shape the students into a more holistic facilitator of their needs. The absence of thinking for ourselves being replaced by the mandatory learning process of which we're all accustomed to will ultimately be our downfall, through our own passing down of knowledge,unbeknownst to our own awareness.
ReplyDeleteWhether Doris Lessing knew the power of her words at that time, her ideas seem to make a very scary amount of sense
DeleteVery good post. I'm not sure that Lessing necessarily thinks the educational system is flawed, but rather this it is what it needs to be in order to educate all children in America. It serves its purpose, but also has its limitations at times. Think of school as a nest and you as a bird. When you are ready you can leave the what school has to offer and continue learning on your own. School will still be there when it is time to come back.
DeleteLessing's thoughts are basically explaining that school is not perfect. School has been evolved into an idea of everyone must be taught for the better of the community. This does, however, cause a problem. It forces us to blankly read and learn without asking questions and to just regurgitate whatever has been told to us. It no longer forces us to think critically. Since so many have to be taught, we are encouraged to think on our own. They want us to take what has been given and then expand on that knowledge, always knowing that you can go back to ask questions. This allows us to learn more than what one school ever could. The successful people are able to do this and do it well. I don't think it is bad to be molded but it isn't the best for an individual. I personally make attempts to expand my knowledge with ever chance I have. However, as a country, we seem to think that doing the least amount of work is okay and are still be able to get by.
ReplyDeleteGood Brandon, although I disagree with you when you say school forces you to blankly read and learn without asking questions. You cannot be forced to ask questions, they need to be asked in order for the teacher to expand on and clarify a topic.
DeleteI believe that this quote is pointing out that school destroys one’s individual characteristics of thoughts and ways to solve different problems in their own way. I feel that Lessing’s cynical perspective is a spot on idea about it since the school does kick out kids whom seem to have ideas on their own. The ideas that educators bestow upon the young people’s lives will rip the creative thinking away from them and leave them as a mindless zombie as you see in most office jobs. There are, however, advantages to being educated since it would be tough to be taught historical events and more sophisticated subjects like the advanced math and sciences. On the other hand, you cannot be taught regular life lessons through educators; some things must be learned on your own. It is not entirely bad to be molded into what the needs of the society is, but it cannot just take one and make them a simple sheep in the herd. With everyone being molded, it destroys the chances for great future inventions and ideas for the world to prosper on. I find myself a bit in the middle of the two since I have learned a lot on my own, but I have learned a lot and not been molded entirely to the needs to the society since I have a lot of ideas of my own and will continue to do so and try to better the world.
ReplyDeleteWhat I believe Lessing is saying in this quote is that you are supposed to learn and accept what is being taught and they haven't came up with a system yet that you can be taught in different ways. What is being taught to students is one sided and a particular culture. No one could be taught to think for themselves, instead they would follow the ways they've been taught instead of looking at life situations in their own perspectives.I believe that learning by your educators is great, but they may only show you how to figure out something in one way. However, I believe educating yourself is much greater because you cant rely on someone helping you out every step of the way. You have to figure out a way that works for you in order to succeed. Also,I believe being molded in society is not good. You need to be able to figure out new ways of solving things and if you're limited, the chances of new things in the future, and better ways of solving things, are impossible. I see myself in education as I need to take what the educators give me and then put it in my own words to better understand, and maybe create an easier way to solving problems to benefit the needs of education and/or society.
ReplyDeleteIt is interesting that you mention the system. The school system has to do a lot with limited funding. Adding variety to curriculum means adding to the payroll and many schools cannot afford that. I do think area administrators are looking for ways to share the cost for providing services for schools. There are some options to education such as CCCTC, online classes and the Seniors to Sophomores program.
DeleteI believe this quote is saying that unfortunately we have to go to school and deal with the prejudice and the certain decisions of people around us but there is nothing we can do about it but learn to teach ourselves, if we are able to. I believe that Lessing’s cynical perspective is valid for some teachers but not all. I can understand that some teachers just educate the way they want to or feel the need to because that is what they are used to, while others teach the way they believe is best for everyone in the class room. Being educated is an advantage because we learn things that we never knew or could figure out ourselves, but also, being self educated is very beneficial because it will help us prepare to become more reliable on ourselves when it comes to things such as college, when we will need this skill to get through. Being educated allows us to become molded into society and teaching ourselves allows us to not become strictly reliant on people to always be teaching us and allows us to become more independent. I think that I am able to self educate myself as well I am able to be educated by someone else. I think that i’ll get better as time goes on, but as of now, I think i’m doing well.
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ReplyDeleteI think Lessing’s quote means that we have not came up with a system of education that allows students to think for themselves in their own creative ways. Instead, today’s society wants everyone to learn the same things without anyone questioning it to why they are learning the material. Advantages to being both educated and educating yourself allows you to learn what society wants you to be able to know and understand, and also while educating yourself about what you want to learn which is what helps you separate yourself from others and becoming more of a well-rounded person. I think it is bad to be molded into the needs of society because you need to be able to think for yourself and come up with your own ideas and being molded into society doesn’t allow you to separate yourself from others. I think you need to be able to know and understand what society wants you to know so you can get where you want to be at in life. I believe that I am educated well enough to what society wants us to know and I have also educated myself of my interests to become more of a well-rounded person.
ReplyDeleteI think this quote means that school is not the place to learn everything and to become an actual living being you have to teach yourself sometimes and learn your own lessons, because that’s life. I saw a quote today by Stephen Hawking; “I have noticed that even those who assert that everything is predestined and that we can change nothing about it still look both ways before they cross the street” and I think it fits perfectly for this conversation because, people think that we are destined for something and we should follow this ideal path to be successful but what is so glorious about being like everybody else. Learning your own lessons outside of the classroom are the little things that make you you. We shouldn’t be molded to society by other people’s ideas; yet we should be given societies structure and habits and make our own opinions and learn what works for us, not everyone else. Lessing’s cynical perspective on educators is wrong in most cases, but there are some cases where the teachers don’t care. Mrs. McCullough gave us an example, last year a professor at YSU walked out on his students half way through the semester and they couldn’t do anything about it. In regards to this quote I think my education has been limited to a certain “OGT Standard” and it shouldn’t be like that.
ReplyDeleteDylan, your first sentence really sums up the point I wanted you all to get when posting this quote. Nice job.
DeleteI believe that this quote is saying that we are all taught the same thing, and they hope we can all learn it the same. I feel that Lessing's perspective on educators is right, but some educators go above and beyond to make our education better. However, there are other educators who teach what they have to, just what their predecessors tell them to teach, that is all they teach they don't make sure you understand what they have taught. When you are educated you have someone to talk to and ask question. This helps you learn because they can help you figure out what you don't understand. When you educate yourself, you teach yourself, if you can do that then it makes school easier for you. There are some people who can't teach themselves though, they need people to teach them. After being educated traditionally, and not being taught enough, some students educate themselves after they graduate high school. They go back and learn the things they were never taught, on there own time. I believe it is bad to be molded into the needs of society, because society is always changing. If were are molded to be what society needs now, what is to say that we will be what society needs in five to ten years when we are going into the job force. I see myself as being taught not just in school but also more by life experience. What we are taught in school isn't everything, because somethings in life don't follow what we are taught in school. We are taught what the educators believe we need to learn, some educators will teach us a bit more, but they can't teach life experiences.I believe I have been taught the standards and very little other then the standards.
ReplyDeleteI believe that this was a very revealing quote about are educating system and how it works. Constantly changing to gain the better areas of our history and present time period. Showing us that some of the things from the past were not always good, similar to evolution in its essence, changing through time. I believe that it is somewhat true. The fact that they learned from people who had different views and ideas about people. Somehow, at the same time they can still shine through the previous "rainbow" of thoughts and show their own view to the students. Influencing a few, but at the same time they alter their view in the way they teach. Since the dawn of time people have been becoming educated. They learn to defend themselves from predators with tools, and with the same tools they can also provide for their families helping them survive. With the education you can also learn from the past and not make the same mistakes they made. They can learn to not drink from lead cups and live longer. Most people choose to educate students with teachers because of the numerous advantages that come with it. At the same time though educating themselves has its advantages too. They can learn from their mistakes bettering themselves in the process. At the same time they create their own " rainbow" of views depending on the culture of the time they live in. It may have advantages to molding students into the work force of the present, but at the saw time students need to experience it for themselves. With that the fact that society is constantly changing means that students jobs and views would have to change making it hard to alter that way of life drilled into them by the Army Drill Sargent that they learned from. After reading this I believe I will still learn from my educators and myself, but at the same time not taking it to heart as much. Knowing that the views of society are not set in stone and that they can change in a heart beat.
ReplyDeleteI believe this quote is a rebellious interpretation on what we as a society seem to follow without question. Education has increased its value and has reached a larger demographic over the years and unfortunately we have developed an understanding that what is trending is what is right when that is most certainly not always the case. A set of rules and regulations were put in place to be taught to students to create a more civilized and just community. This has been tweaked to the public’s liking as we are a modernizing and easily adaptable nation. Lessing has seen what others may look at as progress as limits. The conflict that is taking place here is that the school systems have created the word curriculum to be synonymous with the robbery of individuality. Students are becoming well equipped to handle complex equations and less equipped to handle the even more difficult conundrum which is life. However, this incredibly pessimistic view of education can be interchangeable with a very inspiring revolt to originality. I advise readers of this quote to not rebel against your educators but to challenge yourself to rise above what is asked of you. Lessing’s problem is that he is angered due to the fact that he is relying too much on educators to teach him what can only be fully understood through lessons sprouted from naïve mistakes.
ReplyDeleteVery well put Lexi. I am proud of you that you would rather choose to challenge yourself to rise above rather than rebel against others. Control the things you can control.
DeleteI believe this quote shows that at school you don’t learn everything. If you ask me there is a bunch of things schools don’t teach you, so that you would have to take it upon yourself to learn the basics and common sense stuff. The things that schools don’t teach you can end up determining how you as a person act. I agree on Lessing’s cynical perspective on educators. School, or at least our school, doesn’t teach responsibility. Here you get could get away with mainly whatever you would like. There are many advantages to being educated. Classes like History or in Lisbon’s case geography would help a bunch. Here there are a bunch of kids that have no idea where locations are on the map. Not everything can be taught be educators. Many things need to be learned by yourself. I don’t think it is an awful thing to be molded into society but you do need to be able to think for yourself and just not go along with the crowd. I believe I’m educated enough to understand what society wants us to know.
ReplyDeleteI think that this quote is saying that the educators are teaching us what the state makes them teach us. Which has its pros and cons to. The guidelines that they give us that they have to teach is good but i don't think kids these days will use that outside of school. Todays society is different then it was back in the day. Their teaching us the pass. I mean yes their teaching us well but it's not all so useful in life. We need more every day knowledge like real life skills. Today's society people follow what others are doing and not being themselves. Don't get me wrong we do learn stuff in school and some day down the road it might become useful. You also need to educate yourself to better yourself in the future. You just really need to get to know yourself better so you know where you fit into society today. After reading this i think i have been educated well, but educating myself has helped me a lot throughout life.
ReplyDeleteI think that this quote is saying that, the things that the teachers are teaching us are not enough. The teachers are told specific things to teach us, but there is so much more we should be learning. It’s also saying that students who are good at teaching themselves are way more likely to succeed than people who have trouble teaching themselves. We have to be able to learn on our own and not always rely on our teachers. I think Lessing's perspective on educators is true. They are told what to teach us. The state tells them how to teach and they can't teach the way they want. The advantages of being educated are that the teachers teaching you probably know more than you do, and if you have any questions you can ask them. The advantages of educating yourself are, you can move at your own pace and you can learn more information if you go more in depth than what the teacher is teaching you. I don't think it’s bad to be molded into the needs of society because, everyone has to be able to work together and if you aren't molded into the needs of society you will end up not getting along with someone and being really hard to work with. In regards to this quote, I have a hard time teaching myself and I believe that after reading this quote it has taught me that if I want to be successful in life I have to learn on my own and not always rely on my teachers.
ReplyDeleteI believe that Doris Lessing is trying to say that each child is only being taught what the educators are teaching, which is a result of what they have been taught by their educators. She is saying that the current educational system is only set up to teach what society thinks should be taught, and that this standardized system is not necessarily encompassing all perspectives and methods. There are so many more thoughts, beliefs and opinions than any one person could ever fathom, but the teaching methods are what they are based on what we know and what our society in general knows. She is also saying that if one is to ever want to educate themselves to be more rounded as a person, then it is up to them to take their education to the next level. But, if one decides to stay in society's so called "mold", then they should be aware that their way of thinking is not always the right way, and that they should always keep an open mind.
ReplyDeleteIn an ideal world every child's education would be tailored to the individual and not to a group. This would help to bring out the best in each child, and would allow them to be more confident in themselves and how they learn. This would result in more children being interested in their education and result in greater success. I believe that sometimes students fail as a result of the group teaching method because of this exact reason.
I believe Lessing's quote was trying to portray that while the teaching system is helpful, you must learn to teach yourself and to learn from your own life lessons to succeed in life. Teachers are given a set of guidelines to teach us. These guidelines do not change from school to school. So we are all learning the same material. Except, these guidelines are only to benefit what the adults think we will need to use to succeed later on in life. These guidelines change as time goes on as new factors affect it, including prejudices, and new material. She was trying to say that in a way we are being molded into what society wants us to be and how they want us to act.. We all learn the same information, we all have disciplines that keep us in line. So what makes us different enough to break the mold? That would be where our own life lessons come in. Everyone deals with their own battles, how they handle those battles and what they learn from them are what sets us apart from one another. I believe it is really beneficial to teach yourself. If you constantly rely on teachers to teach you everything, you wont go very far. You are better off and more likely to succeed if you do listen to what your teachers say, but if you also take on your own role of learning. Teachers can't teach you everything you will need to know to be a successful adult but they do attempt to do their part to get you prepared to take things on your own. I don't feel that it is a bad thing to be molded into society, everyone has to start somewhere, right? I feel that by everyone being molded, everyone starts at the same level with the same basic knowledge that eventually leads them into their own lessons and becoming their own person. I feel that I have educated myself very well. I understand the material I have been taught and I have been beginning to learn how to teach myself to succeed.
ReplyDeleteI believe that this quote is about not thinking for yourself. I think that this means that we are taught to think through memorizing text in text books and the methods of the generation before us. There are possible ways for teacher to teach the lessons that need to be taught, while at the same time trying to get the students to think for themselves or "outside the box". Teachers alsoneed to help students think for themselves because when they get out of school there will be no text books or methods to memorize. You will need to think for yourself and come up with your own method to get your work assignments done. You won't have a teacher or parent sitting next to you to hold your hand through the work day you will be on your own and have to be able to handle the pressure that comes with not only work, but everyday life in general.
ReplyDeleteI think this quote means that the school systems have created standards based on average people, but everyone learns things differently in their own way. The schools teach us one way and individuals cannot expand themselves in the world. Many students just memorize what is being taught to them and most times, they do not comprehend what they are learning. Most students cannot teach or think for themselves, because the schools usually give them what they need. No one is taught to think for themselves. I believe that Lessing’s cynical perspective is correct for most teachers, but not all of them. There are some teachers that just do not even care about the students and their particular needs. They teach one way and expect the student to understand their way. On the other hand, there are teachers out there that are willing to help students and their individual needs. Being educated helps many people figure out things, they would have never done themselves. Educating yourself is also very helpful, because you can figure your way of learning and making decisions in the real world. I believe being molded into society is not the way to go. You need to figure out things yourself and not rely on other people. You need to become more independent. I think I am educated enough to understand my surroundings, but I also think I am capable of educating myself.
ReplyDeleteThis quote by Lessing I believe is trying to portray the message that the lessons that you learn in school are not necessary the lessons that are needed to be successful in life. Lessons you learn from life are not direct right or wrong answers, you can perceive life anyone you want. Where in school there is many incorrect answers but I ly one right one all the time. I personally believe this quote is correct by saying that not everything you need in life is going to be taught from the education system. It is our responsibility to learn things for ourselves, and once we are able to do that then we all may be successful in life. It is as simple as saying there is a difference in being school smart compared to street smart. Someone who necessarily is a brainiac may not be prepared for the obstacles that life has in front of them. We as a society are responsible in teaching our own selves how to be successful in life and that starts by learning from the choices we make and making everything we do as a lesson in life. We can not be so reliant on the school system to teach us everything because it is incapable of teaching us what we need for life.
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ReplyDeleteI think that Doris Lessing is trying to say our education system is corrupt and trying to make us someone who we aren’t. I feel like she is right to a point but that she over-exaggerated a bit. The advantages to being educated versus not being educated at all are pretty much living with your parents when your 40 or driving around in a black Bentley. Winning or losing. Educating yourself is necessary to keep learning past school, which is essential to further success. It’s bad to be molded, but not to know how your society wants people to be. It’s better to be guided then molded. If your molded your just doing what everyone wants you to. Live your life for yourself, not for somebody else. I see myself and my education better than how Lessing makes it sound like, but its still corrupted to a certain point.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, I believe Dorris Lessing's quote is expressing a moral lesson for any student. School is not the gateway to learning, success, or education. What truly holds the power of what you learn and what you take from it is your own will. We are all in control of how we perceive and sense our surroundings. What Lessing really hits home with is that school takes away that ability. We are all unique in some way, and school is an organized society that everyone has to follow. Mrs. McCullough does a wonderful job of getting her students to learn on their own. Her tactics of teaching are great for students who want to be successful in life because only you know what you're capable of. You need to be able to think on your own, not be brainwashed to think that everyone needs to think the same way. It's wrong that some teachers are given requirements by the state and just feed that to the student the way it was written up. Why would someone want to be molded into society? Nobody remembers somebody that goes through the motions and "fits in." Everyone remembers the person that did it their way and overcame adversity. I'm happy with the way I have educated myself. I have been revealed to many challenges in my life, and school wasn't the reasoning for my conquering.
ReplyDeleteI feel this quote by Doris Lessing is portraying that you can’t rely on school to teach you everything you need in life. Throughout the years, schooling has changed a lot to help students learn better, but schooling will always keep changing. I believe Lessing wants children to learn from their own mistakes and learn how to handle situations that you won’t learn in school. She wants us to learn our own ways and not how society makes it out we have to learn. I believe we don’t need school to learn everything we will need for the future because some things in school you won’t need for your future. Some teachers teach what they think needs to be taught or what they want to teach, so you might not even need it. Some advantages to being educated are being successful in your future with whatever you want your life to become. Some advantages of educating yourself is that you can teach yourself from right and wrong, and not have to take demands from someone else. You can teach yourself more by doing things yourself. I see my education is good because our school is so small and they provide us with everything they can to help us better our education and help us prepare for the future.
ReplyDeleteI feel that Doris Lessing has made a very valid point. She said that in today’s educational system you can educate yourself and become more independent and more creative or you can be taught by teachers who mold you to become what society wants you to be. She believe that educators now only care about what society wants the next generation to excel at instead of giving them a more open and diverse future. Being molded into what society needs is not a bad thing at all, because you could still be successful at whatever you are molded into and that is what we as humans desire, to be successful. I see my education as a definite mix of both educational techniques. I say that because certain times I know when I need to be creative, independent, and know how to teach myself something; while other times I know when I am better off listening to someone who is or close to an expert on the subject. As a human I strive to do everything possible to become successful. At this point in my life I do not have a great idea to what I want to be successful at, so I have realized I need to be educated well in all fields of life.
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