Limitatons to levelling effect of Education
Education has often been seen as a levelling tool of society, helping to narrow the rich-poor divide by helping the poor move up. This article however points out some limitations which are useful for rebuttals:
--educating the people is just one part of the solution, we also need to restructure the economy so that jobs can be created. Otherwise, students may graduate from schools, yet not find any jobs. A case in point is the widespread unemployment in Europe due to the Euro-crisis. If I remember correctly, more than 25% of the people in Spain are unemployed, but if u look only at the youth, the percentage is 50%!!! No wonder the young people are staging protests and strikes!
-- education can provide u with skills for that well-paying job, but discrimination may still prevent u from getting that job.
Can counter-rebut this by arguing that when we educate, it's not just about imparting skills required for jobs, it's also about imparting values (which include non-discrimination) so that future employers will not discriminate unfairly when it comes to employing workers.....
-- education can lead to elitism, where the brighter kids go to better schools and mix among themselves, such that when they become future leaders, they are out of touch with the poor and only look after the welfare of their own kind. End result is that the gap between the rich and poor becomes wider.
To counter this, our govt is trying to ensure there is social mixing in schools, not just among the different races, but also among the bright and not so bright. Relook the recent education reforms in Singapore that are targeted to achieve this, e.g. top pri schools have to reserve 40 spaces for children who are not affiliated to the sch; Normal Academic students can now take subjects alongside their brighter Express stream counterparts....
Also mentioned in the article is how political contest/rivalry doesn't always help the country move forward. The rivalry between the Democrats and Republicans in the US last year led to the shutdown of the govt as no consensus can be forged. Currently, the rivalry between the yellow and red shirt in Thailand is wreaking havoc for the whole nation. Seen in this light, the weak opposition in Singapore is actually a blessing, provided of course that the ruling party does not become weak, incompetent or corrupt.
--educating the people is just one part of the solution, we also need to restructure the economy so that jobs can be created. Otherwise, students may graduate from schools, yet not find any jobs. A case in point is the widespread unemployment in Europe due to the Euro-crisis. If I remember correctly, more than 25% of the people in Spain are unemployed, but if u look only at the youth, the percentage is 50%!!! No wonder the young people are staging protests and strikes!
-- education can provide u with skills for that well-paying job, but discrimination may still prevent u from getting that job.
Can counter-rebut this by arguing that when we educate, it's not just about imparting skills required for jobs, it's also about imparting values (which include non-discrimination) so that future employers will not discriminate unfairly when it comes to employing workers.....
-- education can lead to elitism, where the brighter kids go to better schools and mix among themselves, such that when they become future leaders, they are out of touch with the poor and only look after the welfare of their own kind. End result is that the gap between the rich and poor becomes wider.
To counter this, our govt is trying to ensure there is social mixing in schools, not just among the different races, but also among the bright and not so bright. Relook the recent education reforms in Singapore that are targeted to achieve this, e.g. top pri schools have to reserve 40 spaces for children who are not affiliated to the sch; Normal Academic students can now take subjects alongside their brighter Express stream counterparts....
Also mentioned in the article is how political contest/rivalry doesn't always help the country move forward. The rivalry between the Democrats and Republicans in the US last year led to the shutdown of the govt as no consensus can be forged. Currently, the rivalry between the yellow and red shirt in Thailand is wreaking havoc for the whole nation. Seen in this light, the weak opposition in Singapore is actually a blessing, provided of course that the ruling party does not become weak, incompetent or corrupt.
posted by Dark Shadow | 12:18 AM
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