I hate to mention this, but are companies and schools "dumbing down" to accomodate those who may not be as smart and sharp as others, or just don't want to learn?
Houston, we have a problem.
With our Tennessee Realtracs MLS system, we used to be able to hit the "back" button and go actually go back to the previous page. Then we were told several years ago that there were people who were having problems going back and so they were going to disable the function.
Say what??
So now I have to go through several different functions to get back to where I used to be because a few people were having problems. By the way, if you haven't noticed, there are going to always be some people who have trouble operating a computer much less searching the MLS.
In our schools, with the No Child Left Behind, the teachers find themselves having to teach so that a test is passed in order to receive funding. So, what must a teacher to do these days? Answer: Teach to the test. Ask a teacher.
Where would we be without garbage men, plumbers, electricians, and others who may not be able to mainstream into the classroom but may be brilliant in their fields? It takes all kinds of people to make the world go around. Tell your brain if your toe get's severed that it wasn't important to your body. Yeah, right. Outch!!
Ok, I admit to being 50. That means I was in a classroom environment that if the bottom few didn't understand, the teacher attempted to help, but if the child didn't learn, they were held back one year and had to do the grade again. It wasn't socially acceptable then or now but at least the majority of the children learned what they needed to learn in order to progress to the next grade and weren't disrupted. The child held back wasn't happy and neither were their parents, but the child learned and later progressed. And Amercians were at the top of their game.
Not everyone is cut out to be a rocket scientist. I know I'm not and accept that fact. I'm just in the middle.
But there is a problem when we are dumbing down everything for the minority of people, whether it be immigrants who don't want to learn and are comfortable because they are being catered to (push one for English, mind you!), the classrooms in our schools, or our MLS system so that the bottom few can work it.
Dumbing down is just that. Holding the top few and the middle back from reaching their full potential, to accomodate those less ambitious or those who just aren't capable.
I bet our founding fathers would be shocked at the direction we've taken. America just deserves better.
Comments(0)