Do you remember the days of your exam? I bet you do. OK. So I presume you can remember the answers to the questions you were asked back then as well. Excellent! Let’s see if you are able to answer a simple question.
What, according to classical mechanics, is defined as the product of an object’s mass and velocity? Is it kinetic energy, momentum, force or acceleration?
Believe it or not, this is a five-grade-level question and a survey says that 67 percent of people got this question wrong.
To get a proper answer we need to delve deep into our educational system. No, of course I am not curious about a fifth-grade physics question, I am more conscious about why you can’t remember the simple science question which, once, you had to learn in your classroom.
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Modern educators have come up with the notion that there is a huge gap between what needs to be taught and what is being taught. Traditional learning comprises of lectures, taking notes, listening to more lectures and taking more notes which eventually end in a three-hour exam at the end of the year. But do you really think exams can evaluate a learner’s capability? Or is it just a process to measure a student’s capacity of memorising a huge amount of data for a certain period of time?
Knowing Vs Understanding.
Let’s take a closer look at the educational system in which we are brought up. Learning, in this system, is offered in a traditional way where students are made to feed the content forcefully. What is more, exam, instead of hands-on experience, plays an important role to analyse whether students are learning (read memorising) their lessons properly or not. So, in short, educational system emphasises on memorising the study content rather than understanding it.
GPA Vs GDP.
Exams are, in a sense, for increasing GPAs. You read, you memorise, you throw out with an uncontrolled flow on your answer sheet during exams, you increase your GPA and you forget what you have learned, if it can be called so, after a couple of months. But ironically enough, you cannot control your future with those grades, mostly because employers prefer real-time experience, enhanced skills rather than grades. And if your education can’t land you a job then GPAs are of no use. Global economy is dependent on the quality education. So by no means the GDP of a nation will increase if the collective GPA of students suddenly touches a higher level. Let’s see what Laszlo Bock, Senior Vice President of Human Operations for Google has to say on this account.
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GPAs are worthless as criteria for hiring and test scores are worthless. We found that they do not predict anything. The number one ability we look for is general cognitive ability and learning ability. It is the ability to process on the fly and the second is leadership.”
What’s The Alternative?
Educators need to impart a hands-on experience to promote education rather than relying on conventional process. ‘Active learning classrooms’ should be initiated to increase students engagement in learning. School system needs to focus on an overall improvement of students which will eventually pave the way to a greater success.
And by the way, ‘Momentum’ is the answer, if you are still looking for it.
How will you make the most of this opportunity? Share your thought, opinions and experiences with us by leaving your comments below.
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