2012-10-03

Utopia - Part 3

In the last installment, I talked about providing reliable information to the population.  This time I’m going to go over what prepares the population to use that information: education.  A proper education is a necessity in a modern society.  The more educated a society is, the better off it will be.

To ensure a proper education for everyone, there should be a single national curriculum.  That curriculum should be designed by recognized experts in the appropriate fields, and it should be reviewed annually.  Education must keep pace with scientific development in order for people to be capable of meaningful contributions to their communities and the world at large.

Education should focus more on critical thinking skills and less on rote memorization of facts that can easily become outdated.  While every student needs to learn the same skills before they finish school, students should be allowed to progress in each subject at their own pace.  We shouldn’t hold back children who learn faster than others any more than we should force children to learn faster than they are able.

Education should also be free.  Its benefit to society as a whole far outweighs the cost of providing it.  And I don’t mean just primary education, either.  When I say education, I mean all education, including community colleges, technical and trade schools, vocational schools, and universities.  “I can’t afford it” is the most tragic reason I can think of for people to fail to realize their potential.

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