New Directions

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Howard Rohan
Professor Mooty
ENG 1510
15 May 2013
Summary of “School is Bad for Children”
On his first day of school, the 5 year old child enters his classroom eager to learn, full of
optimism and curiosity. As he turns to talk to the child next to him, he is scolded by his teacher
for talking out of place. After regaining some confidence, the young student raises his hand to
enthusiastically answer a question and is simultaneously met with rejection and no explanation.
This scene is repeated every day throughout countless schools, where children’s desire to learn is
met with conflicting curriculum practices. In his article, “School is Bad for Children”, John Holt
points out that the student soon discovers that learning is no longer an independent or self-
fulfilling endeavor, rather a passive act of just getting by and doing what they’re told. Holt
argues that young minds cannot progress under such unappealing educational environments, as
their questions, hopes, fears, and dreams are often oppressed. Classmate interaction is also
avoided, disconnecting the student from the world and any learning opportunity they would have
had from that interaction. Through research and examples, John Holt presents the idea that
students are better off educationally before they ever step foot in the classroom.
Holt proposes several solutions to improve education. He begins by wanting to abolish
the archaic compulsory attendance laws. He says the laws, which once were needed to protect
children from inhumane labor practices, are now a hindrance to these students. Because
attendance is forced, many children come to school angry and distract others’ learning. The
policy also creates students who are “resentful prisoners” instead of true learners (65). Holt

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posits two positive outcomes if attendance is optional: children will still attend school to be with
their friends, and, arguably, schools will be become better because they will be made how they
should be right now – as environments where children would want to be.
Holt proceeds to suggest facilitating a modern education system that incorporates lessons
within the classroom as well as in the community. Rather than “shut them up in brick boxes,”
Holt advocates a firsthand experience of what the real world entails (67). He places emphasis on
individual and collaborative visits to a variety of locations to nourish their curiosity. He also
believes schools should involve working professionals in the classroom to discuss their real life,
work problems instead of having the students read about such scenarios in their weekly readers.
Holt discusses the Teachers and Writers Collaborative as an example, and explains how writers
from the community work with the children on their writing and speak about their own
challenges. Holt claims that “the children eat it up” (67). Such a system would mitigate the
failures of modern educational paradigm.
He also suggests two different ways teachers could provide children with more
responsibility for their own learning. The first idea is to implement more student peer
collaboration. He outlines the benefits for students with comparable skill sets working together
and learning from each other; he even outlines benefits for pairing advanced students with those
of weaker skills; both children benefit. A second idea is to allow children to judge their own
work. He argues children have learned to talk, walk, play games throughout their life through
imitation and trial and error; they should apply the same concepts to their learning in school.
Instead of pointing out errors for the student “as if we thought he would never notice a mistake
unless it was pointed out to him,” Holt argues schools should provide him with the tools to
discover the correct answer, if there is one (69).

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The modern education system is flawed. Holt suggests dumping curriculum because it
destroys the independent growth of our youth. It is fixed and uninteresting. He says this “body of
knowledge” is nonsense in this complex world. A curriculum that contains the entire
philosophical aspects of the world is ridiculous. People only remember and comprehend the
things that are appealing and necessary to them; this long list of things to know is not one of
them. Teaching children to learn under a narrow control without group and peer analysis could
affect their self-esteem. Furthermore, children would start depending on others for their
confidence. What children want most is to make sense of the world, and ultimately, the current
idea of a curriculum fails to do that. Thus, children would better retain the information and each
individual would gain even more knowledge. Making this reform to education would allow the
next generation to be more prepared when entering the workforce and can improve the quality of
many career fields.
Work Cited
Holt, John. "School Is Bad for Children." (1969). Rpt. in The Blair Reader. By Laurie Kirszner
and Stephen Mandell. Tennessee: Pearson. (2010): 64-69. Print.