Educational dependence

Teach a man to fish... That's enough. I have already explained why I hate that saying. Since then, I have found a term for this. Just look at the title of this post. We are promoting educational dependence.



Educational dependence is the idea that we need the intervention of others in order to learn. In particular, we insist that we must go to school in order to learn.

Ideally, we should be pursuing educational independence. We should be able to learn what we want and need without spending a fortune for others to control the process. We shouldn't have to wait for classes to be in session. We shouldn't even have to wait for classes to be developed. Educational independence means that we can learn as soon as we know what learning should be pursued and we have access to any needed resources.

Educational dependence will always result in delayed and inefficient learning. The schools exploit this dependence to implement various constraints on the educational process. You should know what you want and need to learn. You should have a strong understanding of your own educational needs. It seems unlikely that you will ever benefit from handing your educational responsibilities to anyone else.