Freedom to learn

Those who want to learn should be allowed to do so with as little restriction as possible. I believe in minimizing constraints on what, where, when, why, and how children are allowed to learn. I have typically framed this as educational rights, but I would definitely say that the freedom to learn also qualifies.

Lately, I have been hearing a lot about the freedom to learn. The Department of Education and NEA have been connecting this term to government-controlled schooling. By controlling this model, the government can tightly restrict what, where, when, why, and how children are allowed to learn. Considering how hostile government-controlled schools are to learning, I have become furious over these claims regarding the freedom to learn.

The Department of Education has primarily focused on the idea that bullying takes away the freedom to learn. In all honesty, this actually makes sense, although I fear that the Department of Education isn't interested in tackling the bullying coming from teachers. This makes it a little more challenging to attack their ideas. The department also has something bigger going for them, the NEA.

I grew up in schools connected to the NEA. I was effectively prohibited from learning. This is because learning gets in the way of pointless busywork, and teachers are intolerant of such deviant behavior.

The NEA is pairing up what they consider the freedom to teach with the freedom to learn. If you want the freedom to learn, who ultimately controls the learning? Hint: It's not the teachers. Unfortunately, the conventional schooling model involves teachers taking charge of what students learn and when. This deprives students of the freedom over what they learn and when.

The freedom to teach and freedom to learn, especially in context of a conventional schooling model, are contradictory terms. If you give teachers more control over what children learn and when, you are taking control away from children. If you give children more control over what they learn and when, you are taking control away from teachers.

The government-controlled model adds another issue, and not just because we are giving the government power to restrict learning. If you truly believe in the freedom to learn, you can't force children to learn in an environment that doesn't meet their needs. They need to have the right to learn elsewhere. Simply put, freedom to learn requires choice over where children to learn. Instead of helping to find an appropriate approach to choice, the NEA outright rejects the right for children to pursue education away from their authoritarian control. This is especially true for low-income families.

The NEA has been fairly open that they have more success when they frame issues around the students. That appears to be what they're doing here. Tacking the freedom to learn onto the idea of giving more control to teachers is about as ridiculous as, "Gimme, gimme, gimme... for the children." Because they are using children for personal gains, this could very well be considered a form of child exploitation.

Do not let the NEA redefine the freedom to learn in a manner that traps children in an environment that is hostile to the freedom to learn. If anyone is reading this, stand up to the NEA. Call them out when they engage in this disgusting tactic.