
Susan Sontag's radical vision for remixing education - mbrubeck
http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2013/02/01/susan-sontag-on-education/
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contingencies
The connection between philosophy, communications, pedagogy, and programming
is fascinating (and I say that as a programmer who dropped out of education,
years later still a programmer, and writing my first history book).

While this article is interesting... I particularly liked the phrase ''time-
shifted retirement via distributed sabbaticals''... the proposal that Sontag
makes regarding no school, free love and sex for 12-16 year olds is not only
socially impractical ( _where_ is this supposed to happen?) but neglects some
of the larger social benefit of an organized education system ... the capacity
for children who may not be in a particularly nurturing environment at home
(due to family issues, economic circumstance, etc.) to broaden their horizons
as their minds reach their mental peak (~20 years old).

All in all, a very "period piece" .. Sontag shoots for some great ideals, but
the projected route seems today more than a little naive - a quaint '60s
anachronism.

How could we reconstruct some of the goals she's aiming for without the
negatives? I think we could definitely work an option for children to spend
part of their time in specific, opt-in, areas rather than in general schooling
.. allow them to explore physical crafts, literature, art, computing in non-
generic environs that provide ancient-university style rigid pedagogy-free
environs to support individual speed, individual interest mutual learning.

Maybe as a pilot 20% of school classrooms could be converted in to such areas?

Having information on the internet just doesn't cut it for many subjects. We
need a sort of Hackerspace-meets-teacher-available-meets-socialising place
where young minds can flourish.

