Analysis Of John Gatto Against School

The New York City Teacher of the Year, John Gatto, argues in “Against School- How public education cripples our kids today, and why” that the school system is taking advantage of the students mind. Gatto states that not everyone has to go to school in order to be successful, but the school system is enforcing that everyone must go to school. Education can be accomplished anywhere, according to Gatto, but schooling is tearing down peoples ability to think, also “dumbing down” society. John Gatto argues in “Against School- How public education cripples our kids, and why” that in today’s society, schools have trained the students mind to become slaves of society and its demands by sharing his personal experiences, becoming consumers, and the solution to schooling. In the beginning the “Against School” Gatto describes his own personal experience in the school, which included boredom. He describes himself sitting in a classroom and never paying attention due to the information that was being displayed to him. He wanted to learn, but was not attentive. He then heard from his grandfather that being bored is his own fault. Sitting in a class waiting for something interesting is his own fault, not the teachers. Once he realized this, he began to think that …show more content…
Due to modern schools teaching children to be consumers, Gatto’s solution is that students should teach themselves greater qualities. Being a leader, not following the crowd, and being adventurous with anything. In our culture, learning from own experiences and teaching ourselves is the only way to get an education from modern schooling, according to Gatto. He believes that students should explore what they enjoy including: art, philosophy, history, math, and literature. Becoming mature is the main point. He completes by saying, “let them manage themselves,” to show that we are individuals with different interests, and not all the