No one can deny that school plays an important role in our society. An education can propel a student’s intellectual growth awakening their inner consciousness, as well as prepare students for lucrative careers. In the two selections “Against School“ by John Taylor Gatto and “From Social Class And The Hidden Curriculum Of Work“ by Jean Anyon, convey to readers the importance of a purpose full education through which students can thrive to actually be the best they can be. Similarly, Gatto and Anyon shed light on the significance that formal education has on society. However, the various teaching styles, school environment, and social economic standing in regards to formal education can have adverse effects on society, and are worth noting.
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According to Gatto, a retired former teacher who taught at various New York City Schools for over thirty years, claims that boredom amongst students, as well as teachers, were a normal occurrence throughout his teaching career. Gatto would ask his students and colleagues: why they felt bored?. The students would often respond with claims that the class work was uninteresting and they could not comprehend, or some felt like they already knew the material. The students also felt that the teachers did not seem qualified to teach the material they were given, or uninspired to further their own knowledge of the material. Yet, the teachers when asked the same question, would respond by saying that students were impolite and claimed that the students only cared about their grades( Gatto 142 ). Similarly, Gatto’s inquiry on boredom at his school forms a connection with Anyon’s ‘ethnographical study’ of five elementary schools in various social class communities. The ‘Working Class School’ particularly stands out where students mostly copied notes from a blackboard and were not engaged thoroughly by their teachers. The teachers would dismiss creativity and curiosity with no explanations as well as were compared to drill instructors in a military in the way they spoke to the students( Anyon 167-169 ). However, at the wealthier schools, Anyon studied, the kids were treated politely by the teachers and students learned to prepare their own presentations, in order to better understand the school work. At the “Executive Elite School”. The students were being taught hands-on critical and analytical skills that allowed them to express their creativity and were encouraged to ask questions and be curious( Anyon 164
According to Gatto, a retired former teacher who taught at various New York City Schools for over thirty years, claims that boredom amongst students, as well as teachers, were a normal occurrence throughout his teaching career. Gatto would ask his students and colleagues: why they felt bored?. The students would often respond with claims that the class work was uninteresting and they could not comprehend, or some felt like they already knew the material. The students also felt that the teachers did not seem qualified to teach the material they were given, or uninspired to further their own knowledge of the material. Yet, the teachers when asked the same question, would respond by saying that students were impolite and claimed that the students only cared about their grades( Gatto 142 ). Similarly, Gatto’s inquiry on boredom at his school forms a connection with Anyon’s ‘ethnographical study’ of five elementary schools in various social class communities. The ‘Working Class School’ particularly stands out where students mostly copied notes from a blackboard and were not engaged thoroughly by their teachers. The teachers would dismiss creativity and curiosity with no explanations as well as were compared to drill instructors in a military in the way they spoke to the students( Anyon 167-169 ). However, at the wealthier schools, Anyon studied, the kids were treated politely by the teachers and students learned to prepare their own presentations, in order to better understand the school work. At the “Executive Elite School”. The students were being taught hands-on critical and analytical skills that allowed them to express their creativity and were encouraged to ask questions and be curious( Anyon 164