When I was teaching math in Arizona, I was often frustrated with the increased importance of standardized testing and the “No Child Left Behind” act. At the same time I was frustrated with students in my class who had been promoted through their previous classes without learning any of the material that was foundational to being in my class. It seemed as though I was always thinking about the conflict: “Are we spoon-feeding them material that they have to memorize?” or “Are we teaching them to think for themselves?” I leaned toward teaching them to think for themselves, and I thought that distancing myself from the American education system would enable me to forget about the whole situation for a while.
However, the conflict seems to have followed me. In church and public settings it seems like people are always standing up and reciting long poems and chapters of the Bible from memory. It is amazing how much they are able to memorize. In talking to my students and other teachers here, I have found that the Ukrainian (and Russian) educational system has placed much of its emphasis on memorization. Trying to get my students to say what they think about a text is often like pulling teeth. Teachers who assign large written assignments also complain about plagiarism. Students give the argument: “Why should we analyze material that was written by experts? They can obviously say it better than we can.”
I have read that the former governmental system valued uniformity and discouraged thinking for one’s self. Reading censored history and related materials for almost 75 years probably caused people to focus on memorization and not on analysis. I am amazed at how many poems people have tucked away in their memory banks. I wish I had a better memory, I can hardly remember the password to my email account. At the same time, I am glad that my educational background stressed the importance of thinking for myself. And the conflict lives on.
-Dave
