While pondering upon education vs. school, an interesting thought came to mind about the circumstances that lead to advancement in the schooling system.

We all agree that students in elementary education learn at different rates and adopt diverse learning styles. Therefore, the logical consequence is that students will advance their learning objectives at different rates.

However, the difference here becomes in schooling. Students who are advancing are blocked by the massive standardization of the schooling curriculum. In other words, students who should be many grade levels above them are forced to remain in a grade level based on their age because of standardization.

On the other hand, students who are advancing at a slower rate than the average are forced to use the resources available to them to meet learning objectives whereas these resources may not be effective in the first place for their learning style. In the end, students don’t reach the expected learning outcomes but are advanced to higher grade levels with more complex learning outcomes.

The view of schooling as a source of education becomes problematic for students seeking advancement or for those who learn using resources and styles different from the average student.

tl;dr – advancement is more difficult in schooling because of its standardization.

Umair Majid