The Origin Of The School
by Philip O’Caroll (founder)
QUESTIONS: Albury, 1975
We asked each other, “Where shall we send our children for schooling?”
We decided to approach the question rationally, and asked first, “What is the purpose of schooling?”
"To enable the child to participate in the world confidently, competently, and happily,” we supposed. “By what method does schooling achieve this goal?” we wondered.
We mumbled the usual things like the teaching of reading, writing, arithmetic, etc., and then summarised this as the development of various skills.
We then asked ourselves, “What are the most important skills for a child to grow in?”
Reflecting on our own life experiences and on the causes of unhappiness that we could see in the world around us, it did not take us long to agree that the most pressing aspect of development for any young human was interpersonal communication skills. This was the key to long-term success in both personal life and career satisfaction.
This then was our first strong conviction on the subject of schooling.
With a sense of relief that we finally knew what we were looking for, we settled back into our armchairs and asked the innocuous question,
“Which schools best serve this need of children?”
But our comfort was short-lived as it soon became painfully obvious, mentally scanning the selection of schools available, that the school industry largely neglected children in this most important of all areas!
If you compare a group of school beginners with a group of school leavers you have a stark demonstration of a hidden curriculum that actually robs children of their expressive and communicative powers – and with it the all-important self-confidence.
Help! It was becoming obvious why parents generally avoid examining school life too closely. You have to give your children over, but if you discover that you don’t approve of the system, you have given yourself a heavy cross to bear.