Re: SHAPE OF FUTURE SCHOOLING

["Lex Systems Inc." <lex@THE.LINK.CA>]

At 03:55 PM 6/15/97 -0500, you wrote:
>Hi Jim!
>
>People who thirst for knowledge and who are self-motivated will thrive in the
>environment you picture. Others will smother or drown. We are there for
>ALL students, not only "the best and the brightest."

I forgot to reply to this significant point.  My contention about the
non-self-motivated is that nothing will change for them except that
they will be isolated somewhat from the social audience they once
had.  That might be the proper situation for these students. They
still likely will have to be in a social situation, but they
will not have an audience of 1000 other kids to disrupt any more,
the group will be much smaller.

Principle: Mega schols take students with behaviour problems and
put them in a situation where they get more rewards for acting
out.

Principle: The web-school movement will lead to smaller gatherings
of students in social and academic situations.

Result: The non-motivated schools will probably be gathered and
worked with in small groups, where hopefully they will learn
to be re-integrated with the "motivated mainstream."

I am not sure that we ever have had the right to expend the time
of the motivated on the non-motivated.  What if you were working
in a deparment store sales team, and we told you that we had hired
someone for your area who hated work and was disruptive, so that you
could pass on the benefits of your motivation?  What gives us
the right to do this in a school situation?

I always disagreed with homogenous grouping by ability. That
sounded like building a new class structure.  However, I
have supported grouping by motivation.  Let the motivated feed
off each other and grow.  The motivated gifted student should feel
obliged to help the motivated poorer student, who is there and
who is trying.

The non-motivated student is exercising a cherished democratic
right to pursue his or her own path to happiness or lack of same.
We can't FORCE a change in this situation.  Again, having these
kids in small numbers is a heck of a lot easier to work with.

Thanks again for your letter.  Hope I haven't been rude to a
thoughtful respondent.
Jim Bruce

LEX SYSTEMS
Box 178 Dalmeny, SK,
Canada  S0K 1E0

Phone: 1-800-665-4828   or 306-254-2040
Fax:      1-306-254-2612
Web:    http://www.link.ca/~lex/
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