Schools 'too safe', teachers say | Hacker News Reader

Schools 'too safe', teachers say

news.bbc.co.uk

22 pointswinanga7 comments

Yes, and instead of creating kids that are adaptable, we're creating ones that are weak.

If someone tries to prepare for every possible contingency, kids grow up under the grand illusion that not much can go wrong, and then crumble when they're faced with the smallest unanticipated problem. (Some more along these lines in this article: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/861651.cms )

This is reminiscent of dumbing-down projects in software. :) Something brilliant is created, but over time the original developers move on and there is a push to make the thing maintainable by cheaply-employed people who are relatively mindless automatons. Most of what they do is memorize remedies for the common issues. Their effectiveness is therefore proportional to how predictable the problems are; should something unusual occur, they have no idea how to fix it and their effectiveness goes out the window. So imagine if you're a child, you grow up feeling basically capable of living your own life, only to be given the rudest of awakenings when unexpected things start revealing just how unprepared you really are.

Sorry, but the more I read that link the more skeptical I become of its contents. Children do not commit suicide because they've been coddled and suddenly are scolded by a teacher. They commit suicide because they are fearful of the consequences and are pressured to reach perfection. Being spoiled creates children who would rather blame others than themselves. Suicide just doesn't seem like a likely course of action for them.

What I find particularly disgusting about the situation is that an apparent superintendent of a mental hospital is blaming television because, get this, "On the small-screen, the protagonists commit suicide at the drop of a hat." Right, always easier to blame the media than deeper social problems that go beyond recent trends.

Another thing that seems questionable is that all these children come in with apparent self-inflicted wounds. Since when do spoiled brats hurt themselves? From what I know, self-injury is a silent way of getting attention, something that spoiled kids shouldn't have a problem with.

There is no single reason why suicides happen. I imagine everyone must have different reasons.

I seem to recall that pushing kids to perfection is a huge problem in modern society. We focus too much on everything being perfect when we should instead focus on making sure the child did his/her best. I suppose this is just another instance of that behavior.

Reminds me of Mike Rowe's tech talk: "Maybe we have it wrong when we say 'Safety first.' Maybe it's more like... 'Safety third.'

I wonder how the Internet has affected safety culture in schools. I can do a simple search and get all kinds of crazy school stories-- and then use those to justify any rules I want, if I had happened to be a school administrator.

We joke about this in my flying club. The official rules say "safety first"...but if safety really came first, we would be at home watching TV. Life is dangerous. It is important to take controlled risks, so that you can learn what risks are acceptable and which are not. Besides, perfectly safe translates to perfectly boring. Adventure and fun always come with an element of stress and danger.

But... won't someone think of the children!

Sometimes it seems like that's all one has to say to create an environment like this.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com