Thank you so much for this very thoughtful article. I especially agree with your remarks about boys needing a school curriculum that involves A LOT more physical activity. American school children don’t get nearly enough time oudoors to play and learn in a natural setting and I think it has had a really detrimental effect on the last few generations of children.
I saw on my youngest boy. He was racing ahead in terms of reading and math while in pre-school. And our Norwegian pre-school is not academically oriented at all. There is no formal teaching of reading, writing or anything like that. It is primarily play oriented. He mainly learned from play board games at home, reading comics and stuff like that. He had a lot of curiosity.
But school really killed that. It was very hard to deal with. While he was in principle one of the really bright students, he was simply not ready for a such a controlled environment where you had to sit still all the time.
I really believe the first two years of elementary school should be more like pre-school. Emphasis should be much more on playing, movement and curiosity.
Norwegian school is not too bad. I don't know the US system that well but I am married to an American so I get some insights. Generally there is probably more play and practical work in our schools. We also nearly always have schools in natural surroundings. There are rocks and trees to climb.
But that is still a far cry from how pre-school works here.
Thanks, I think lots of people point to the problem and suggest solutions, but the problem is often that their "solutions" is some kind of reactionary fascism of dialing back the clock to traditional society eroding women's rights.
I am doing my best to try to think about how we can fix the problems men face without taking away hard earned freedoms from women. Also I don't really prescribe to the idea that men are worse off today.
Certainly men have new problems they didn't have before. But I think most men today should be happy that we are not sent off to countless wars, risk our life and limb out on stormy seas. Life used to be very brutal. I think a lot of men who complain loudly today do not realize how privilege we are as people living in the societies we live today.
It does not mean we should shut up and stop complaining. We should always push for something better. But it is misguided to think the past was better. We need to move forward.
Thank you so much for this very thoughtful article. I especially agree with your remarks about boys needing a school curriculum that involves A LOT more physical activity. American school children don’t get nearly enough time oudoors to play and learn in a natural setting and I think it has had a really detrimental effect on the last few generations of children.
I saw on my youngest boy. He was racing ahead in terms of reading and math while in pre-school. And our Norwegian pre-school is not academically oriented at all. There is no formal teaching of reading, writing or anything like that. It is primarily play oriented. He mainly learned from play board games at home, reading comics and stuff like that. He had a lot of curiosity.
But school really killed that. It was very hard to deal with. While he was in principle one of the really bright students, he was simply not ready for a such a controlled environment where you had to sit still all the time.
I really believe the first two years of elementary school should be more like pre-school. Emphasis should be much more on playing, movement and curiosity.
Norwegian school is not too bad. I don't know the US system that well but I am married to an American so I get some insights. Generally there is probably more play and practical work in our schools. We also nearly always have schools in natural surroundings. There are rocks and trees to climb.
But that is still a far cry from how pre-school works here.
You point out important differences and ways to address the problems that arise. Thank you.
Thanks, I think lots of people point to the problem and suggest solutions, but the problem is often that their "solutions" is some kind of reactionary fascism of dialing back the clock to traditional society eroding women's rights.
I am doing my best to try to think about how we can fix the problems men face without taking away hard earned freedoms from women. Also I don't really prescribe to the idea that men are worse off today.
Certainly men have new problems they didn't have before. But I think most men today should be happy that we are not sent off to countless wars, risk our life and limb out on stormy seas. Life used to be very brutal. I think a lot of men who complain loudly today do not realize how privilege we are as people living in the societies we live today.
It does not mean we should shut up and stop complaining. We should always push for something better. But it is misguided to think the past was better. We need to move forward.