Haywood, Carl. (2004). Thinking In, Around, and About The Curriculum: the role cognitive education. International Journal of Disability, Development and Education, 51.

What struck me the most about this article was the author’s assertion that although there seem to be unanimous agreement that educational reform is needed, no one can agree about the problems plaguing education. To play devil’s advocate, my question is whether or not it is possible to put the education world in a box like this. Are there problems that schools all across the country seem to be facing? Or are they more multifaceted than that? Moreover, even if we can identify some common issues that the education world is facing, it is very possible that they may stem from a variety of underlying factors (with one not remotely like the other). Although the author acknowledge the problem that no can find any common ground on the nature of these problems or their remedies, he does little to actually identify what these problems are. Rather, he just side steps them and focuses on his underlying assumption that the one reform that should be pushed through is that of cognitive education.

Although I’ve been critical of the author’s failure to elaborate on these common problems, I agree with Haywood’s assertion that there needs to be a greater emphasis on cognitive education. As he defines it, cognitive education requires students to think increasingly critically about the world and to “learn how to learn”. As the U.S. economy becomes more tech and information-based, it is imperative that our children acquire this important skill. If you are able to think logically and take on new problems, then it is my belief that you are able to enter any field that you desire with a little bit of hard work and training of course.

On another note, I also found Haywood’s argument that the landscape of education is constantly changing extremely interesting because I never really imagined education as something that is fluid and always in motion. In particular, the author argues that as societies evolve and change, the people of each society change their minds about what body of knowledge should be passed onto posterity changes as well. Accordingly, the educational practices that were used in the past may no longer be the best way to go about teaching new knowledge and new skills. Take for example, the advent of the personal computer and the Internet. Whereas in the past, typing was not a skill that employers looked for in their applicants; now, employers assume that you know how to type because it is something that the entire business world functions on. From my limited experience as a teacher, I often find that educators are not keeping up with the changes occurring in our society. We need to do a better job of responding to new knowledge and new skills and integrating them into our curriculum as soon and as seamlessly as possible. This may require looking at other models or different ways other countries run their educational systems. You can only get better by learning from the best. It’s time we do so for the sake of our keiki.