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John Taylor Gatto's Against School

1112 Words5 Pages

The purpose of education is to improve our thinking which can lead to success. Defining modern schooling and its effectiveness proves to be quite controversial. Based on how the unsatisfactory system is run and the claim that it produces immaturity causes people to start questioning if mandatory schooling is really necessary to achieve an education.
School determines the type of education a student is allowed to receive based on their social class meaning that the upper class may have access to better books and programs while the poor can not. John Taylor Gatto stated in his essay, "Against School," that the American education system adopted its concept from the Prussian system; one idea that instilled separating and educating students based on …show more content…

"...to dumb people down, to demoralize them, left them sitting ducks..." (Gatto 613) It is suggested that schooling only releases idiotic and immature people out into the world. However, Alexie and Douglass are prime examples to display disagreement with Gatto’s claim. Alexie believes each person can overcome a challenge and present their "genius" if they tried. “I refused to fail… I read books late into the night until I could barely keep my eyes open.” (Alexie 36) Alexie’s idea contradicts Gatto because he chose to put in the effort to learn and prevail over the stereotypes labeled on Indians. He had the desire to teach his students about the power of reading and learning because he was previously in the same place as them. Douglass always brought his book with him whenever he was sent on errands to make friends with the white boys in order to attain some sort of knowledge. It is one’s own choice to whether or not they want to succeed. The brain holds knowledge and it can be used to educate; leaving behind the restrictions put on students by

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