I was watching this documentary on Finland’s education system and how their children score drastically higher than most other countries. Mainly the difference being shorter school hours, less homework (if any), and no multiple choice exams. It got me thinking about how the American school system is completely the opposite. But why you may ask? I believe it comes down to the following:
- School is essentially free childcare for adults who work long hours at inflexible jobs
- Multiple choice exams prepare students for standardized testing, bringing the focus of their education on these tests and not actual learning
- Homework primes children to be working constantly, taking away time from friends, activities, sports, and relaxation (which is essential to learning)
- Students who show high aptitudes for learning are rewarded with extra homework, harder classes, with the promise of “better opportunities” (sound familiar?)
- Education in the U.S. is not about the children, it’s about measuring productivity
Finland is well-known for their happy citizens and productivity. Americans? Not so much. Our whole system, starting with early childhood education, is centered around how much can be extracted from the labor of its citizens. Leading to a plethora of other issues. Mainly our health (physical and mental), poverty, and declining birth rates.
Starting with the fact that Americans are notoriously unhealthy, suffering from the highest rates of heart disease and diabetes in the world. The result of long work hours and lack of affordable healthy food options. After a working 9-12 hour days, 5 days a week, the last thing you want to do is go home and cook. Especially if you didn’t have enough time to go to the grocery store that week. So what do you do? You stop and get fast food, go home, go to sleep, rinse wash repeat. Weekends are spent doing chores and catching up on all the sleep you missed during the work week. If you’re lucky you have enough money/energy to spend time with friends and family.
The work does not end when you leave your job. How much free time do you actually get in a day? A few hours, if that? God forbid you have children. The promise of the ‘American Dream,’ dangling in front of our faces like a carrot on a stick. If you work hard enough, one day you’ll have all the things you’ve ever wanted. Most of us are beginning to realize this is not the case. Most of us work to afford the basics in our lives. Paying rent/mortgage for a home where you spend less time at than your job. Groceries you need to feed your family. Bills you need to pay to keep the water and electricity on. Childcare you need for your children so you can provide the basics. We’re fucking tired.
Your life is at the mercy of how much can be extracted from your labor. Politicians revoke labor laws to make it so we work longer and harder. Unions are demonized by employers so workers can be further exploited. Our livelihoods are based on a constant cycle of recovering from burnout. We don’t have a choice, we’ve never had a choice.
We are groomed into contributing to this system. If all you’ve ever known is constant work, then that’s just what you do. And it all starts as a child when you are enrolled in school.
The thing about burnout is it’s not sustainable. Sooner or later it will reach a breaking point. We can’t continue in a system like this, we’re depressed, unhealthy, and most of all we are tired.