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As school systems seem to continually focus on college preparation courses, I would once again like to stress the importance of the arts in schools. This time I am talking about industrial arts.
There are probably a dozen good reasons why the industrial arts should be covered in a school curriculum, including boys and girls of all ages, and many of these reasons are more important than you realize at first. seen. The first reason relates to the very purpose of a school – to expose and educate children in many different areas, the more exposure the better.
This ties in with the fact that there are seven different types of intelligence, and the modern school only focuses and rewards two or three at best. The industrial arts, for those too young to remember, essentially mean making things with their hands and learning to use a variety of tools, including power tools, which are extensions of your hands.
There are a lot of kids in school who are kinesthetic learners, and the industrial arts play to their advantage, opening up whole new avenues for them to be successful in addition to sitting at desks all day. Come to think of it, all kids would benefit from not sitting at a desk all day.
Planning a project and carrying it out requires a lot of reading, writing and math. These skills are absorbed much faster by children when they are anchored in something real rather than in a sometimes sterile classroom. There is nothing quite like focusing the mind when there is a goal, such as not destroying a six hour project because you made a mistake in the measures, as opposed to learning fractions. today just because an adult said so.
And if kids see the purpose behind reading, writing, and math, it really helps the teacher come back to the classroom to teach those subjects. Suddenly the classroom is not so sterile anymore.
Another positive asset of the industrial arts is confidence building, which spills over into other aspects of a child’s education and life. Learning to use the tools correctly under guided supervision not only strengthens boys, but also, in important ways, girls. Breaking stereotypes and learning new skills is truly liberating and the ability to do a good job with your hands and be able to make or fix things is a gift that continues to fade into adulthood.
The inner confidence that comes to a child who is able to imagine, plan, create and build something is invaluable and acts as a propellant that fuels their walk from childhood to positive adulthood.
The importance of schools providing opportunities for children through the industrial arts is understood when one thinks of all the children who might never have these experiences if they were left on their own. If a school does not offer these experiences and guided education, who will?
Many parents do not have the experience or even the money to provide what a well-trained and stocked school can provide and would absolutely love their child to come home excited about what he has done at the school. school that day. The school would provide a service not only to parents, but to society at large by producing students who are not only educated, but well-balanced.
The icing on the cake is that when a good industrial arts program works well, students and teachers can make products that are sold to the public, thus helping the program to sustain itself while also involving families and teachers. the community in a show of support. at a time. There was a time when the Gadsden Technical Institute made, sealed and wired laptops in the school system.
The benefits of an industrial arts program of some kind at all age levels are valuable in several ways.
Bill Hoatson has been an educator in the Big Bend area for 30 years. Contact him at billhoatson@yahoo.com, or visit childachievement.com.
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