That's awesome and I agree with you.* I had a similar experience
with music. I took boring lessons. I mastered the pieces enough
then would go and do my own thing, changing them around and
stuff. They tried to convince Mom to send me to Julliard when i
was in 5th grade.* After a few months of special lessons to
prepare for it, I said, "Please Mom, No."* and she agreed.* I'm
glad too.* It wasn't the life for me. I don't have a problem
with a few things being learned "by rote" - but if it's gonna be
rote, make it songs and music; singing and writing and drawing;
make it interesting.* But if it were up to me, beyond some
really basic basics in math + english and stuff, I'd let kids
loose and encourage them to explore what interests them... and
teach the math/english/science/whatever from WITHIN the areas
that interest them. If they're obsessed with Pokemon... ok,
then, help me design a Pokemon curriculum for other kids - and
I'd make it the job of the student to help me design a class to
teach younger students these concepts using THEIR obsession...
ALL THE WHILE... I'd be sliding in all of the concepts they'd
need for that year's class.* And I'd continue like that.* If
they got bored with Pokemon... use whatever the next obsession
was. Why?* Because kids get obsessed with things that are WAY
more complicated then school subjects.* What makes school hard
is that is uses old fashioned techniques, old fashioned
language, old fashioned 'stuff'.* It's annoying :)* But I dunno
- this is just one of 1000 ideas I have that would never fly.
---- You guys are awesome!* Yeah, I agree with you both.* To
me, I'd let the INTERESTS of the students guide the curriculum.
If someone showed artistic tendencies young and they WANTED to
pursue it, I'd spent 80% of the time on that, and 20% on other
subjects just so they're rounded. If they get bored... and no
longer interested in it and find something else interesting,
then explore that 80% of the way, with 20% to "all the other
stuff"... and I don't see why reason why math/science/music
couldn't be incorporated easily into cartooning.* You could do
what you love and maybe the other subjects would get put in the
CONTEXT of cartooning, like, "here's how a mathematician would
see what you do"... and you'd get some practical stuff that
could actually be useful perhaps - and perhaps not.. but at
least it would be related to something real and important to
you.
