Yesterday my brother showed me a video. He wiggled his fingers at me and mouthed come here. I looked over his shoulder to his phone screen, expecting to see one of his many baseball videos or some new funny meme that he found. I was surprised to see his eyes glued to a video of a man, dressed in a smooth grey suit and a soft gold tie. This man stood unflinchingly in a courtroom in front of balding judge and blank faced jury. The caption of the video read in all caps, “HE JUST SUED THE SCHOOL SYSTEM.”
As I watched the video I began to understand why my thirteen year old brother was so awestruck. The opening line was, “Albert Einstein once said everybody’s a genius.. but if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing it is stupid.” This suited, nameless man then proceeded to do exactly what the title claimed, he put our modern day school system on trial.
This man talks about the rigidness of our school system, how we put students into one giant box in which a letter grade define their intelligence and worth. He tells the jury that we focus on regularity instead of creativity. Day in and day out, kids go to school and are told what to think and how to think it. How are we supposed to expect an innovative and motivated next generation when we put so much emphasis on getting a grade, even if that means sacrificing and neglecting our own opinions. “Sure, math is important,” he says. “But no more than art or dance- let’s give every gift an equal chance.” We all have different strengths and weaknesses but can you imagine a world in which a boy’s love of dance was valued as much as his grade in math?
I think the reason why this video spoke so much to my brother was that he could relate to it. I think almost every kid can relate to that fish. We’re all trying to climb that tree. I don’t know what we think is at the top- another A perhaps, maybe approval from our parents. But I think the point which this suited man is trying to make is that it’s okay for us to not be great at everything. And what I got from the video is that the education system should put less emphasis on the grade you receive and more on helping kids find what they’re passionate about and encouraging them to pursue whatever it may be.
And while I have the luxury of going to a school that gives me space for creativity and provides countless opportunities for innovation, many, like my brother perhaps don’t. Regardless of whether or not you believe his argument, the fact that this video has gone viral, and that carefree thirteen year olds like my brother are showing it to me, says something pretty powerful about its content.
This is the link to the video: https://www.facebook.com/viralthread/videos/569410...
https://www.facebook.com/viralthread/videos/569410533248648/?__mref=message_bubble
