American architect, writer, and educator Frank Lloyd Wright warned us of the expert when he wrote, “An expert is a man who has stopped thinking. Why should he think? He is an Expert”. I share these thoughts not as an expert but rather, as a public-school educator who has not succumbed to the collectivist commitment to mediocrity in Ontario schools.
This blog is organized around themes related to three pervasive ideologies within Ontario’s education system. These include the myth of academic integrity, the false prophet of equity, and the teacher quality fable.
The Myth of Academic Integrity
Speak with any educator and all will proclaim their commitment to academic integrity. Yet, evidence of waning academic integrity manifests itself daily. As one example, students who copy, plagiarize, or cheat are no longer punished. Rather, teachers are to inform the student’s parents of this minor transgression, and reverently advise them that the instance will be ignored, and the assignment or test will be omitted in calculating the final grade.
Aside from snubbing a basic educational value, there are consequences to ignoring cheaters. In fact, Ontario’s education system incentivizes cheaters by allowing them to bypass difficult assignments or tests if they cheat by simply not calculating the grade. The message heard by students? Cheat and we will ensure the assignment never really existed.