What School Reform?

I recently attended an English class that was held in our library's Rare Works Collection Room. We are studying John Milton in this class (yes, that's the reason for the Milton interjections in a few of my earlier posts). So, anyway, we are studying John Milton and went to this library's room to see some of the earlier additions of his work. This is like being let down into the gold mine to dig around for a while to an English major. We are down there for class and our professor pulls out copies of Milton's "Paradise Lost" from the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries. We are getting a look at some of the earliest prints of the greatest epic written in the English language; this is incredible stuff. We are looking at handcrafted paintings within handmade bindings that have lasted for these passed 400 years. And inside the cover of these books what should I find but the scribbled doodles of a student who's grandson has long since been buried.

This really puts it into perspective for you. Look back to your high school years and think of the kid in the back spacing out drawing pictures in the school book (maybe it was you, I know it was me every now and then). And that's the book that survives beyond all others. It wasn't the guy who kept his in great condition or even the guy who bothered never to read it and just threw it in his library mint condition. Nope, we get the copy of the person who had to practice the way he wrote his "s." Not that I'm complaining about a little dirt on this piece of literary gold I'm holding in my hands.

It just gets me thinking--400 years ago they were studying grammar, Latin, rhetoric, and science (among many other things). And they reacted the same way then that we do now...blocking out the teacher's voice and idly scribbling as you day dream. So school reform, what school reform? Classes, times, teachers may have changed but have the students? We all have a desire to learn and we all have our moments of daydreaming no matter how much the system changes. And these doodlers have written epics, formed free governments, created the atomic bomb, cured polio and small pox. With as much stress that is put on the school system, those imperfect letters written on the cover of a 400 year old book put my mind at ease. So what I have to say is to the young dreamers--scribble on to great things as many have done before you.