Joking but... not for fun?

(Baonghean) - Recently, the information about the results of a small "social survey" of 45 12th grade students (specialized class) by a teacher in a mountainous district of another province made anyone interested think. The survey results showed that 45/45 students went to school by bicycle; of which only 3 students could distinguish between a sprocket and a disc, 10 students could tell the difference between a tire and... an inner tube. As for repairing a bicycle, not a single student knew how; 4 students knew how to swim, 15 students knew how to cook, 17 students regularly washed dishes, 5 students read books, but had to read secretly because their parents forbade it.

Although there is no agreement on the method (scope, number of participants) of the above small "social survey", a PR expert told the press, "Children are different now, from morning to night they are surrounded by K. pop (Korean music), US, UK. pop (American/British music); movies are only Korean movies, American movies... In class, students only talk about famous people, entertaining stories on social networking sites. Schools tend to encourage good subjects in the main curriculum which are too heavy on Literature, Math, theory, while neglecting subjects that develop the whole person. Natural sciences overwhelm social sciences." I know it's a lame comparison, but students at a time a few decades ago lacked everything, especially books, newspapers, and didn't have the internet, but practical knowledge was very rich and diverse. Leaving home to a new environment meant being able to fend for themselves and survive.

Another reality that almost everyone knows is that children today are crammed with all kinds of knowledge in textbooks and reference books. The phenomenon of primary school students carrying a backpack of books and notebooks haunts many parents, but it is impossible not to do so. Studying at home is not enough, parents compete to let their children take extra classes... The school and parents are unintentionally turning children into robots, not to mention selfishness, being used to being served and enjoying. There is a phenomenon where many children are very good at studying, but when they come to a strange environment, they are confused "like buffaloes wearing hats". Although it was a "for fun" survey as some people said, it warned of a reality: many students now have many favorable conditions in studying and entertainment, but they lack life skills and skills to proactively respond to situations that arise in life.

That error surely was not caused by you?

Viet Long