It may seem, at face value, like a straightforward question: What is the purpose of school?

But this seemingly simple question has created immense division between educators, parents, politicians, and students across the USA.

Today, to help clarify this question, I've invited Ted Dintersmith, who The Washington Post calls the “Bill Gates” of education, and the top performing Venture Capitalist of 1995-1996 to pick his brain on the topic.

This is part 1 of a 2-part series on the Future of School in America.

Ted On the General Purpose of The School:

According to Ted, school should be for preparing kids for career citizenship and, importantly, purposeful lives. But the reality in America is that schools prepare children for standardized tests, college applications, and more school.

"The difference between these two is grander than the Grand Canyon," he said.

Ted On What Makes These Two Purposes So Different

He spoke at length about how those standardized tests and diagnostic measures could benefit kids in the early grades. But it goes wrong when we amp up the intensity of these tests as the kids get older when we should be getting rid of them.

Because these tests only reward students for short-term memorization capabilities and penalize kids for thinking creatively and trying out different answers.

We're pushing kids to excel on things that aren't even relevant anymore, like fact-based recall capabilities, when we have machine intelligence for that.

We need creative, entrepreneurial, and outside-the-box thinking kids that can leverage available resources, but sadly, those are considered a recipe for troublesome students in our society today.

These days, society and the education system measure a child's intelligence by how much they can memorize.

"The thing I beg college boards to do, which they are very reluctant to do, and the thing I beg schools to do which they don't have any interest in doing, is to evaluate students one to three months after they've taken an exam and see how much they retained. When it's done anecdotally, the results are incredibly revealing. The students that aced these tests don't remember most of it two months after the tests," Ted Dintersmith.

Ted, a Native Analog, on what he thinks is the difference between the modern-day school system and that of his time.

According to Ted, there are quite a few similarities between his school experience (of decades ago) and today.

Unfortunately, there’s WAY too much that’s the same. There is very little innovation.

"Are these kids better prepared? I think they're worse prepared. Are they enjoying it? No. Are we robbing them of their childhood? Yes." ~ Ted Dintersmith.

All this is because state legislators couldn't create better standards for learning. As human beings, we have so many innovative ideas within us. We must tap into them and not let the bureaucratic system dictate.

This episode was all about the problems we see in the education system. Tune in for Part 2 where we discuss possibilities for the future and solutions.

About Ted Dintersmith:

Check out Ted’s Book: What School Could Be

Let’s hear about Ted, from Ted:

I have an unusual vantage point on the future of our children and our nation. I spent my career in the world of innovation, and my track record there suggests I might know a bit about it. And over the past decade, I’ve immersed myself in the world of education. I don’t claim to have the expertise our classroom teachers have, and I respect their insights — celebrate them, actually. But I have insights into the world our children will live in as adults, and the ways this future ought to affect the way we educate children. I fight every day to do what I can to help give children a creative, uplifting education that prepares them to lead lives of purpose. Make no mistake, the challenges are serious. But so are the opportunities.

In 2018, I formed an education non-profit with Sir Ken Robinson. Tragically, Sir Ken passed away in August 2020. But our efforts have carried forward and developed into the remarkable online WhatSchoolCouldBe community for innovative educators, along with the powerful Innovation Playlist change model. If you are a change agent seeking to elevate life and learning outcomes for the children in your world, this community offers unparalleled support, with compelling resources, like-minded and supportive educators, and an authentic sense of what is possible. All for free to you, your school, and your district.

During the 2015-2016 school year, I went to all fifty states, visiting some 200 schools. I was stunned by the innovative classrooms and schools I found across the country. My new book, titled What School Could Be: Insights and Inspiration from Teachers Across America, brings these stories to readers. I highlight the common elements of the powerful learning experiences I observed, and the ways leaders can change schools at scale by putting in place the conditions that let teachers and students thrive. You can order the book here.

I organized and funded Most Likely to Succeed, a feature-length documentary on education that was directed by the remarkable Greg Whiteley. The film has been an official selection of thirty major film festivals, including Sundance. To date, more than 10,000 communities in some 35 countries around the globe have screened the film, using it as a powerful resource to spark discussion and inspire change. Here’s how you or your school can view it.

Along with thought leader and friend Tony Wagner, I co-authored the book Most Likely to Succeed: Preparing Our Kids for the Innovation Era. Check out this Chicago Tribune review and order a copy.

I describe how my education journey got started in this TEDx Talk. PBS Hawai’i did a thirty-minute Long Story, Short piece on my work, and you’ll learn quite a bit about me by watching it.

In 2012, I was appointed by President Obama to represent the U.S. at the United Nations General Assembly, where I focused on education and youth entrepreneurship. I think academic credentials are overweighted, but for those curious, I graduated from the College of William and Mary with High Honors in English and Physics and went on to get a PhD in Engineering from Stanford, where I also taught.

I’m on a mission to help catalyze and accelerate progress in our schools. We need to equip our children with skillsets and mindsets that are essential in a world of innovation. I can’t overstate how fast machine intelligence is accelerating (and this short video makes the point). No school can be complacent. My travels have convinced me that our best path forward is to let our teachers do what they entered the profession to do — engage and inspire our kids — and draw on their insights into how best to transform our schools.

Connect with Ted:

LinkedIn profile: click here

Official website: click here

Twitter: click here

Facebook: click here