THE PASSIONATE PURSUIT OF IMPERFEKTION

I want you to fail. I want you to mess up, fall, trip, and spill. On purpose -- please -- if possible.

I say if possible because in a world where stats are valued above human connections, making mistakes and being wrong are not allowed. 

The character fueled pursuit of excellence and the grace of perfection have been hacked by perfectionism. Quality is key, but when quests for quality become pageants for perfection, then learning takes a back seat to impressing, showing off, and getting it right.

It's understood in schools from east to west that a hand raised with a wrong answer better have the 'right' one next time -- if there's even a next time.

Education from the Latin, educare means to draw out or as Thomas Moore reminds us in An Education of the Heart, education is an eduction, not an induction -- it's not about stuffing a bunch of facts into humans, but drawing out the best, the true, the rich, deep real.

But, opening up can be frightening. Vulnerability is a skill rarely taught.  A safe space is essential so the wings of tender new insights may dry.

When education is allowed to be awkward (human) within a worthy structure, students can wander, wonder, frustrate and flourish. Real learning happens. Then, truths and insights for student and teacher alike, abound.

Flowskool fails, again.