Educators boast that they teach their students how to think. Laymen tend to favor a colder, more credible story about what kids learn in school: discipline and socialization. Life isn’t a picnic—or a game of solitaire. Schools build discipline by making students show up on time, sit still, keep their mouths shut, follow orders, and stay awake. Schools build social skills by making students cooperate, manage conflict, work as a team, dress nicely, and speak properly. The typical worker spends the day doing boring work in a hierarchical organization. Perhaps education acclimates children to
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