Classrooms of the Heart - John Gatto (1991)

[Vote4RonPaulLiberty]

"...without fear, contempt, or mockery of lives that are more unfortunate than their own..."

Beautifully stated.

[MuzotAi]

these kids back then are way smarter then the new generation, I know because I am one of them myself (although I am not a sheep following the others). All kids care about is sex, games, money drugs/intoxicants.

....

[REASONINFUSION]

@MuzotAi All kids care about are Sex, games, money, drugs/intoxicants because they think that is all there is to life! if you look at all of those desires, they are all used to numb themselves to the reality of what the world demands of them. Happiness without those things only come about when you are happy with who you are and have been allowed to be.

[Sabriyah21]

this guy is saying what should be common sence--too bad it's not common to most people who refuse to believe that school is not the only way to learn. Common sence, for example when he said we turn our kids into parasites--he is right, history has 13 year boys leading countries, being great worriors and scholars, kings and resouces for their families. When are we going to stop fushing good years of our childrens lives down the la trine.

[Pentazoid111]

An "education" bureaucrat thumbed down this video.

[annecollierful]

Afterthought on viewing this now in the context of working for 21st-century teaching and learning in school/out of school: What struck me most about talking with John, meeting and talking with his students, watching one of his classes, etc., was his respect for his students. I love what you captured in this edit of my TV piece, what he said about how there is no thought in philosophy or civ that isn't accessible to a 13-yr-old mind. Only 1 example of that respect. Tx again 4 posting this.

[PracticalTheorist]

@annecollierful And thank you for making the piece! There are too few reporters who actually do useful clips like this one, so thank you for illuminating a true american hero!

[annecollierful]

Can't believe I ran across this. I was the reporter on this story - actually a 3-part series - which won a Unity Award in '91 or '92, and which John had edited (nicely) into a single piece. Susan Kerr was my producer on this (for World Monitor, then a nightly news show on The Discovery Channel). John was then New York State Teacher of the Year. Loved working on this project with you and your students, John!

Anne Collier

Net Family News

[SavvyHorseTutor]

John Gatto has spoken what needs to be said. People who take responsibility for their own learning experience will be people who take responsibility in other areas of life as well. Spoon-feeding and indoctrination as is found in the process of humanistic institutionalized schools will never result in genuine learning; rather, the result will be a brainwash and systematic approach to robotizing future worker bees who consume rather than give.

[ET253]

I would love to see this guy have a conversation with William Cooper. It's a damn shame and one of the great tragedies of our time that this will never happen and especially that he has to be subjected to the likes of Alex Clones instead.

[seedalite]

This is great stuff! I always thought I was a misfit at school and never did well in corporatized America either.When I began to find myself I did much better.Sadly that rendition of the American Dream got stopped cold with the destruction of the economy and the rise of paying career fields in areas that demand college degrees,sucking many back into the same crap.Also this shows it wasn't taking prayer out of school that causes problems - it was taking the brains out of school that did it!

[sawaugust]

he is a real teatcher that is how school should be education is something only you can teach yourself but ofcorse teatchers try to force us the lisen to stupid junk that we dont relly care about i like this guy he knows what he istalking about.

[insaneforstuff254]

At every minute of this video and every comment on this video I am becoming more and more inspired. Thank you for posting this excellent documentary.

[darlingelf]

I live in Finland, a thoroughly modern welfare state, and one of the most thoroughly institutionalised societies imaginable. Everything that has been said about the detrimental effect of institutionalisation on community and intellectual life applies to this society. Finns are not encouraged to be independently minded, and they don't really understand what community is, but they do know how to consult the experts. It all starts from the schooling system which discourages critical thinking.

[purplekitty627]

" Self-knowledge is the key to the good life. Self-knowledge requires large periods of privacy. Time spent testing who you are and what your limits are. This can't take place while someone's filling your time with orders, or tests, or wonderful activity."

This is why children come out of school not knowing themselves!!!!!

[purplekitty627]

What a statement. "You would be your own teacher."

[hianda]

So that's what he looks like! I came across his book "Dumbing Us Down" at my local library, and have just started reading it.

[hetoame]

This man's book, "The Underground History of American Education" is a shattering expose. You must read it. It changed my perspective on history and education. Three cheers for JTGatto!!

[adissenter2]

go read his book titled The Underground History of American Education for free at johntaylorgatto dot com

[marsgary]

This is a great man indeed.

[yakata79]

Wow. Now HE is a teacher I'd like to have. Prayfertrey, bpope123, I agree with you two.

Reform is needed.

[prayfertrey]

I can see some ppl. mistaking this as another call for some kind of reform... the only reform needed is for coerced instruction to be abolished. It's destructive and amounts to psychological abuse. And it teaches parents not to be good parents because they think the school will do it for them.

[Vote4RonPaulLiberty]

@prayfertrey Amen.

[bpope123]

I agree. What the greatest minds in the world should be attempting to figure out is: how we humans should live our lives; what are we here for. I believe this practical experience and an introduction to philosophy might be invaluable. The only subject that takes some abstract reasoning skills is math. Further more, if they are able to extrapolate using basic logic in philosophy, then math should be a breeze.