How would you know? Very few of us are capable of learning at the limits of the human mind. Trouble is, we don't know that. Yes, we've all met people who seem dull, and others that seem smart. We're comparing those people to ourselves. My point here is that before we can embark on fixing learning, we need to have goals. What needs fixing? What aren't so many people getting as they grow up? What are we capable of, and how do we currently compare? And most importantly, how can we turn around what is clearly a trend of decline in realized brain power?
For now, let me leave you with a little story that illustrates where I'm coming from.
Back in the 70's I worked for an aerospace company that had an educational systems division. At that time they had a contract from the country of Iran to implement a school to teach people how to fix and maintain cars and trucks. The Shah of Iran was dedicated to helping his people move into the modern world.
The school was built, complete with service bays. On the occasion of the graduation of the first class, the Minister of Education attended. After the usual speeches and awards, he went out and drove his big Mercedes into one of the service bays and asked the students to rotate his tires. Several of the top students went over to the car and started walking around, perplexed. They couldn't figure out where to start.
The reason: The wheels had hubcaps.
If this left you with a hollow feeling in the pit of your stomach, then you understand what I'm trying to do.
