We appear to be at a point in new-age society whereby trophies are awarded to people purely for participation, whether you achieved anything of value or not. The older-age order values apparently say: 'mostly not'.
Think of this statement:
'Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.' Thomas Edison The light bulb inventor and founder of General Electric.
Looking at the bigger picture of our greater educational system with the competency of people who have been in charge, and the dismal bucket of results that are out there, we HAVE TO find a way to augment the process in a positive way. Facts are facts. There are, fortunately, many isolated pockets of excellence which are mostly privatised that contradict this statement.
Privatised, hmm…? Let's not even go down the road of finger-pointing, as it ain't gonna achieve anything.
Simply put, we need to allow young minds to be exposed to opportunities in an Affordable and effective way.
'I think one of the greatest blessings that can be bestowed on a young child is that of being wildly enthusiastic and absolutely obsessed with something that can lead towards fulfilment, happiness and success. This could be in the fields of sport, music, farming, medicine, law, machinery, computers, zoology, or whatever else…. the list is endless.'
Scully Levine Master Air Pilot.
Recipient of The Order of the Baobab (Bronze) for his contribution to aviation as a pilot and trainer. From his great book 'Punching holes in the Sky'.
A highly recommended read from a true legend in South African aviation.
So, we are looking at creating enthusiasm in the junior pond of learners.
To achieve this, we need to create tiny steps that can encourage and reward those who choose to engage. Part of our problem is that there are a lot of 'pit-toilet and no-electricity' schools out there, that have students with keen minds and huge hopes that we need to access, besides all the more mid and upper tier schools.Those tiny practical steps we need are to enable both soft and hard skills development. (For the older general population, that means theory and practical…) We have to do it with the important background knowledge that the parents and teachers may also not have those skills required to achieve this.
With the utmost trepidation, I must therefore reluctantly address the 'Elephant in the Room'.
This problem is not going to be fixed in most of our schools or homes.
We need to cure it with a combination of modern technology, old school Methods, common sense and plain hard work. We need to get my Dad into every willing household and school yard across the land.
Introducing 'DAD in a CAN.'
The real-life simulator that was part carrot & part stick, with a gleam in his eye and another clever trick up his sleeve to show us how the world (and aviation & science) actually works. He let us bump our heads, burn our fingers and actually make the discoveries together. We need the kids to get that 'up close and personal', in a way that it is simple, repeatable and cost effective.
We are going to offer the real Simulator of Life. And we know just how to do it.
Until next time, cheers.
You don't need a parachute to go skydiving. You only need it if you are going to do it twice. Anon
