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Education should not be an exercise for instant gratification Interestingly, the results showed that the two are not synonymous, particularly when it comes to achieving success in subjects like mathematics and science. That is something that the American educational system and parents should take note of, and consider very carefully. For more than a decade, our schools have placed an emphasis on how students feel about themselves, their self esteem and sense of self worth, often bypassing the importance of valid criticism, hard work, sacrifice and responsibility. And, in some instances, this mindset has been taken to the extreme, resulting in the social promotion of ill-equipped and educationally unprepared students from one grade to another. Teachers can't use red pen to mark answers wrong, even when they are, because it assaults a child's sensibilities, and we have to find new ways for learning the times tables and understanding fractions, even if they are less effective, because it's too tough to memorize them. Simply put, we shouldn't make our kids unhappy. The results of the Brookings study highlights the impact of this mumbo-jumbo philosophy. When a "feel good" approach is taken to studying something tough, like math, student achievement falls. In countries where achievement is given priority over satisfaction, students excel, even when they acknowledge that they don't like the work.
While it's nice to have research to point this out to us, it's ironic that the question should have to be asked in the first place. The study of mathematics is like the study of life. Sometimes it's difficult and boring and doesn't leave you giddy with delight. Often we'd rather be doing something else, but if we want to live and compete successfully in a tough world, the calculation has to look like this: hard work plus sacrifice equals achievement, which can then be multiplied into success. The result is an increased level of self esteem and "feeling good" about yourself throughout your life. Now sit down and do your homework!
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