INTRODUCTION
Before a successful decision can be made in any field, one must first define success and defend the criteria for the evaluation of that success. The seemingly obvious task of education is to prepare a young person for a successful adulthood. This, of course, begs the question what is successful adulthood? Psychologists, philosophers and economists may disagree on the topic of successful adulthood but, for practical purposes, let’s define it as a happy, productive individual who leads a life of purpose and meaning. What that looks like, exactly, is up to the individual.

It should be the educator’s and/or educational system’s task to prepare a young person for a successful adulthood by moving them towards that ultimate goal with the greatest level of efficiency, to maximize the quality of their investment of time and energy, and to flexibly nurture choice and diversity, dependent on the individual’s interests and aptitudes. Our current system does neither. (more…)