Chapter 111 Parents and teachers should play the role of "caddy"

It may seem simple for parents and children, or teachers and students, to "find the answer" through constant conversation, debate, and inquiry, but it is necessary for this kind of education now.It's a pity that there are no prescriptions with special effects in Japanese education, and we can only continue to accumulate some conservative things. Konosuke Matsushita, the founder of Matsushita Electric, only had a primary school education, but he was a genius at asking questions.When encountering any difficult problems, he will ask at least three people for their opinions, and then choose the person who gave the best answer and say: "I will leave this matter to you!"

But today's society has become an "era without answers", and neither parents nor teachers can "give answers".Therefore, parents and teachers should be the runners in the process of "finding answers" for children, allowing children to keep asking questions and thinking with them. It's like that with golf. The first thing that can be determined is the teeing area and the holes on the far side of the lawn.It is up to the player to decide which club to use, which direction to hit, and how to hit it.According to different abilities, some people can get into the hole with one stroke, while others need to hit 5 strokes.Someone has the lofty goal of getting over a water hazard, and someone just wants the ball to land in front of the pool.As long as you follow the rules, the rest depends on how the players perform.

Children are players who are very unfamiliar with golf, so the responsibilities of parents and teachers have completely changed. It is not acceptable for the teacher to directly order "which club to use and where to hit" as before.The best teachers say, "I don't know, let's think about it together," and then look at the wind direction and the lie of the ball with the same eye as the kids, helping them choose clubs and stances.This kind of teacher is like the best caddy, because he can't "teach", he can only "instruct" and "advise", and the same is true for parents.

After the children have mastered the method, encourage them to move forward bravely even if the next step is risky, and cultivate the children into people with such courage. This is the responsibility of parents and teachers in this "era of no answer". I repeat, no one knows the right answer. Federal Reserve (FRB) Governor Bernanke and economists also do not know the solution to the US financial crisis.There is no shame in not knowing, and no need to be afraid.It is very important to use sufficient arguments to theoretically demonstrate one's own ideas. The previous methods have no effect on the "big events" caused by new things such as securitized commodities.We should always see the situation clearly, establish multiple hypotheses, and find solutions while making practical arguments.

Even so, there are many parents who say, "I can't think of anything because I don't have the knowledge." The ability to "think" is actually very easy to form. In short, it is to think immediately and thoroughly. For example, if you go to a nearby fish shop, you can think with the children about how the family of the owner of the fish shop lives.Fish that cannot be sold will spoil, and spoiled fish cannot be eaten by oneself.But if you throw away the spoiled fish, you won't make any money.So what to do?Through thinking and asking, you can know that they have various solutions, such as wholesale fish in small quantities; if it is not fresh, bake or cook it before selling it, and so on.

This may be an extreme example, but in any case, we must let children develop the habit of thinking about things around them from elementary school.Then, at the stage from junior high school to university, we should cultivate the thinking ability that students should have when facing problems like the financial crisis, such as the ability to analyze and solve problems. Specifically, it is to collect relevant information from the Internet and other media, and then try to establish your own hypothesis.This is not asking you to comment like a critic, but asking you to think about what you would do if you were Bernanke, what you would do if you were President Obama, and what you would do if you were the manager of a Japanese company.

Just like this, the most important thing is to regard these problems as your own problems, and to be able to express your own thoughts from a corresponding standpoint.Only those who can do this can adapt to this era, and when they grow up, they can eat well anywhere in the world. As discussed at the beginning of this chapter, the most important thing in education reform is "how to cultivate talents who can quickly adapt to society". Therefore, first of all, children should be formed into "sociality", and then at least let them "master the method of eating well".The former is the responsibility of compulsory education (primary and secondary education), and the latter is mainly the responsibility of universities (higher education).

However, these two are precisely the most lacking in postwar Japanese education.Universities are supposed to be "higher vocational training schools", but the Ministry of Education and Culture has turned the university into an academic place.Industry-university cooperation before the war established a military-industrial complex and made the country very strange, so industry-university cooperation was abolished after the war and universities were academicized.As a result, the university has become an "ivory tower" for adults and a "playground" for students. Therefore, the current Japanese college students have not mastered the "how to eat well" even after graduation.Recently, the practice of doing internships, going to college, and then going to a junior college is very popular. It seems that in Japan, vocational training starts after taking a job.

This is very rare in the world.