Mann’s views on how proper education is the key to social order, really stuck out to me. He discussed his fear of growing social disorder. After an incident where someone tried to start a fire next to his hotel room, he wondered about how a person could do something like that and what goes on in his/her mind to do such an act like this. He decided that to eliminate a crime similar to this one, schools needed to train children at a young age.
I agree with Mann’s point of view. The government should play an active role in the education system, to a certain extent. I think if children are taught at an early age to be a moral person, I think it will be benefical for themselves and the society. Referring back to chapter 3, Thomas Jefferson talks about how schools should just provide the tools and not mold the virtuous person. In the previous blog, I had leaned more towards Thomas Jefferson’s view, however, Mann’s points on why molding a child through the education system, really stuck out.
I think that both the parents and the education system should play an active role in a child’s life. Many argued that the education system should just do their job and teach the basics (like english/math). And that teaching kids on how to be a moral person is the parent’s job. However, children spend most of their day at school and they are at the age where they are forming their morals, character, and beliefs. As Mann said, ” Schools are like the central instiution for the control and maintenance of social order”. If they don’t fix bad habits, bad thoughts, and bad characteristics at an early age, it is very difficult to change them when they are older.
” Men are cast iron; but children are wax” (p.84)
Wouldn’t it be harder for a middle-aged man to change his bad habits and bad characteristics opposed to a child?
Wouldn’t teaching children at a young age on what is right and wrong, prevent disorder before it happens as opposed to allowing children to form their own characters and allowing disorder to happen and then fixing them (through the law/the police)?
–Janie Lee
