High-Level Discussion on Education
George Gemelas is the Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer of the Climate Solutions Fund.
We, Class V of the MDLF, returned to the Liberty Fund in November for our third and last session on education. This convening featured a moderated in-depth conversation, over a long wooden table seating 18 of us fellows, to discuss the philosophical underpinnings of education, the challenges and opportunities in today’s school system, and recent developments in US education, including federal student loan forgiveness.
This broader, more philosophical session comes on the heels of two site visits to top charter schools in Indianapolis and Evansville, where we saw exemplary models of Indiana education first-hand.
For me, a recent graduate student, this session of MDLF was particularly interesting. I have seen some of the current issues around American education personally, as well as through my friends who still are in school, but haven’t had the opportunity to contextualize what I have been observing at a high level.
A few core questions emerged in our conversation:
What should the aim of public education teach? Skill acquisition? Common values? “Facts” only?
How should we structure primary and secondary education, and should we encourage (or not) to go to college/vocational school?
What opportunities are there in technology and the internet to invest in students?
All in the room were serious about delivering better education to the Hoosier and American population, but had differing views on how and what the core educational substance should be. Some see social and emotional learning as a prerequisite for learning subject material. Others believe certain societal goals - like civic engagement or diversity - should be woven in. Some consider school optionality and choice as the mechanism for uplifting those in need, while others see common standards and investment in standardized public education as key to raising all learners.
In our one-day session, no easy and clear answer was gleaned, but instead we established mental frameworks and common language for thinking through education’s challenges.
One of the main takeaways I came away with was this: there remains incredible opportunity in technology for helping deliver better education to more people, both young and old. The recent proliferation of high-quality learning materials — on websites, social media, YouTube, and other online learning platforms and groups— is a new feature of the learning environment, and removes a limiting factor in educating: resource constraints. With a wealth and diversity of free or low-cost learning products, kids can learn in more tailored and engaging ways, and older learners can reskill themselves for an ever-evolving economy.
In my view, this new reality means that humanity is closer than ever in human history to delivering quality education for all. I’d posit that 1) engendering initiative, curiosity, and a sense of how to learn and 2) socially structuring people to incentivize learning are key elements for seizing on it.
MDLF Class V Fellows at Liberty Fund with Fellow Alumni who joined for lunch.