School and learning NOT School vs. Learning

My thoughts on George Couros' School vs. Learning

While I do agree with the differences laid out nicely in George's image below, I do have to say that I am not sure that I would see school as negatively as it can be portrayed.  I think in a perfect, utopian world, school and learning are so intertwined that you cannot pull them apart so easily. Maybe it can get there if more teachers were in it for the passion and not the paycheck. Maybe it would help if more administrators encouraged risk-taking and more teachers availed themselves to a great #PLN that would help them be more innovative.  I am not sure that this can happen in our lifetime but I am optimistic that if we can effect change now, some of our students will someday become the educators that make it happen.  Plant the seeds, give them plenty of nourishment and let's see what we can accomplish. Hopefully, we could see a future when we say school and learning instead of school vs. learning.

What if we rewrote some of this to have school not be against learning but together with education?  In order to not make this post lengthy, I will only look at a few points from the image below and would love to hear comments from readers! What struck you? Do you agree? Disagree?

Original:

"School is scheduled at certain times. Learning can happen any time, all of the time.

What if it read instead: Although your hours in school are set, teachers spark your learning to continue beyond their hours and their classrooms so that you never stop learning.

Original: 

"School is about giving your information. Learning is about you making your own connections."

What if it read instead: School opens the doors to information through all who participate- teachers and students alike- to encourage you to make your own connections, creating a deeper, more relevant understanding.

Original:

"School is about finding information on something prescribed to you. Learning is about exploring your passions and interests."

What if it read instead: School provides information on various topics so as to open the eyes of its learners so that they may delve deeper and explore passions and interests they may not have been exposed to yet."

I think my goal is to make school not the enemy but the spark that ignites the passions and innovation in our students.  Thoughts?