"School has become an abnormal setting for children," says Peter Gray, a professor of psychology at Boston College. "Instead of admitting that, we say the children are abnormal."
Gray, who is the author of the 2016 Free to Learn: Why Unleashing the Instinct to Play Will Make Our Children Happier, More Self-Reliant, and Better Students for Life, says that a cultural shift towards a more interventionist approach to child rearing is having dire consequences for the well-being of kids. "Over the same period of time that there has been a gradual decline in play," he told Reason's Nick Gillespie, "there are well documented, gradual, but ultimately huge increases in a variety of mental disorders in childhood—especially depression and anxiety."
5 comments:
"Where'd you go?"
"Out."
"What'd you do?"
"Nothing."
My whole wonderful childhood out on the streets with my friends, the twins Miles and Joel. Except I didn't even think in terms of wonderful. It was what you did. After school till dark. Then you came in exhausted and were fed.
I was free range, only we didn't have streets or sidewalks, just woods, fields and mischief. I got into them all.
Everybody was free range.
Where I was, there was a big field with 3 baseball diamonds and, in the summer, we'd all play ball until you couldn't see. The neighborhood was our Wild West.
Helicopter parents and teachers producing fucked up kids. Shocking!
Mum imperative 1: "Stop running in and out of the house!"
Mum imperative 2: "Go outside and play!"
Conclusion: Mum really doesn't want me around.
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