It seems to me that we are all searching the chaff for the kernel of truth: where to place blame for how we fail to educate our children. Throughout this thread, there has been an implicit but unacknowledged perception that the mind at its beginning is a tabula rosa. We've discussed varying facets of a holistic education: the mind (bad teachers,) the body (hunger, etc.,) the spirit (family, social factors.) Several people have "teed off" on esteem issues, which really confused me. I paraphrase (or perhaps quote) a source unknown: When the mind orders the body, it gets compliance; when the mind orders the mind, it meets resistance. It is humbling to consider the amount of information that babies and young children process and learn without recourse to a formal education. What is it that changes in that child that prevents her/him from learning? Despite the offhand dismissal, esteem issues play a very real part in how the child sees him/herself as a learner. Believing that we "can" learn is the first step to learning. We learn until someone tells us "you can't." It is here that we begin to question our abilities. Having a personal "reason" to learn is, I believe, the second step. We live in a capitalist society -- dismiss economics? I think not. Although economics is only one of many "reasons," our visual society looks for ostentatious displays of success. What do children in severely impoverished areas learn? So, early on, a child learns the motto: If I don't think I can, or I don't think it's worthwhile, then I won't. I remember the first time I was allowed to cross the street in front of my house -- I was so proud of myself. I also remember the first time I crossed the world and time in my imagination through a book, I was so proud of myself. Redundant? Perhaps, but all journeys begin at the self and move outward. I believed in me and I had a reason, and I don't expect to stop learning until I'm dead. Coments? Maggie Piccolo, Learning Specialist Learning Resource Center, Rutgers, The State University 231 Armitage, Camden, New Jersey 08102 (609) 225-6442 [log in to unmask] Check out our web address: http://www.lrc.rutgers.edu