Western education too focused on performance

Van Atteveldt is Professor of Neuroscience and Society (VU Amsterdam) and led the group of scientists who presented their findings in a UNESCO report in March 2022. On 8 April, she gave her inaugural lecture on this subject.

Not the great equalizer

According to the professor, the Western education system is well-intentioned, as she explains on Spraakmakers: it is supposed to be the great equalizer. It is not about a person’s background or social status, but about their performance. “It is intended to be an equalizer because it focuses on a person’s merit and not on their background or other external factors.”

Different starting positions

Yet it does not work as a great equalizer. According to Van Atteveldt, the problem is that children with different starting positions enter the system. “The home environment in which a child spends their first years has a major impact on how they arrive at school.”

The circumstances in which someone grows up therefore have a major influence on a child’s performance. “If we do not take that into account, it is still not fair.” According to Van Atteveldt, education should focus more on what a child has within them and on how the school can provide an environment in which they can develop as fully as possible.

Testing and measuring

According to the professor, education should be more of an individual learning path in which growth and development are measured in relation to oneself, rather than in comparison with others. This means fewer standardized tests and assessment moments.

Flourishing individuals

There is also still too much emphasis on academic skills and far too little on social-emotional development. “The ultimate goal of education should be for children to develop into flourishing individuals.” Well-being has taken a back seat in this process, says Van Attenberg. “We need to bring it back to the forefront.”

An education system that is less focused on performance and allows more room for social-emotional development will, according to the scientists, also lead to a more sustainable and peaceful world.