Reasoning Skills Taught in Primary School? (2nd Blog Assignment)

The question is simple to ask, "Should reasoning skills be taught in primary school." To answer it on the other hand might not be as easy a task. In terms of children not being able to reason by the time they are teenagers or young adults it seems like it would be incredibly beneficial for reasoning skills to be taught at the primary level. On the other hand, primary school is where kids are supposed to learn basics, colors, numbers, reading, writing, etc... and we don't want to distract from those. It is clear that while observing the lack of reasoning skills in the general population something needs to be done about people learning these skills. What better time than when they are little sponges and perhaps the most willing to take in these important reasoning skills that should be incorporated as part of "the basics" taught to primary students. The question begs other questions such as, "Who decides what the children are required to learn?" and, "How much input or say in the curriculum do parents or guardians have?" ... but let's not get distracted.

Let's talk about the benefits of young people having reasoning skills. There are a lot of things that children and teenagers do that are damaging and often times incredibly dangerous to themselves and to others. We as adults like to blame immaturity and lack of experience, but isn't it also a lack of reasoning skills? Imagine a child about ten years old riding his bike home from school. There is a curb that happens to end in a ramp-like drop-off into a concrete wash. Now WE know that a human only has a limited amount of control while in the air on a bicycle and this probably won't end well but the kid doesn't have the reasoning skills we do and is only thinking about how awesome the stunt is going to be. If the child had reasoning skills he would be able to think past the moment he is in, but without them he will be launched into the unknown and possible break an arm, leg, or severely injure his head. Having reasoning skills is basically just weighing outcomes against known facts, and being able to play a scenario out in the head before acting on a thought. Steven Schafersman paints a good picture in his essay here: http://www.freeinquiry.com/critical-thinking.html on critical thinking and learning reasoning skills earlier in life.

This was only one example but if people learn reasoning skills earlier in life, bigger more detrimental outcomes might be avoided.