It is my belief that our educational (school) system needs a major overhaul (see the qi.com forum, Banter - thread 'Education, qi style' for some background discussion).

In brief, secondary schools teaching/learning should be moving towards greater and greater use of modern technology, specifically the internet. In addition, what we are teaching has become outdated - it is still based on what the Victorians perceived as being useful knowledge, having only changed in minor respects. There should be two main strands to educational aims (each individual's education will cross these strands differently): general knowledge that every adult citizen should be aware of: detailed knowledge that is applicable to both the short and long term aspirations of the individual. The knowledge applicable to both aims is constantly changing, an observation that our current educational system doesn't seem capable of either recognising or responding to.

There is a general perception that has come about that there are a large number of people (both children and adults) who cannot learn academic subjects. This I refute, having come to this conclusion through my life experiences.

Every learner needs some idea of where their their learning can take them, By this I mean knowledge, not life. This is something our current school system doesn't provide (possibly because of the prevalence of scientific reductionism).

Another assumption is that all our scientific theories are simple and therefore understandable by everyone. This is not to say that the implications and use may require study, dedication, and intuition to progress and follow through.

This document is my first attempt at providing a context for all learners from about 11 years old and up. I'm not sure whether this is a book or a set of lesson plans. The sectionalisation is purely arbitary arising from my mistrust of disk integrity, ease of comment association, and my typing fatique.

The intent is that having been taught, or learnt, the contents of this context setting document and understood it, at least in part, the students confidence in their ability to understand such academic subjects will be sufficiently enhanced to allow them to progress in these subjects. One of the implications of this approach is that text books become reference books, information sources, rather than prime teaching aids.

This is the second version (at least a start on it, I'm not very focused and easily distracted). See Jenny's comments towards the end of the referenced QI thread. As a result I am now aiming this document at teachers and assumming a teacher, or parent, will be able to translate to 11 year old language/understanding.

Wikipedia is good at giving facts, but does not provide a story, excitement, wonder, or any indication of our lack of knowledge (which is vast).

Some extra considerations

• This is the top level. Ideally there would be secondary, tertiary, etc levels (impossible to define beforehand). (Lower levels might point to wikipedia entry(s))
• I don't envisage immediate references in the text - a list at the end of each section of the next level topics may be a better idea - this is likely to include references to hard copy books (or parts of).
• opinion pieces may be included both internal and external - these would be aimed at getting the reader/student questioning assumptions
• So far this is all British centric - needs geographic second level versions(?)
• No intent to tailor to examinations

The major aim would be a complete educational package, a much bigger and (being modest) more useful than wikipedia. This would be an open source project, no copywrite, no wealth, only the kudos from being associated with it.

I'm prejudiced. I'm trying to do a sales job. I'm selling a 'western' type of thought - evidence, opposed to authoritarian, thought: questioning, opposed to blind acceptance, thought: progressive, opposed to traditional, thought: individual, opposed to collective, assumptions: non-conformist, opposed to conformist thought: examining, opposed to conforming, thought.

There is always someone out there who can write down my thoughts better than I can.

You'll see that so far I haven't achieved any of my objectives, so will you, or you, or you, help me out on this challenge?

I believe that everyone, with some very minor exceptions, is capable of learning. Next, all of the ideas so far conceived by humans are simple, hence understandable by all (yes, it takes an exceptional mind to formulate a new idea, but all such ideas so far turn out to be 'simple', 'obvious' in hindsight). The details of how that idea was arrived at are formalised into a rigid, rational, logical framework. This is good for confirming the idea as being 'true'. It is this framework which is taught. However, it is neither the way the idea came into existance, nor is it the way it should taught; teaching the rational, logical way to the idea slows, and often totally inhibits, the appreciation of the idea. This not only excludes the learner from the idea but detracts from the learner's confident assimulation of other ideas.

Some of my other philosophical positions can be found in the opinion pieces. These may help explain the design of this document.

• economics
• religion
• viruses
• power
• intelligence

(There are some more comments/questions at the end.)