Do you feel it's more important to teach a child WHAT to think, or HOW to think?

Question

Because from my experience at least (I lived in the southern US for a while so of course this won't apply to everyone...), Christian children are raised (for the most part) hearing "X is true" or "Y is false" in relation to religion (and especially in the case of "fundies" in relation to certain sciences). Not to pick on Christians, but I feel that if Christianity was such a great thing, then the child would make that decision on their own.

So to me personally, it seems more important to teach a child to remain skeptical of what they are told, especially in this day and age when Nigerian royalty has favors to ask of you, infomercials claim you can lose 100 lbs in 2 weeks, and everyone thinks you would be better off following THEIR religion or using THEIR magical amulets that cure arthritis.

Answer 1

its better to teach a child HOW to think.

Answer 2

there is even a ritual to "pass to" a clean born, and there are events embellished as rituals interior which a new child is greeted. The 'naming' ceremony, the 'feeding' ceremony, the 'prayer' ceremony, the 1st start anniversary of the new child, and then the opening up of the optimum human threat called as 'initiation', and such others. the reason being quite straight forward. the new child is yet to undertake the 'approaches of the elders'. the new child is harmless. the new child is quite unfastened from the 4 detrimental emotions (anger, hate, jealousy and worry!). the new child is a "stay" demonstration of ways joyous a man or woman could properly be precise right here, in this very international, how that's, without waiting for some heaven after dying! the new child does not instruct any indifference in direction of different infants, and exhibits no bias whilst accepting different infants of an identical age. Their petty quarrels don’t final too long! Their love lasts for the era of their stay. the huge-unfold of love throughout the youngsters-innocence is unequalled!

Answer 3

Teaching children critical thinking skills and responsible moral stewardship of the earth is essential. Teaching them unquestioning acceptance of ideas is a cruel disservice to the child and to humanity in general. However, parents have a responsibility to give their children moral and spiritual guidance and training and that is often embedded in a religious system. It is what the parent knows and believes leads to effective living. Parents do not leave it up to their children to decide whether they should be trained to do algebra, science, literature and technology. Why should the even more important spiritual and religious instruction be left to chance or the whim of children? If the religious teachings of the parents don't work for the child, the child will eventually leave the religion unless there is some kind of coercion going on.

Answer 4

The bible says to raise up a child in the way that they should go, and they will not depart from it. As parents we are instructed in the word of God to teach our children His word. By the way, as a child reaches an age of discerning what truth is they will make the choice themselves. I don't speak of religion, religion serves mankind very poorly. I speak of relationship to the Savior, and what that means to a person's life. I feel teaching a child from the bible as a basis for education and morality is the best option, as our public sytems allow for some very grave mistakes and ideas to be filtered into young minds, so if you want to talk about brainwashing, speak to the youth that attend a public school and feel they are no one if they don't have the right clothes, car and games, toys. Which by the way are never enough to prop of the child's self esteem long, they always need more and newer to feel that sense of belonging. So if we want to talk about cults, you could start there.

I also believe if you want to teach a child that there ideas are truth, to remain skeptical to whatever they are taught, you are contributing to the hopelessness our youth is feeling, that they have no sense of purpose in life, and why bother achieving anything, because by tomorrow it is obsolete and they need to aquire more. I see it everyday in young faces, live for the moment, live to please myself, and what can I do tomorrow that is better and different than today? That isn't how life really works, and if you are honest with yourself, you will see that it sets our children up for a purposeless life, where they only answer to themselves and whatever drive they are feeding at the moment.

Blessings

Answer 5

I was raised by Atheist's, They taught me WHAT TO THINK.

I am a Christian, by my own choice as an adult. I will tell my child about my experiences when I was an atheist, Agnostic and what brought me too Christianity.

I want to teach my Children How to think. How to make a decision on their own. Not too believe everything the Media or the Newspaper says. To always do research on the For's and The Against before making any decision.

I don't want my child to go through what I went through when I was an atheist. I don't want to teach my child their is or isn't a God, I want my child too know that it's his decision and I will always respect his decision.

Answer 6

Knowing how to think will certainly lead to knowing what to think. I've been writing a paper on this concept in relation to religion and politics. I feel that, if the church teaches the parishioners the basics and fundamentals about morals and all that, then the parishioners can make their own informed decisions regarding all things, including politics. The church doesn't need to tell people "vote for X", but the moral, ethical, religious, and personal concepts that would underlie that decision.

Answer 7

Thank god for people like you... I really appreciate the fact that you are willing to let your child thing for him or herself. I think that maybe taking an ethics class and learning the types of ways that people learn. Such as the a sociological way x is x because society says so... or X is x because the bible says so. I just think as long as YOU as a parent can come up with a reason why something is the way it is your ok but if you become a because i said so parent your all wrong. Just take every situation into consideration.

Answer 8

You're right on with this one. Critical thinking skills are at an all-time low in this country. We're failing children forward in school, not taking responsibility towards having them grow up healthy and getting involved in their lives. This is a fundamental issue that isn't going to be addressed because it means introspection about what we believe and questioning how we think the world works and our own beliefs. It opens up a real can of worms.

Answer 9

It depends on your agenda right? I mean, if we want to create a nation of smart, motivated people then teaching them how is much more important.

But, if we are trying to hold on to power or are more worried about other views competing with our own, teaching them what is obviously preferred.

While I think how is much more important, I do see there is a competing view that while might be selfish in a fashion, could still be valid for individuals in certain circumstances. I'm sure we all teach children what to think every once in a while.

Answer 10

I taught my children both. I taught them not to worry about what man thought, but to worry about what God thought. I taught my children that we all have a judgment day and we will be judged by the Word of God. I taught my children that there are people in this world that they never want to meet. These people can only do harm and no good. For instance a Mafia member or a Drug lord or a Satan worshiper are people they will never need to know. I told my children that I would always love them no matter what they did. I told my children that our laws in America came from the Word of God and I showed them the Ten Commandments in Exodus 20 and other laws in Leviticus.

My friend, "As for me and my house we will serve the Lord."
After my children left my house I have no further influence on them except if I taught them love.

Answer 11

I'll assume you are not a Scientologist (scientology, "the study of how to learn") planting a seed....

Teaching needs to be age-appropriate; when young, children need to be taught "what," not "why." Why and how are sophisticated concepts. But when you teach "what," the why and the how become apparent over time.

You teach a young child "don't hit." Eventually, when they see other children hitting, and that it doesn't work out well, they will learn why "don't hit" is a good idea. In the meantime, they don't hit.