BAND 9 WRITING
Schools should focus on academic success and passing examinations. Skills such as cookery, dressmaking and woodwork should not be taught at school as it is better to learn these from family and friends.
To that extent do you agree or disagree?
Practical skills are not typically taught at school, an institution traditionally associated with formal education. Instead, these skills are mostly acquired through friends and family. This approach is not only effective but also necessary.
Schools primarily prioritize teaching theory, making them far from ideal for imparting practical skills. Unlike subjects such as math, physics, and biology, trades are not sciences to be taught; they are skills to be acquired. It is virtually impossible to adapt cookery, dressmaking, and woodworking into a textbook, much like how soccer can’t be effectively taught in a classroom. Even if trades were incorporated into the school curriculum, it is unlikely that students would develop a “feel” for them due to the lack of hands-on practice.
More importantly, learning a trade from a family member is a cultural tradition. Take Uzbekistan, a country renowned for its craftsmanship. It is customary for skilled Uzbek parents to apprentice their children, especially from an early age. This not only offers young learners the opportunity to fully explore the craft, but also strengthens family bonds, making the entire process more meaningful and enjoyable. In the future, these now-skilled children can inherit the family trade business and pass it down to the next generation, preserving it as a family heirloom.
In conclusion, academic education is fundamentally different from skills acquisition, which is an inherently practical and cultural process. Therefore, it is more sensible for trades such as cooking, dressmaking, and woodworking to be taught within the family rather than at school.
250 words, Written in 40 minutes
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