Shop Class...

These two quotes are for parents of children who choose a path different from what may be touted for the "masses". Let us remember that knowledge does not come from books alone!

From Shop Class as Soulcraft, by Matthew B. Crawford:

"The fact that a firefighter's knowledge is tacit rather than explicit, and therefore not capable of articulation means that he is not able to give an account of himself to the larger society. He is not able to make a claim for the value of his mind in terms that prevail, and may come to doubt himself. But his own experience provides grounds for a radical critique of the view that theoretical knowlege is the only true knowledge."

If you have a child who learns kinesthetically, the following is food for thought...

From Doug Stowe's blog, "Wisdom of the Hands":

"[in] schools, we create artificial learning environments for our children that they know to be contrived and undeserving of their full attention and engagement... Without the opportunity to learn through the hands, the world remains abstract, and distant, and the passions for learning will not be engaged."

I don't have the answers to the problem, but if studying history/construction/color theory/expressive language through art technique, or mechanical engineering through auto technology are part of it, then let's support those endeavors as highly valued ones too.