Charles Dickens's Hard Times suggests that the nineteenth century educational model was built solely upon fact recollection without any emphasis upon imagination or creativity. After the Industrial Revolution, there were vast advances in science, which resulted in a heavy focus in that educational area. To an extent, aspects of the education approach of Victorian England still exist today and many of its philosophies are mirrored in today's educational systems. As it was in the past, exam results and measurement by assessment continue to be leading indicators of achievement, and often, only students who can consistently give the right responses are seen as having the highest potential. However, some aspects of today's education are changing and moving away from the black and white thinking of Dickensian England and its classrooms.
In chapter 2 of Hard Times, a question is posed to the children during a lesson: "Would you paper a room with representations of horses?" After half of the class chorus "Yes, Sir!", they see in the gentlemen's face that their answer was wrong, and immediately change it to "No, Sir!". The students change their opinion in an attempt to be correct in an unimportant question. A response that should be an opinion is perceived as a fact. Even today, students who are afraid to be wrong, change their opinions to fit what they think teacher is looking for, instead of learning from their mistakes. Rather than speaking their minds, students remain silent in order to not be wrong, as being wrong is often mistranslated as lacking capability. If students are not challenged to think critically, they only gain the ability to reproduce what they learn as opposed to using their knowledge as a foundation to learn more.
In the second chapter, Mr Gradgrind interrogates Sissy Jupe about her father's profession. After hearing that he tends to horses, he asks for her definition of a horse. When she is unable to do this, her classmate Bitzer gives a zoological definition of a horse that satisfies Gradgrind. While Bitzer's answer is factually correct, Sissy has a practical knowledge of horses and their care t...
