Let’s face it. Most of us aren’t all that bright. Sixteen per cent of us have an IQ below 85 – that’s about the level of intelligence you need to need to drink through a straw. And even a high IQ is no a guarantee of success. According to a study cited by Professor Joan Freedman in The Gifted Child, only six from a sample of 210 ultra bright children turned out to be successful adults.
So, even those blessed with an abundance of grey matter can stuff things up royally on contact with real world things such as parking meters or women who cry a lot. In a busy office with a bunch of invoices to process, and difficult people to manage, a grasp of Homer and a Grade 8 Distinction in the Harp are about as useful as a giraffe to a Copenhagen zoo.
What we need, then, is an education system — and particularly a higher education system — that first and foremost equips the majority of the workforce with useful skills.
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