--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The educational environment of children…" description: "\"“The educational environment of children should encourage them to continue to explore the open-ended connections between their experiences, and to be r..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c79/russell-l-ackoff-12928_children_the-educational-environment-of-children_795009.jpg" --- # The educational environment of children should encourage… ![“The educational environment of children should encourage them to continue to explore the open-ended connections between their experiences, and to be receptive to new interconnections and interpretations of theories and explanations that they have either learned or developed. An oft-repeated story…” quote by Russell L. Ackoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c79/russell-l-ackoff-12928_children_the-educational-environment-of-children_795009.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c79/russell-l-ackoff-12928_children_the-educational-environment-of-children_795009.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c79/russell-l-ackoff-12928_children_the-educational-environment-of-children_795009.jpg) > ““The educational environment of children should encourage them to continue to explore the open-ended connections between their experiences, and to be receptive to new interconnections and interpretations of theories and explanations that they have either learned or developed. An oft-repeated story illustrates the deadening effect of thinking in terms of narrowly defined fields.16 A high school physics student was given the following problem on an examination: “Suppose you were in a tall building, and had a sensitive barometer in your possession. How would you use it to find the height of the building?” As anyone who has studied introductory physics will instantly recognize, the instructor was looking for the answer he had prepared his students to give—namely, measure the barometric pressure at the bottom and the top of the building, and calculate the height of the building, using the formula that relates the drop in barometric pressure to the increase in elevation going from the ground to the top of the building. The student in question, a very bright and highly independent soul, found it demeaning to provide an answer that he thought was trivially easy. Instead, he answered, “You can do it several ways. One is to drop the barometer from the top of the building and measure how long it takes to hit the ground \[thus illustrating that he knew the relationship between height, distance, and time in gravitational free fall, another piece of ‘physics’\]. Another is to attach the barometer to a long string, lower it to the ground, and measure the length of the string \[no longer ‘physics,’ but rather ‘carpentry’\].” The answer, of course, was declared wrong. The student objected strenuously and brought a storm of protest to bear on the examiner—who then agreed to repeat the same question and give the student an opportunity to provide the “correct” answer. The student, no more inclined to be compliant than before, answered, “I would go to the superintendent of the building and offer to give him the barometer as a gift if he would tell me how high his building is \[now we have entered ‘economics’\].” Leaving”” [Russell L. Ackoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-l-ackoff/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Ackoff critiques rigid problem‑solving in education, urging openness to multiple methods and creative thinking beyond textbook answers. **In simple terms:** Encourage flexible, creative problem solving. Key Takeaway Value diverse approaches over single correct answers. Themes education creativity critical thinking problem solving disciplinary boundaries Mood reflective motivational Type educational philosophical When to use this quote - classroom teaching - curriculum design - student projects - interdisciplinary research Key Concepts constructivism innovation systems thinking Questions to Reflect On - What alternative method would you apply to a familiar problem? - How can you balance creativity with accuracy? A Different Perspective Some contexts demand precise, standard solutions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [High school](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/high-school/) ## Related quotes > [Whenever you say you're a physicist, there's a certain fraction of people who immediately go, 'Oh, I hated physics in high school.' That's because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-m-carroll/whenever-you-say-you-re-a-physicist-there-s-a-certain-fraction-of/) [Sean M. Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-m-carroll/) > [Our annual school physics trip was always to Blackpool Pleasure Beach, as it's such a good example of Newtonian physics. 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Ackoff quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-l-ackoff/) ## More Children quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [Behind every successful child is an adult who believed in him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/behind-every-successful-child-is-an-adult-who-believed-in-him/) [Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/) > [I believe in freedom to do what you want if you aren't hurting others, but pictures of obese protesters giving their children big gulps.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-defranco/i-believe-in-freedom-to-do-what-you-want-if-you-aren-t-hurting-others/) [Philip DeFranco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-defranco/) > [If the audience likes your work, if they like you, they don't think whether you are married or have children or not. 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An oft-repeated story illustrates the deadening effect of thinking in terms of narrowly defined fields.16 A high school physics student was given the following problem on an examination: “Suppose you were in a tall building, and had a sensitive barometer in your possession. How would you use it to find the height of the building?” As anyone who has studied introductory physics will instantly recognize, the instructor was looking for the answer he had prepared his students to give—namely, measure the barometric pressure at the bottom and the top of the building, and calculate the height of the building, using the formula that relates the drop in barometric pressure to the increase in elevation going from the ground to the top of the building. The student in question, a very bright and highly independent soul, found it demeaning to provide an answer that he thought was trivially easy. Instead, he answered, “You can do it several ways. One is to drop the barometer from the top of the building and measure how long it takes to hit the ground [thus illustrating that he knew the relationship between height, distance, and time in gravitational free fall, another piece of ‘physics’]. Another is to attach the barometer to a long string, lower it to the ground, and measure the length of the string [no longer ‘physics,’ but rather ‘carpentry’].” The answer, of course, was declared wrong. The student objected strenuously and brought a storm of protest to bear on the examiner—who then agreed to repeat the same question and give the student an opportunity to provide the “correct” answer. The student, no more inclined to be compliant than before, answered, “I would go to the superintendent of the building and offer to give him the barometer as a gift if he would tell me how high his building is [now we have entered ‘economics’].” Leaving”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Russell L. 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