[00:03.78]1995 Passage4

[00:07.40]Personality is to a large extent inherent

[00:11.84]--A-type parents usually bring about A-type offspring.

[00:16.78]But the environment must also have a profound effect,

[00:20.81]since if competition is important to the parents,

[00:24.14]it is likely to become a major factor

[00:26.93]in the lives of their children.

[00:29.67]One place where children soak up

[00:31.55]A characteristics is school,

[00:34.08]which is, by its very nature,

[00:36.20]a highly competitive institution.

[00:39.28]Too many schools

[00:40.49]adopt the "win at all costs" moral standard

[00:43.81]and measure their success by sporting achievements.

[00:47.75]The current passion for making children compete

[00:50.58]against their classmates or against the clock

[00:53.82]produces a two-layer system,

[00:56.15]in which competitive A-types seem in some way

[00:59.78]better than their B-type fellows.

[01:03.21]Being too keen to win

[01:04.90]can have dangerous consequences:

[01:07.91]remember that Pheidippides,

[01:09.69]the first marathon runner,

[01:11.51]dropped dead seconds after saying:

[01:14.14]"Rejoice, we conquer!"

[01:16.97]By far the worst form of competition in schools

[01:20.79]is the disproportionate emphasis on examinations.

[01:24.83]It is a rare school

[01:25.89]that allows pupils to concentrate

[01:28.34]on those things they do well.

[01:30.86]The merits of competition by examination

[01:33.89]are somewhat questionable,

[01:36.00]but competition in the certain knowledge of failure

[01:39.23]is positively harmful.

[01:42.56]Obviously, it is neither practical nor desirable

[01:46.18]that all A youngsters change into B's.

[01:50.12]The world needs types,

[01:52.03]and schools have an important duty to try to fit

[01:55.47]a child's personality to his possible future employment.

[01:59.52]It is top management.

[02:02.35]If the preoccupation of schools with academic work was lessened,

[02:06.60]more time might be spent teaching children surer values.

[02:11.23]Perhaps selection for the caring professions,

[02:14.12]especially medicine, could be made less

[02:17.01]by good grades in chemistry and more

[02:20.04]by such considerations as sensitivity and sympathy.

[02:24.37]It is surely a mistake to choose

[02:26.49]our doctors exclusively from A-type stock.

[02:30.51]B's are important and should be encouraged.