Rethinking Readiness for Learning

A commonsense view of readiness pervades our personal, social, and institutional lives. Every culture has some age- or achievement-related criterion for the transition from childhood to adulthood, and marks it through ceremony, ritual, or the bestowing of rights and responsibilities. In the West, we are ready to be held legally responsible for our actions at the age of majority, or the age of consent. usually around 18. We are ready to drive a car around 16 years of age. Closer to home, there are those ever-moving goalposts of readiness, mysteriously ?known? to every parent and infuriating to every growing child: ?You're not old enough now, in a few years you'll be ready.? Whether it is staying up late or getting your first bike, there is no higher court of appeal when you are five years old and your view of readiness differs from that of your parents.