Are teachers making the same mistake as parents?

New research on 'primal' beliefs

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Do you believe that hard work will be rewarded? Do you think the world is a just place or do you think it is unjust? Moreover, if you had your own children, what would you raise them to believe? Should you teach them the world is fundamentally good, perhaps setting them up for disappointment when they learn otherwise, or should you teach them that the world is fundamentally bad so that they are prepared and can shield themselves against the worst?

Beliefs about the nature of the world - that it is good or bad - are known as ‘primal’ beliefs and beliefs about these beliefs, such as whether it is better to inculcate positive or negative primal beliefs in children, can be thought of as meta-beliefs.

And apparently, parents may be making the wrong call. They may be in possession of flawed meta-beliefs that could potentially be causing harm, depending on how you interpret the data. If that’s the case, it’s quite possible that teachers are also making the wrong call. So let’s examine the evidence.