Good post. I do wonder though.
The main point many people make nowadays is how we cattle-feed children and forget that they are small humans, and a beautifully blank sheet to work with. However, I have also seen/experienced through my half century as a human that children who are allowed to 'discover' in any way they wish do not always become the person we anticipate that they will. Many times they are lawless, misguided, poor judges of characters and situations and even darn right lazy 'expectationals'.
I have at first hand seen twin daughters (not mine) - one allowed to grow with the free thinking mother who had the attitude "you can do it" and "you don't have to beg, hold your head up and state what you want" to the point of the child believing that she had to do no work to get/do what she wanted. She is now rude, unforgiving, ruthless, and ungrateful for her blessings. The other twin was guided her father and stepmother by rules and expectations which were tempered with understanding and explanations. Discussions, not telling; boundaries, not restrictions. This child has grown to be productive, pleasant, educated, helpful and caring of most others around her. She would do anything for anyone, thinks radically, pushes herself forward and doesn't step on others along the way.
So yes school practice and learning by rote, dictatorial parents and later, bosses serve to drag a person down, but it must be addressed with equal temper and not swayed to the opposite pole by knee-jerk reactionists.
Just my opinion.