Education Paradigm change?

If you work hard and do well, you will have a job?  Is this true now?  Should we lower our standards of education or raise them?  How was our public school system created?  Why was it created?  Was everyone in favor of this new system?

What drove this idea behind public school?  Did "academic ability" have any value in this public education, or was it considered?  Did the 'smarter kids' get educated while the rest worked the farm?

What does ADHD have to do with education?  Are their trends in the US as to the diagnosis of this 'disorder'?  Does ADHD influence academic ability?  What are the children distracted from?  Why should we calm down are children?  Is it a fictitious disorder?  What do the ARTS have to do with education? Can these aesthetic experiences assist our educational system?  Do ADHD medications deaden our children's appreciation for the arts?

Why do we educate children based upon their age?  Why do we educate kids in a standardized method?  What is creativity?  Divergent Thinking?  Does a child grow in divergent thinking as we educate them?  Where does meaningful collaboration fit in to education? How does the real world work in regards to collaboration?