The main argument, as i see it in the reading (Collins, 94-104), is for a system of education based more in apprentisship than mass schooling. The fact is that it works, i cannot deny that a system of close observation by an expert on a small group of individuals works well. It is the very reason why small workshop classes tend to learn well even if the class only meet once. the visceral experience combined with a guided practice is a good formula. Like the section said, we can keep the students on task, in this scenario, by keeping the level of difficulty above boring and before frustration... but does such a principle work as an alternative to our current system?
The shift from such tactics to mass schooling was because of population size. we recognized that such methods become problematic as the class size increases so today it is largely part of OJT. we simply don't have the kind of early specificity we used to. The blacksmith trained the next blacksmith from youth, but how many such fields do we have today? How many pharmacy techs do we need? And furthermore, how are we supposed to apply this to high-schoolers?
Yes, the author gives us ideas, using distance learning, networking, and virtual aids, but how long before we run into the social problem. The very nature of apprentiship is the isolation. Small group to one on one training leads to social withdrawal. I'll close with a link (since the embed code is disabled) to a clip from Star Trek 2009. Do we really want to become Vulcans?
http://youtu.be/KvMxLpce3Xw
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