The modern public school system was set up about the same time as the industrial revolution with the intent to educate the poor so that they could get a job, and thereby support their families. Each person who travels through the conveyor belt receives a stamp of approval at the end (diploma), and comes out into the world as a “finished product,” ready to be marketed to the highest bidder for employment. And like a factory, conveyor belt institutions test and grade all students on the same scales regardless of individual needs or interests.

The Conveyor Belt does precisely what it was designed to do. It produces a relatively literate workforce for the general populace. It rarely, however, produces independently thinking leaders. Conveyor Belt education can be found in public schools, private or charter schools, and even in home schools. It is often referred to as the “soviet conveyor belt,” because standards and grade levels are set low enough to ensure that nearly everyone can make it through the educational assembly line.

Conveyor Belt Education, which tries to prepare everyone for a job, any job, by teaching them what to think. This includes rudimentary skills to help them function in society. Most public schools are conveyor belt schools, though there are many excellent teachers in the public system who use leadership methods.

…Conveyor Belts have an important place in society, but it is essential that they don’t become a monopoly and that professional and leadership training schools are maintained.

Oliver Van DeMille, A Thomas Jefferson Education, 2nd Edition, pages 21-22