Ever wonder why, in so many high school classes, we sit in straight rows of desks, with everyone doing the same things at the same time? Well, if you go back a few years—when schools were training large numbers of kids to go to work in factories—an emphasis on uniformity and behaviors like compliance, conformity, hard work and obedience made sense. Now, things like individuality, independence, initiative, freedom and flexibility, which, back then were seen as threatening, and were strongly discouraged, are the very traits many business leaders are looking for in today’s information society! Schools just haven’t caught up.