Arguments about Constructivism

The guys at OLPC are obsessed with constructivism. But the rest of the world seems obsessed with criticizing this. I am going to do my own share of critising soon... but some opposing arguments are outright silly. One argument says that, "Did the exisitng system not produce everything we have? So it is unfair to criticize it" There are two parts to it. A lot of credit of what we are today goes to people who managed to cleverly bypass the system. They did whatever they did in spite of the system. Just think of them all... Aristotle, Socretes, Galelio, Edison, Einstein... Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Dhirubai Ambani, Narayana Murthy... the list just goes on...

I don't know whether I will accomplish anything worthwhile beyond talking to myself through a blog. But if I did accomplish something worthwhile, would I thank the system for all the rituals it made me follow? I don't think so.

The real question is not whether the current lousy setup can produce results. The question is how do you prevent the wastage of the rest of the intellectuals who are crushed before they blossom.