I've read some very interesting stories and perspectives in this thread. Thank you to everyone for responding.
One thing I haven't seen mentioned is consideration for experience-dependent brain development. If the brain needs to be exercised to develop at its genetic potential, then does curiosity create a positive feedback loop that makes the child more interested in obtaining answers that inevitably lead to more questions, all the while growing the brain to be more capable of understanding complex answers? Or is it more like a nutritional deficiency, in which too little is harmful, but getting more than what's needed does nothing beneficial? Perhaps there are diminishing returns, but always a positive effect on the brain?
Obviously pushing children to do something against their will can have a negative impact on their self perception, and attitude. Are people also concerned that children need to learn to have faith in their own ability to figure things out?
Some parents here have children who seemed to learn something without being taught. Do you ever lament that your child could have learned that thing earlier, if only they had someone to teach it to them? If learning things makes the world more interesting, then why delay the process?
