Introducing failure = learning to kids?

Failure. Life-changing failures = learning. The eldest son will be 10 this year. And, I wonder when will his real learning begin?

And, can I take it -- looking him go thru a miserable failure just to learn?

Education is indeed expensive, financially and emotionally.

Sometimes, i have this thought that letting my kids stay in an education insitution for like 15 or more years of their life is actually delaying learning. Because school system is somehow a fail-proof system. We don't really fail and fall flat on our face at school, except for superficial failure marks on report card. 

I mean which is easier: watching my kid fail at 15-16 or at 20+ years old?