Top 5 Changes You Would Make To American Education (1 Viewer)

[Alex P Keaton]

Yes.  A tiny percentage of students -- specifically people who plan to go into engineering and or handful of other disciplines -- need calculus.  It is a complete waste of time for everyone else, especially considering the value of a good course in probability and statistics.

I would include “basic data analysis and interpretation” in a class on probability and statistics.  It’s probably embedded in stats classes, but worth calling out as a concept.   Most people are quite poor at this (as evidenced by our media).

 

[Snorkelson]

I would include “basic data analysis and interpretation” in a class on probability and statistics.  It’s probably embedded in stats classes, but worth calling out as a concept.   Most people are quite poor at this (as evidenced by our media).

When we were kids we were taught how to research- where to find information. Encyclopedias, magazine articles, newspapers, books, those were the go to for information (pre Google.) Now we need to teach kids how to filter and process information. Finding information is easy- finding correct information isn’t a given though.
I heard someone say this recently but I don’t remember where, but I think it’s very true. There are a lot of people looking to spread their views online to young malleable minds. 

 

[Alex P Keaton]

When we were kids we were taught how to research- where to find information. Encyclopedias, magazine articles, newspapers, books, those were the go to for information (pre Google.) Now we need to teach kids how to filter and process information. Finding information is easy- finding correct information isn’t a given though.
I heard someone say this recently but I don’t remember where, but I think it’s very true. There are a lot of people looking to spread their views online to young malleable minds. 

Yup.  My kids are 11, and we’ve used examples of “dumb stuff my cousins read online and believe” to illustrate the importance of this concept.

 

[Snorkelson]

Idea #2 A yearlong class dedicated to how credit works, how investing works, how to build wealth. How insurance works. As someone mentioned upthread, “life skills.” How a basic rental agreement works. Indoctrinate the idea of long term planning at a young age.

 

[JohnnyU]

A good example of what is wrong with schools today.   When my granddaughter was in high school kids were allowed to use their cell phones during class.  This is just wrong, except in the cases where research is being done for class related reasons.  It all started some time back when a mother tried to reach her kid and couldn't and raised a stink, so instead of doing what's right the school took the easy road and quit enforcing the no phone during class rule.   So, as a result, kids were not paying attention in class because this is allowed.  Once a kid goes to college they are more mature and if they want to play with their phones that's on them, they are paying for that education, but a sixteen or seventeen year old is still developing mentally and there should be some rules in place that helps them learn.

 

[Maurile Tremblay]

#1 - stop grading school performance based on standardized tests

#2 - stop grading school performance based on standardized tests

#3 - stop grading school performance based on standardized tests

#4 - stop grading school performance based on standardized tests

#5 - stop grading school performance based on standardized tests

I think this essay makes some good points:

http://paulgraham.com/lesson.html

 

[jon_mx]

Learning programs needs to be tailored to individual, but that is difficult.  I would have been better off learning stastics, geometry and calculus in grade school and middle school than wasting those 8 years on concepts that I understood in the first grade.  

 

[the moops]

Nice humble brag jon

 

[The Commish]

These aren't five things to change rather five things that need significantly more emphasis (in no particular order):

1.  Civics
2.  Economics (including personal finance)
3.  Science of all kinds
4.  Technology
5.  Humanity

 

[parasaurolophus]

#1 - stop grading school performance based on standardized tests

#2 - stop grading school performance based on standardized tests

#3 - stop grading school performance based on standardized tests

#4 - stop grading school performance based on standardized tests

#5 - stop grading school performance based on standardized tests

I disagree with every one of your five points. That's pretty rare. Usually i can find some common ground with at least one. 

 

[The Commish]

I'll add a 6th to my list Math/Statistics.....yikes we need to improve in these areas.

Also, I agree with the standardized test thing UNTIL they provide equal resources across the country.  This seems like the dumbest way to determine anything given the vast differences in conditions / resources.  If they want to provide a "curve" of sorts when "ranking" them, I'd be open to that depending on how it's done.

 

[pecorino]

K thru Doctorate, kids.

Mine:

1 - Break the teachers' unions. NEA & AFT's stranglehold makes all elementary/secondary changes moot, the way campaign financing makes good governance impossible.

2 - De-socialize it. Education is not about pleasing students or parents. It is about equipping children to be productive adults and good citizens. If you want the govt to educate your children, trust it as a monolithic aspect of childhood development & let it do its work

3 - Tear down the college system. My guess is that 75% of higher learning can be done digitally. Do it. Screw the college tie, sports, giving parents a way to get rid of their kids.

4 - Make higher education free in exchange for national service. This is part of a larger concept of mine where national service (military, community service, infrastructure training/work) is required to give all citizens eligibility to the American Miracle - reasonable tax rates, programs, higher education, etc

5 - Most importantly, by far - science. Educate by brain science. We understand now what & when students can learn best & most and almost none of it is utilized because of socialization and perceived harshness of certain phases. Yes, there are developmental points where children would optimally be boot-camped on learning. Far more harsh in the scheme of things is a human being not being properly trained to be the best it can be. nufced

I've been thinking about this a lot, not just your post but as an educator over the past 27 years. I've only taught at private schools although me and my siblings and most of my friends are products of the public schools (suburban Pittsburgh, a pretty well-respected district). I studied math and then was to pursue certification in education but bailed on that pretty quickly when I saw what a sham it is. Masters in math and then, as mentioned, almost three decades in education. My history definitely informs these points.

1) Shut down all collegiate "teacher education programs" or certifications and replace this with a two-year apprenticeship to an experienced teacher. Call it the Jedi / Padawan program. Teaching teachers how to teach is silly and ineffective. Worse than that, they train a crop of educators to teach in boxes. We need educators who have the skills to improvise, connect with students, and not see the job as formulaic.

2) Pre-K through 3rd grade should be taught in a Montessori or Waldorf method with plenty of play, student-directed tasks, socialization and zero homework. These grades should start school earlier (8AM) and as kids get older, they should start school later (like 9AM by high school). We have this reversed. I know this is two points but I'm trying to squeeze in sixth point.

3) Come 7th or 8th grade or so, students should be learning in longer blocks of times with paired teachers (most naturally Science paired with Math, English paired with History) in a project-based, hands-on way. This should carry into high school and through to graduation. Students should create portfolios of their work over the years to show their progress and as part of their college application process.

4) Teaching world languages should be downplayed if not eliminated altogether and instead students should be required to travel every year of their schooling (something that scales up as students age, so maybe two months as a senior). Technology is making the learning of languages obsolete (how many years until we each have a Babel Fish implanted in our ears?

5) Grades should be eliminated at all levels. Homework is fine after 3rd grade, as are quizzes and tests. But teachers would report summative, narrative assessments instead of relying on letter grades.

 

[pecorino]

5. Realize that personal and family involvement is important for students to succeed  

This is a huge point that did not make my list because it is not a school issue, it is a societal and a family issue. We try to involve our parents as much as possible, and I can see how difficult it is for some kids to overcome a bad hand they've been dealt with their parents, but schools can only do so much. The "breakdown of the modern US family" is at the heart of a ton of issues in our country with education being at the top of the list.

 

[pecorino]

I would include “basic data analysis and interpretation” in a class on probability and statistics.  It’s probably embedded in stats classes, but worth calling out as a concept.   Most people are quite poor at this (as evidenced by our media).

The entire mathematics / statistics program needs to be addressed. For a vast majority of our students, we are doing them a disservice by what we are teaching them in math class and what we are telling them math is (and isn't).

 

[kface]

Teach

Meditation

Science of emotions and the brain every year 

Emphasize languages and arts in early years

Get rid of standardized testing 

Get money out of sports

 

[joffer]

Yes.  A tiny percentage of students -- specifically people who plan to go into engineering and or handful of other disciplines -- need calculus.  It is a complete waste of time for everyone else, especially considering the value of a good course in probability and statistics.

i agree on calculus being a waste for a lot of students, but before you said pre-calc, which to me means trig and math analysis.  i don't necessarily think those are a waste.  some students may not realize their gift or interest for engineering-level math concepts until they take them.   The distinction may be a small one in regards to your overall point, which i think is still a good one.  Still, I would be hesitant to implement something like this given how far we already declining in STEM.

 

[Stealthycat]

great question

#1 I'd make school year round, no summer breaks 

#2 I'd throw common core in the trash

#3 I would add mandatory courses on financial and career planning

#4 I would implement dress codes 

#5 I would make schools in such a way that if you can graduate at 15 or 16 great and if it take you to 20 that's ok too. Learn at your own place kind of thing and for kids to be able to advance at their own pace

 

[the moops]

great question

#1 I'd make school year round, no summer breaks 

#2 I'd throw common core in the trash

#3 I would add mandatory courses on financial and career planning

#4 I would implement dress codes 

#5 I would make schools in such a way that if you can graduate at 15 or 16 great and if it take you to 20 that's ok too. Learn at your own place kind of thing and for kids to be able to advance at their own pace

I must admit I was expecting to disagree with all your points.

But, I like them.

I especially like year round schooling. Not to the extent that you may be in to, but my kid attended a year round school for a couple years and the biggest pluses for me were - 1) there was always a little mini break on the horizon (every 2 months there was a week + break) and 2) there wasn't the extended summer break where kids pretty much forgot everything they just learned and had to relearn in September.

 

[Zow]

The social experience of college, and the appreciation it provided me for free-thinking, critical thinking, and just general life was so incredibly valuable that there's no chance I could ever sign on to your suggestion that we should get rid of 75% of it. 

 

[TripItUp]

I'm late to the party, but I'm very pro education.  Here are my ideas.

1.  Double the education budget for K-12.  More teachers, better paid teachers, better technology, better counseling

2.  Get rid of charter school crap

3.  I would make very little change to our college/university system, other than those receiving federal aid are restricted to degrees that actually make them employable, not poetry, not theatre, not history etc.

4.  Get rid of for profit schools, period.  

5.  Better counseling so students/potential students understand the ramifications of student loans, degree choices etc.

Education is the great equalizer, as somebody who used it to jump several social classes, I have seen it firsthand.   Every kid deserves a chance, what they do with it is their decision.   Didn't take advantage of your American educational opportunities?  Don't expect the government to take care of you the rest of your life.  You had your shot.

 

[wikkidpissah]

The social experience of college, and the appreciation it provided me for free-thinking, critical thinking, and just general life was so incredibly valuable that there's no chance I could ever sign on to your suggestion that we should get rid of 75% of it. 

i hear you. i'm just bothered that the institutional aspects are preventing what can be digitized (and, therefore, democratized) from being so. it is an aspect of privilege we can afford to lose in the name of increased opportunity (if that is proved to be the case)

 

[Zow]

i hear you. i'm just bothered that the institutional aspects are preventing what can be digitized (and, therefore, democratized) from being so. it is an aspect of privilege we can afford to lose in the name of increased opportunity (if that is proved to be the case)

I'm a firm believer that the college experience cannot be digital. And that, while seemingly unnecessary and impactical, the majority of use should benefit for a couple of years at least receiving a liberal arts education in a small classroom setting at a remote campus that one must live at in a dorm.

 

[Mister CIA]

I'm late to the party, but I'm very pro education.  Here are my ideas.

1.  Double the education budget for K-12.  More teachers, better paid teachers, better technology, better counseling

2.  Get rid of charter school crap

3.  I would make very little change to our college/university system, other than those receiving federal aid are restricted to degrees that actually make them employable, not poetry, not theatre, not history etc.

4.  Get rid of for profit schools, period.  

5.  Better counseling so students/potential students understand the ramifications of student loans, degree choices etc.

Education is the great equalizer, as somebody who used it to jump several social classes, I have seen it firsthand.   Every kid deserves a chance, what they do with it is their decision.   Didn't take advantage of your American educational opportunities?  Don't expect the government to take care of you the rest of your life.  You had your shot.

Jim Mattis disagrees with your outlook on history.

TEDDY: What subject areas do you think students should be studying in high school and beyond to better prepare themselves to be politically active and aware adults?

MATTIS: Actually, I’ve thought a lot about that question. I would tell you that no matter what you’re going to go into, whether it be business or politics or international relations or domestic politics, I don’t think you can go wrong if you maintain an avid interest in history. The reason I say that is you’ll find that really, there’s nothing new under the sun, other than some of the technology we use.

The human condition, the aspirations, the dreams, the problems that are associated with being social animals, not being a hermit and living alone, but having to interact with others, whether it be your local school district, your community, your state, your county, your national, your international relations, history will show you not all the answers, but it’ll tell you a lot of the questions to ask and furthermore, it will show you how other people have dealt successfully or unsuccessfully with similar type issues. I wish now looking back on it, if I’d known what waited for me in life, I would have put a lot more attention into history.

 

[Stealthycat]

I'll tell ya'll another thing

change A's, B's, C's and D's   

its antiquated- there is a HUGE difference in getting a 70.1 and a C and a 79.8 and a C

we should grade on a 100 scale ........ if you get a 70.1 in a class then that's what you get , not a "C" like a 79.8 grade would get 

actual grading is needed - it would much more accurately reflect people's grades

so instead of a 3.0 using 4.0 / 3.0 / 2.0 ABC grading, you would need a 75 to keep a scholarship (75% is 3.0 out of 4.0)