Posted on 04/11/2013 7:12:13 AM PDT by St_Thomas_Aquinas
Heard on his radio program today. My close paraphrase: "I will not send another one of my children to college. I don't care if they're a mechanic, even a really bad mechanic that no one goes to. As long as they're not in the system. I know what's coming. And I don't want my children in the system. They can intern for someone, but I don't want them in the system."
His comments were prompted by two things, the new "Core curriculum," and the prevailing Marxist ideology that we're all familiar with.
I told my kids I didn't care if they went. It was up to them. And up to them to pay their own way.
Ironically, my eldest homeschooled daughter wants to teach at a Catholic school, so she needs her "piece of paper," as I described a "worthless education degree" to her. I also told her that if any professor pulls any crap, I told her to tell him off in whatever colorful language she chooses. And I'll back her up 100%.
Better to fight on your feet than on your knees.
I know that Glenn isn't everyone's cup of tea. He has his flaws, as we all do.
But this kind of thing impresses the hell out of me.
I do not agree with him. There are valuable fields such as engineering and medicine where ideology is rarely even on the menu for discussion, and formal training is required. Besides, he shouldn’t raise children who are scared to be confronted by liberals. It will tune their critical thinking and debate skills.
But it’s also not that he’s worried his kids will be indoctrinated.
Even if there’s a field at a college such as engineering or medicine.. all he’s saying is he doesn’t want his money sent to that college while they employ people of other fields who are indoctrinating students.
The problem here in “Conservative Alabama” is the old links of community to school, tradition, and athletics. I like football too but its time to admit that the University of Alabama is more and more like the University of Calcutta with a strong dose of Berkeley and Brandeis thrown in. There is next-to-nothing of the great Southern culture of Alabama being taught there.
The only things conservative in Tuscaloosa are a few student groups.
This whole college degree thing has gotten out of hand. Sure, I can see people who want to be doctors or lawyers needing them but it’s gotten to the point where ever simple job requires a degree in order to advance.
A degree now is what a HS diploma was 40 years ago.
My grandfather only finished the 8th grade but went on to be an engineer for Packard Motors.
Would be cheaper to just send them to China or North Korea, learn all about
Communism much cheaper.
“...so she needs her “piece of paper,” as I described a “worthless education degree” to her...”
One of the really bad decisions of my life was getting a Masters in Education with an endorsement in History (and a total of 18 Grad hours in History) instead of just going for a PhD in History. The higher degree would have only taken a year longer and it would not have been tainted by the College of Education.
In a prep school I was certified to teach history but wound up teaching English and Spanish. To have gained certification in Spanish I would not only have to take lots of Spanish courses (a reasonable requirement) but I would have once again been forced to take College of Education pedagogy courses specific to foreign languages.
The teaching methods course are based on quack junk research. The new methods are not producing good results.
Seriously. Get a doggone education. Go to trade school later.
You have a point with the hard sciences. But even there, is it really necessary? Yes, I know that businesses use degrees as a filter, but isn't it possible to learn engineering on your own?
I went to engineering school, and if I had gone through a modularized, on-line curriculum, I think I could have gained the equivalent knowlege in 2-3 years.
A better system would be to have private certifying agencies, that would certify "professional engineers," etc. They would be incentivized to test skills that employers are interested in, and to make sure that things were on the level. Cheating scandals would put their companies out of business.
People could shop for colleges that had grads who successfully passed these exams. And poor people could pass these tests without even attending college.
This way, people would have an incentive to actually learn rather than punch a clock at a school. Yes, that even happens at engineering school.
Lolz... I think.
And how did that work out???? (Couldn't resist) :-)
I know. My sister went to a teacher college, and I used to skim her books.
I found out that rats don't like to be electrocuted, among other things.
OK, you got me there. ;-)
As a cradle Catholic, I discovered St. Thomas on my own... in my 20s. I wondered, "how come no one I know has heard of this guy?"
How pathetic is that?
I have a degree in mechanical engineering, and am regularly embarrassed by auto mechanics.
Maybe that's why I never worked as an engineer...
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