Posted on 12/18/2005 11:51:04 AM PST by SJackson
Guess that's what made all three of my children so dangerous in H.S. and College because I tought them those things and more. It's a little scarry when a 16 YO can not only hold their own using facts to dabate a H.S. "History" teacher but win. Even scarrier when a 19 YO can do the same thing to "Full Professor" in college.
I LIKE IT!
Paraphrasing an old Soviet-era saw:
In America's government-run schools (aka, "public schools"), the students pretend to learn and the teachers pretend to teach.
Objective measures of performance have fallen in every academic area. This article refers to the decline in science and math. The following link documents the decline in basic literacy,
http://nces.ed.gov/NAAL/PDF/2006470.PDF .
That report's findings on the literacy of college graduates is even more shocking. The study addresses three types of literacy -- prose, document, and quantitative. The percentages of American college graduates that rate as proficient in these categories are as follows:
Prose 31% (down from 40% in 1992)
Document 25% (down from 37% in 1992)
Quantitative 31% (unchanged from 1992)
The standards for a "proficient" score on these tests are pretty low. They are more like reading the newspaper and balancing a checkbook than reading Kant and solving differential equations.
Other studies have documented similar performance declines in history and civics. Maybe fine arts education has not suffered as much, but there are relatively few serious careers for painters and musicians.
Decade after decade the government-run schools have wasted the time of American students and the treasure of the American people. Yet we still hear people say they "believe in public education".
All they need to learn is that it's all "Bush's fault" and become DemocRats.
Civics - US Constitution, Declaration of Independence, Bill of Rights -- and all of the words not Cherry picked phrases.
Amen to that. When schools teach Constitution today they add things in the Constitution that aren't even there and people just accept it. The false principle of Separation of Church and State. People should be taught the Constitution, not what some liberal court has decided about it. That goes for law schools too. In the 19th century people were taught to be lawyers by reading treatises on the Constitution. Now they are taught case law. In other words they are taught that whatever the Court says about the Constitution must be true. (This is obviously not true because the court overturns its own decisions). Just because there is a precedent doesn't mean that it is correct. People should take their Constitution back and not just let the courts tell them what their constitution is.
Public schools don't teach they indoctrinate.
**The schools don't need more math and science classes. What the schools need to do is teach competently the math and science they are now teaching.**
Bravo!! Go to the head of the class! :D
My history students often railed at an algebra requirement. I justified it aying we wanted them to learn to think logically. By the way, 80% of history teachers neither majored or minored in history while history PhD's are largely unemployable.
yanno, in those schools which have actually enforced discipline and bothered to actually TEACH, kids have managed to learn math, literacy, linguistics, science, logic, civics, and history with a fairly high rate of success.
Some teachers are very threatened by a kid like that. They can't stand being shown up by a student.
Isn't that how the Mexicans do it?
And where are Hume and Smith?
These words from the Declaration of Independence should put people's understanding of our Constitution and our rights into greater perspective.
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just Powers from the consent of the governed, -- That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new guards for their future security --
**(everyone takes it, no electives):**
Drama required? I wouldn't require it. There's enough drama in real life.
Art required? I'm a steel sculptor, and I wouldn't force anyone to take a course on art.
Required: Basic auto mechanics. It might just save a life.
Let's not have too much of that dangerous math, which helps students develop skills in logic and critical thinking, and helps them learn how to make their own intelligent decisions. Better to have more political opinion shoved down their throats where the teachers can tell them what to think.
Yes, I knowing history/government/civics is important, but the way it's being *taught* in many places today is little more than indoctrination.
You make excellent points. I do think we need more math and science classes, but FIRST, we need to teach competently what we have now. One problem with current teaching theories is that learning must always be *fun*. The "educators" who hold this belief rail against having students memorize their addition and multiplication tables because that's not *fun*. They don't want flash cards or drills or timed tests. But it's amazing that some of these same math-phobes who argue against math drills want to see the football and basketball players running wind sprints and play drills.
Well, ever since Sex Ed replaced Civics, what could one expect?
It won't happen for this is 2005 and 1984 is far behind us.
Right?
Ahm, more sex and less civics?
Did I win?
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