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Fascinating post, thank you for sharing.

So what’s the endgame here? If our entire education system is trending toward the remedial by slashing prerequisites and lowering standards, aren’t we setting ourselves up for two eventualities?

1. We get our asses handed to us by the Chinese, et al, in tech and other STEM fields

2. We have to import more foreign students and workers who have the prerequisites just to be able to keep up?

The advent of lowered admissions standards has seen the rise of remedial education consuming classroom space at the universities. Unqualified students must finish high school level competency at much more expensive instructional cost to even have a shot at competing at the level that they should have attained before admission. Absent the remedial classes, the unqualified usually wash out within one or two quarters (or semesters). They are overwhelmed trying to compete with those who are actually academically qualified to be present.

I taught an embedded systems class at a junior college for 3 1/2 years. My students ranged in age from 15 to 65. Their ability to perform in the class fell in 4 broad categories. 1) Learn a principle and run with it. Little direction required. 2) Learn a principle and master it with some coaching. 3) Observe and copy. Unable to master the principles, but able to mimic sufficiently when shown. 4) Incapable of understanding principles and unable even to grasp concepts when served on a silver platter. The group 4 people never made it through the course.

> So what’s the endgame here? <

I’m a huge believer in public schools. And here’s why. I have taught in both public and private schools. Public schools are great melting pots. They are - in theory - good for America. Private schools, not so much. Oh, the stories I could tell you about that.

Unfortunately, I fear public schools are beyond redemption. The PC mentality is just too entrenched. So our only hope going forward will be with charter schools. A good charter school would combine the best of public schools with the best of private schools.

But it remains to be seen if the PC crowd would allow that.