Ironically, I think this is how learning was done at our founding.
Urban schools are the same.
They emphasize career choices too:
Drug Dealing
Rapping
Gang Banging
You can choose more than one...............
the humanities are ignored because education is largerly undertaken for contemporary socioeconomic reasons, as if we live in a material world.
Those who are dissatisfied with the German system become huge proponents of the usual notion of teaching the basics to everyone, and allowing the individual to specialize themselves, in any field that they wish, or even in multiple fields over their lifetimes. We aren't worker bees.
The German model of channeling students into professional apprenticeships was one reason for the country’s rapid development after WWII. Of course, those kids were little Germans who could read, write, and do math before they graduated. So it probably wouldn’t work with the products of NEA conditioning.
This is great, and I wish many more had these opportunities. I do not see teachers unions going for this though. It seems like it would be more difficult for the teachers to adapt to many students versus just lining them up and teaching the same thing all the time.
Also, this probably only works where parents are involved. Too many places expect the schools to do everything and the parents don’t have to do anything.
“college is not their only option”
This. I think students should be permitted to graduate at 16 and enter a trade as an apprentice. It makes sense for those not interested in college.
That model won't scale well.
Cowboyin’ and oilfield roughneckin’ would be good choices there.
When I was a kid, our town had 5 high schools. One was college prep. Was was a general high school. One was for trades like construction, plumbing, and electrical. One was for “business support” (ie Secretaries and bookkeepers). One catholic school.
Everyone picked in 8th grade where they were going.
It worked pretty well.
In the 80’s they combined three of the four public.
They’ve spent the past 20 years trying to rebuild the four paths. It’s never going to achieve the success the city had from 1920 through the 80s.
But, the educators felt good that they were increasing diversity and getting rid of “stigmas” associated with being a “ditch digger/construction person.” The city is an urban desert now.
When I started high school (in a time and galaxy far far away) we were told you has to enroll in the college prep classes or shop classes and be relegated to a life time of manual labor.
It sounds similar to the “democratic school” model.