Poll: 80% of what you learn in school is useless?
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It depends. I mean, it really is what you're goign to do with your life. For all of your K-12 grades, is a clusterfuck. They try to teach you as much in general as possible so you can be somewhat functional in life. Not everyone will make it through college.
Probably not 80%, but I wouldn't dispute 50%. After all, only so much information is really useful outside of certain career tracks and the academic field in general. I've never had a need for Algebra since High School, for instance, and neither have I had a use for Computer Science, Chemistry, or Biology. However, I *have* found uses for Foreign Languages, English Literature, Sociology, and Finance. The jury's still out on Phys Ed and Home Economics, though. Out of those ten examples, I've got 4 that haven't proved useful, 4 that have, and 2 that are disputed. Out of the non-disputed ones, it's an even 50/50 split.
I wouldn't say that the system is *broken*...but I would argue that kids and parents should have more choice over what courses to take, and that the overall curriculum from the third grade onward shouldn't be about standardized testing preparations.
That's just my take on it all, though.
I wouldn't say that the system is *broken*...but I would argue that kids and parents should have more choice over what courses to take, and that the overall curriculum from the third grade onward shouldn't be about standardized testing preparations.
That's just my take on it all, though.
I'd say what's taught in school up to about grade 1 or 2 is pivotal.
After having learned the essentials of reading, writing, basic math, and simple concepts of other fields you're pretty much done.
The rest is a waste in the fact that your future career will determine what, if anything you've learned afterward was worth while. Since most people don't choose a career at a young age, the rest of school simply builds on the foundation it started, until which time choices can be made. As such I'm going with at least %90 is useless for the majority of people who do not work in specialized fields.
After having learned the essentials of reading, writing, basic math, and simple concepts of other fields you're pretty much done.
The rest is a waste in the fact that your future career will determine what, if anything you've learned afterward was worth while. Since most people don't choose a career at a young age, the rest of school simply builds on the foundation it started, until which time choices can be made. As such I'm going with at least %90 is useless for the majority of people who do not work in specialized fields.
We're one of the lowest because the US' statistic include kids who have been kicked out of school, the mentally ill, and prisoners. No other country includes them.summerof2010 said:
EDIT: Sorry for all the posts. Didn't realize what I did until it was too late^^
It's only as useless as you make it. Even those annoying derivatives and integrals will come in handy if you decide to build something "for experience" (which is something more people should do).
It's failed in that the teachers aren't doing enough to make sure you can, say multiply 6 and 13 in your head. That's really basic, and easy to test (no calculators on a concept test). However, teachers don't appear to actually care, as these things aren't being strengthened.Bocaj2000 said:
Besides, he was only saying that your statement was false and gave a reason. That's valid.
I have made this precise statement for years, and while I may be in agreement with the notion it is heavily dependent on the school you have attended. I still maintain the belief a vast amount of what is presently taunt in school today is either worthless or overpriced (college.) Algebra is a prime example of absolutely useless information that will never serve a future purpose except in a very specific field. Ironic, computers - something which is essentially the most dominate aspect of our everyday lives - is thought trivial by comparison. I am of the firm believer we should be allotted an opportunity to chose our classes. I have been invested in business my entire life and would have adored the possibility to participate in courses that would have provided actual beneficial skills to better my future. No, in my high school, the inability to draw would impact your overall.
80% is a close approximation to how useless school is, excluding college, which is a waste of money. I can apply for online courses at a tenth of the price, yet all of the benefits. It baffles my mind when people would fancy paying tens of thousands of dollars, and therefore live in debt until the age of thirty. To each their own, I suppose.
To prove the incompetency of the current high school curriculum. I went through an online school for grades ten through twelve, due to a disastrous experience in my public high school. This school taught only the essential necessities one would need, in addition to offering a large variety of college courses in specific fields. I finished three years worth of public high school in six months, and no I did not complete my work in a hastily manner.
No, public school is definitely not a masqueraded babysitting service. I learned more from television and video games than I ever did there. I mean this literally. My vocabulary is hilariously attributed to Dawson's Creek. That show had a significant impact on other aspects of my life, in actuality. My writing has been cited novel worthy and yet the imagination derives all from video games. I shall never forget being told I had difficulty writing as a child/teen, and the astonishment on my teacher's face when she finally allowed me to write something that was not about myself or an accursed book report.
80% is a close approximation to how useless school is, excluding college, which is a waste of money. I can apply for online courses at a tenth of the price, yet all of the benefits. It baffles my mind when people would fancy paying tens of thousands of dollars, and therefore live in debt until the age of thirty. To each their own, I suppose.
To prove the incompetency of the current high school curriculum. I went through an online school for grades ten through twelve, due to a disastrous experience in my public high school. This school taught only the essential necessities one would need, in addition to offering a large variety of college courses in specific fields. I finished three years worth of public high school in six months, and no I did not complete my work in a hastily manner.
No, public school is definitely not a masqueraded babysitting service. I learned more from television and video games than I ever did there. I mean this literally. My vocabulary is hilariously attributed to Dawson's Creek. That show had a significant impact on other aspects of my life, in actuality. My writing has been cited novel worthy and yet the imagination derives all from video games. I shall never forget being told I had difficulty writing as a child/teen, and the astonishment on my teacher's face when she finally allowed me to write something that was not about myself or an accursed book report.
I'm not insane. Trig has its purpose. The lack of an appropriate teacher is a completely different matter altogether. If you had a monkey at the front with a calculator, you wouldn't even learn how to add or subtract. The teacher should be a great guide that helps students gain the knowledge.Karim Saad said:
School is supposed to give you a good base of knowledge from which you can specialize from. In college you don't have to take classes that don't correspond with your major, but in elementary, intermediate, middle, and high school (or your country's system of schools) you are given knowledge from across the board so that you have different options to choose from when you go to college. If all you ever learned was science then it would be hard to move to a different skill set. Over-specialization and all.
And you needed to learn what they taught in school so that you could graduate, right? So it wasn't useless, its just that some of it you may never use again.
And you needed to learn what they taught in school so that you could graduate, right? So it wasn't useless, its just that some of it you may never use again.
I did not know that. [small]Or I did and I forgot, but I digress...[/small]Bocaj2000 said:
Nonetheless, I still feel there are significant faults in the education system that need to be addressed. Specifically, I think teachers are being rewarded for essentially handing their students glib facts and figures, with no room for developed thought, and moving on before anyone can retain it -- or worse, they are allowed to give their kids grades on ridiculous, irrelevant shit in order to bolster averages and pass more students. These practices leave students jaded and disinterested in intellectual pursuit, and in many cases outright ignorant of the subjects they were supposed to have learned about.
My only source is personal experience, but that at least tells you that my high school needs work; you can find a more elaborate description of my gripes in my previous post. Also, I agree with this guy:
However, I don't think the remedy is simply to place ultimate control over education into the hands of teachers. The whole purpose of the school boards and other administrative positions (theoretically) is to standardize and police the educational process, ensuring that all students receive the same (hopefully good) education. Giving it over entirely to teachers would produce some weird inconsistencies, and more importantly would reduce efficiency. [small]That last bit's kind of a long discussion though, so...[/small]zehydra said:
I think the biggest first step would be to abolish compulsory education -- trying to teach people who don't want to learn is an uphill battle anyway, and it hurts those of us who do value our education. And I think privatizing education would work much better too (I'm not certain, but it sounds like a good idea to me). The government could then step in and subsidize those who want to, but can't afford to go and install regulatory committees (who do not control any school funds) to keep the nation up to snuff.
...This is getting a bit off topic I think.