[quote]LarryDavid wrote:
[quote]DBCooper wrote:
[quote]LarryDavid wrote:
[quote]Ct. Rockula wrote:
I’ll whoop your ass Clip.
[/quote]
x2
Rock will whoop your ass, Clip.[/quote]
I’ll be masturbating in the corner.[/quote]
x2 DB will in fact, be masturbating in the corner.[/quote]
x3 this is pretty much an undisputable fact.
He will spank it like a retarded monkey.
[quote]clip11 wrote:
In my opinion they should use elementary school thru middle school to teach you reading, writing, and arithmatic and maybe a few of those useless facts they think is so important. The kids, at that point, who may likely be college material, can be steered more towards academics. The kids that aren’t college material can spend their high school years learning a skilled trade or two or learning how to be an entrepreneur, you know, stuff that can actually put money in your pocket.[/quote]
From what I recall (incorrect?), this is the way France and possibly more European countries are organized.
y u so mad?
[quote]TheDudeAbides wrote:
[quote]clip11 wrote:
In my opinion they should use elementary school thru middle school to teach you reading, writing, and arithmatic and maybe a few of those useless facts they think is so important. The kids, at that point, who may likely be college material, can be steered more towards academics. The kids that aren’t college material can spend their high school years learning a skilled trade or two or learning how to be an entrepreneur, you know, stuff that can actually put money in your pocket.[/quote]
From what I recall (incorrect?), this is the way France and possibly more European countries are organized.
[/quote]
Blasphemy, zis is ze German modell, which makez her workerz ze envy of ze world!
Which, actually does make sure that there are very skilled workers all around, who, incidentally make more money in their offtime than in their regular jobs and put most college graduates to shame when it comes to income and general usefullness.
[quote]clip11 wrote:
My uncle said he could get me into a job that pays $50,000/year by next April, but I need 60 college credits, but I have 30. So im enrolled in school to get the rest.
But on reflecting, it made me see how useless high school really was. You don’t learn anything. At least not anything that matters. Who cares who was the President in 1785 or who cares about some play Shakesphere wrote 300 years before you were even born? That type of stuff doesnt help the bottom line…MAKING YOURSELF A LIVING!!! I’ve never been to an interview where the basis of getting the job was telling the interviewer some random, useless fact like how fast the earth moves around the sun.
Eveb with this high school diploma I have, which isn’t worth the paper its printed on, I (and many, many others) still have to beg, bow, and scrape for a $10 an hour job. And high school doesn’t even teach you how to beg, bow, and scrape correctly so you can get that $10 an hour job.
In my opinion they should use elementary school thru middle school to teach you reading, writing, and arithmatic and maybe a few of those useless facts they think is so important. The kids, at that point, who may likely be college material, can be steered more towards academics. The kids that aren’t college material can spend their high school years learning a skilled trade or two or learning how to be an entrepreneur, you know, stuff that can actually put money in your pocket.
Now, when you graduate, your high school diploma means you know how to do something, not that you memorized who was president in 1785 so you could pass a test in history class.[/quote]
You just proved why people should go to high-school.
I dropped out at 16 and went on to get a math degree without ever getting my high school diploma. It’s not necessary IMO but a lot of people I know say they couldn’t have gotten through their first year at college without it. I don’t necessarily agree but we all have different needs. YMMV. I had to study a bit harder in first year though to pick up what I missed.
ah. education is wasted on the young.
strangely enough the two tier system you suggest of an academic and non-academic stream is how our schooling system (New Zealand) was structured when my father was school age. those who came from families who were wealthy enough to pay for their university education were academic streamed and worked towards a university entrance qualification. those who weren’t were basically trade-school streamed and they worked towards whatever qualification was needed for apprenticeship. once the government made student loans for university universally available for NZ citizens students chose which subjects they wanted to take (must remain in school until 16 by law).
the US system is a bit of an odd one (compared to the NZ, Australian, and to lesser extent British systems). The US is relatively focused on general education. It surprised me a lot to learn that much of the content of university degrees are determined by general education requirements rather than classes that are directly on ones intended major.
i would never have made it to university in the US system because I wouldn’t have passed the maths requirement to graduate high school. in NZ i simply didn’t choose to take math after my second year (focused on arts / social science subjects). I’m now qualified to teach at university level (and have actually taught in the US) so that is kind of ironic, heh. i steer clear of math, admittedly…
but now… i wish i’d have paid more attention in math. i wish i’d have got the equivalent of whatever math is needed to graduate high school. i didn’t see how it was relevant or important THEN but i do see how it is relevant and important NOW. my father said he couldn’t see the point of shakespeare when he was in high school. strangely enough he enjoyed attending shakespearean theatre as a recreational activity later in life. he lamented not having listened more in school… education is wasted on the young.
i do hear you about certain facts seeming pointless to remember. remembering WHO said something or WHEN they said it is not my strong point. i only care about if it is true or not… the thing is, though, that sometimes the CONTENT (subject matter) that you are required to learn isn’t as valuable (or obviously as valuable) as the PROCESS (way in which you learn it). E.g., you exercise your brain when you make it remember stuff. that makes it grow so you get better at remembering stuff. maybe stuff that you actually care about or that is more obviously useful to you. well it doesn’t physically grow, but it changes, and i hope you get the idea.
nothing worse than people telling an angsty teenager ‘these are the best years of your life’. nothing more patronizing. still… you will look back on high school very differently from how it seems to you now… school hours are significantly less than work hours… when you are working you won’t get to hang with people your own age quite as much… that much harder to pull a sickie… dunno. hang in there. it’ll be over soon.
[quote]Rico Suave wrote:
If high school taught you NOTHING, then you failed. It helps prepare you for life in one way or another. It wasn’t until grade 12 when I took kinesiolgy, that I knew what I wanted to do with my life.
What job is your uncle hooking you up with.[/quote]
State police.
if i’d have done more math i might be able to make better sense of 5/3/1…
maybe it isn’t so much about making a living as it is about improving your quality of life with respect to your leisure time.
LOL typical high schooler!
I can’t speak for the States, but having recently graduated from university in Australia many employers want to see what you have done in high school, what your results were, did you participate in any extra-curricular activities, etc. so they can contrast it and see why any discrepancies occurred and what not. Gives them a better picture of you. I’d imagine it is pretty much the same scenario everywhere else.
I could get into a job that’s paying $80k to $120k a year in resources easily too. That isn’t the point though. If you are happy busting your ass working ridiculous hours then it’s all good. If you value some consistency in your life and a good work/life balance then it probably isn’t the best option to enter that field.
Besides, high school teaches you so many things that you actually do use in every day life. Which translates heavily into your college studies depending which area you end up going.
Well, in my experience, I wish when I was in high school I had spent those four years learning how to be an electrician or how to be an entrepreneur, things that could help me make an actual living than about what was the U.S. population in 1920 or crap like that.
MONEY + GUNZ + BICHEZ > HIGH SCHOOL
[quote]debraD wrote:
I dropped out at 16 and went on to get a math degree without ever getting my high school diploma. It’s not necessary IMO but a lot of people I know say they couldn’t have gotten through their first year at college without it. I don’t necessarily agree but we all have different needs. YMMV. I had to study a bit harder in first year though to pick up what I missed. [/quote]
I think the academic part is only half of why it’s so important. Developing as a person is also a huge part of high-school. Interacting with others, performing under pressure, working within time restraints, and working on subjects that you might not love among other things, are extremely important to YOUR development.
Developing interpersonal skills and the ability to understand, interact, and work with other people is also extremely important.
If I’m an employer and I have two guys in front of me and one knows about presidents and WWII and the planets and the other guy doesn’t, I’ll hire the first guy.
You know, even if they don’t teach this sort of stuff in school ( I never had any class until university, that taught about WWI or II) this sort of stuff is what people should learn on their own.
It doesn’t even have to be books. I actually think books aren’t the best way to learn history. Shows on The History Channel and Discovery would honestly help one remember more than reading a book.
I must mention I’ve read quite a few history books too, as I do enjoy them, but I’m not sure how much I retain after. It’s like reading a fiction book…after a few months you remember bits and pieces of the story, but would you pass a test on that novel?
I guess I see history books like fiction in that i just enjoy them while I’m reading them and maybe I’ll get a crossword puzzle answer with it some day.
There is another valuable life skill that you can begin to build in HS, aside from any type of academic, artistic, social or athletic development. The ability to jump through other people’s hoops and abide (or at least appear to abide) by rules that often seem arbitrary or even foolish is very advantageous in today’s world. I’m not being sarcastic. As much as we ostensibly prize individuality, the ability to conform, at least outwardly, to externally imposed systems and standards, even when they are contrary to our natural inclination is a survival skill. If you think “conform” is an ugly word, try “adapt” instead. We all need to “fit in” sometimes because the lone wolf eventually starves. I know this will elicit negative responses from some, but honestly if you intend to go through life saying exactly what you think and doing exactly what you please, well things will be unnecessarily difficult for you.
If you can learn to “go along to get along” while seeking out those opportunities that are best suited to your own inclinations and maintaining your personal integrity, I think you will go farther than if you are the inflexible, overly idealistic individualist or the angst-ridden slacker. HS provides an environment where you can begin to hone this process, if you don’t get too hung up it.
You should check out the School Sucks Project
Should have went to private school bro
[quote]Nards wrote:
It doesn’t even have to be books. I actually think books aren’t the best way to learn history. Shows on The History Channel and Discovery would honestly help one remember more than reading a book. [/quote]
I would have agreed with this a few years ago, but looking at the programming they have on both of those channels these days, I wouldn’t trust their credibility any more than an online medical degree.
Ever since reality TV took over all channels the level of quality in production has sunk so low. They actually have shows on these channels that suggest that aliens helped build the pyramids. Shows about Roswell being an alien research compound, etc…
Larry the Cable guy has a show on one of those channels.
lol @ OP. I guess my AP chem, AP calculus, AP physics and AP stats courses in hs were completely useless and taught me nothing. I’m only about to graduate with a chemical engineering degree.
Like anything else, hs is what you make of it. If you want to learn something that can be useful to you later in life, then you will. If you wanna do shit and just get by, then complain about how ‘the system’ sucks, then you will do that. Just because you chose to learn nothing, and many others choose that same path, doesn’t mean the system is worthless.
Oh, and you’re arguement about learning a trade or skill rather than being sent to the ‘college tract’ after elementary school is absurb. For one, these skill and trade opportunities will still be around after one graduates hs, if college isn’t a good option. Next, a % of kids only start to take their schooling seriously once in hs bc they start to understand how their future will be affected. In your system OP, these kids would never even be given a chance to go to college. Finally, hs is about more than just ‘book learning’. Please tell me you recognize that.
Good luck with your tea party platform and trying to revert the world back to the 1870s where 12yos are sent off to learn a trade from the wood worker on the other side of town.
[quote]WestCoast7 wrote:
[quote]debraD wrote:
I dropped out at 16 and went on to get a math degree without ever getting my high school diploma. It’s not necessary IMO but a lot of people I know say they couldn’t have gotten through their first year at college without it. I don’t necessarily agree but we all have different needs. YMMV. I had to study a bit harder in first year though to pick up what I missed. [/quote]
I think the academic part is only half of why it’s so important. Developing as a person is also a huge part of high-school. Interacting with others, performing under pressure, working within time restraints, and working on subjects that you might not love among other things, are extremely important to YOUR development.
Developing interpersonal skills and the ability to understand, interact, and work with other people is also extremely important.
[/quote]
I agree that those things are important but I’m not convinced high school is the place to gain them. It’s a contrived, controlled setting that doesn’t transfer well into the real world IMO. Not that I can say too much since I didn’t complete it, but high school social dynamics are not at all like real world social dynamics. For example, being popular in the real world doesn’t actually buy you anything if you’re incompetent and if you lack social skills getting stuffed into a locker is not going to improve them IMO.