High school was useless, and so were all the other grades

Permission

Banned
Joined
Apr 29, 2006
Messages
168
Reaction score
4
Looking back 6 or 7 years ago, I now realize that high school was a waste of time. I did well in my classes, usually in the top 25% of the class in each subject, but I didn't have much of a social life. What it did was alienate me from soceity. There was a lot of social conditioning I had to over-turn later in life because of the 12 years of school I had where I was never the "popular" kid. It was like an inferiority complex.

The education itself was also a waste of time. Looking back, I really don't know what I learned. Sure, I learned a little bit here and there, but overall I could have learned much more reading myself.

I don't understand why the government and the public opinion always wants "more spending on education...children are the future...blah blah blah". It doesn't matter how much money you spend on education. If you want to know the #1 reason why one school might do a lot better than another school it's mostly to do with parents pushing their kids harder. Places with low income will have parents who generally don't care, and the kids won't either. People who think that schools need more funding in order for better education are idiots.

The difference between high school and university is also so great, that it won't prepare you for it. You might as well have spent the 12 years on vacation instead. The biggest reason why schools are so popular is because people don't wanna pay for babysitters.
 

Desdinova

Master Don Juan
Joined
Nov 15, 2004
Messages
11,641
Reaction score
4,720
I have to agree that the education system sucks. First of all, my grades were crap. That didn't stop me from going to college and getting a good job, as opposed to what all my HS teachers told me.

Second, you don't learn how to use what you learned, you learn how to memorize. It helps train your short-term memory to keep information long enough to pass tests. Ask me what SINe and COSine are now, and I'll tell you that you need both to get your first loan.

Third, grade is based not only on memorization, but how well the student interacts with the teacher (and their chosen methods for teaching). I watched my english grade jump from a B+ to an F when we were given a different teacher whom I didn't get along with.

I stand by experience being the best teacher. If anything, a teacher should only provide the student with the information, and show how the information can be applied in the real world. Then, let the student learn purely by playing around with it and asking questions if they want to further their experience and knowledge.
 

Void

Master Don Juan
Joined
Jul 2, 2004
Messages
634
Reaction score
5
You want a nation of idiots? Think of our nation now MINUS education.
 

grr

Senior Don Juan
Joined
Dec 22, 2005
Messages
225
Reaction score
0
Age
42
Location
Colorado
Public Schools are bearable, and helpful.

But I do wish I was born into a better off parental situation. Maybe if they had their sh_t together so they didn't have to let a government-funded organization raise me. :\
 

diplomatic_lies

Master Don Juan
Joined
Aug 4, 2002
Messages
4,368
Reaction score
8
Ironically, I learnt about investing from one of my high school teachers. The greatest irony is that he was kind of a crappy teacher when it came to schoolwork, but an excellent one when it came to non-schoolwork.
 

Shiftkey

Master Don Juan
Joined
Aug 28, 2001
Messages
3,648
Reaction score
8
Location
Orange County, Ca
The school system can use some work, but we'd be a lot worse off if we scraped it completely.
 

Teflon_Mcgee

Master Don Juan
Joined
Apr 3, 2006
Messages
921
Reaction score
27
As it is now, high school is an outdated system that teaches false social values and tracks the learning of students (standardized testing) in an unefficient and almost arbitrary way.

It does almost nothing to prepare students for the real world except the hard core science and math nerds going into hard core science and math fields (they can still be nerds in those fields and be succesful members of society).

Think about the social ethics and dynamics of high school compared to the real world.

Think about the subjects that you learn long enough to pass a test and then forget them soon afterword. And why learn half those subjects in the first place.

I think a diversified education is very important but not as a primer for the real world (which is what HS is touted as).

I know my children will not be attending high school.
 

PowertripII

Don Juan
Joined
Jun 27, 2006
Messages
59
Reaction score
0
Location
Southern California
I hated HS while I was there and my opinion of it is still the same. Yes, spending every available minute in the library devouring information (on my own accord) didn't do my social life any good but I always figured I had time to work on that once my tenure was over. I've more than made up for it since.

At my HS reunion barely anyone knew who I was.. but the girls really wanted to find out! :D
 

Abbott

Master Don Juan
Joined
Jan 2, 2002
Messages
896
Reaction score
0
Location
St. Louis Area
Apart from Algebra (glorified plus, minus, times, and divide) and earlier English classes, I can't think of anything else during my time in the school system that was useful to me.

When I say "earlier English classes," I mean the ones you take as a pre-teen and earlier that teach you about grammar and spelling, not the useless classes about English literature in high school. Not to say that it can't be interesting, since some people seem to like it (I'm not among the few who actually do).

But then again, from what I've observed and the prevalence of spell-checking features and software, I'm not even sure if the English classes even do their job. Personally, I make a point of having the best English possible. It's the only language I know, so how well I know it directly affects my ability to communicate. That probably makes as much difference as the class, if not more so.

There were many classes that for the right people may be interesting for their intrinsic value (read: possibly interesting, but won't help you make money). However, you have to wonder why that A) public money is being used to fund this, and B) such classes are often required to even graduate.

Anyone who believes that high school does not prepare you for college is spot on. Not once did I ever think "Wow, what Ms. Williamson said in her lecture that Tuesday morning all those years ago is now helping me out a lot." If anything, high school unprepared me.

Because I hated high school and high school classes so much, I wasn't in the "be serious about class" mode when I initially started college. The result was that my performance that very first semester was abysmal. It was so bad, in fact that while my performance the following semester was much better, it wasn't enough. My average was too low, and I was kicked out of that school. I currently attend a community college, where I'm due to finish up soon. My performance there was so much better. But then again, I also, for the most part, have more or less recovered from the trauma of the four years. If I could do it again, I wouldn't have attended college right out of high school.

Back then, I thought that playing video games was a better use of my time than most high school classes (despite what the teachers and many parents say). I still think so. I've also learned that if you have your diploma, no one cares how you got there. I did take certain "advanced" or "honors" classes, but I realize now that the additional effort was wasted, and I would never recommend that a teenager should ever take such classes (unless, for whatever reason, those classes happened to be easier).

I remember that I had this advanced graphing calculator while in high school. I annoyed many teachers when I played Tetris on the calculator while in class. High Tetris scores are useless, but at least I had more fun earning those scores than I did in the classes (which are also useless). Therefore, playing Tetris was a better use of my time.


Ben
 

Brian20o2

Master Don Juan
Joined
Jul 24, 2005
Messages
961
Reaction score
3
Location
Paradise (with rain)
Void said:
You want a nation of idiots? Think of our nation now MINUS education.
I'm pretty sure we are a nation of idiots. Look at how we believe and simply follow what the government says. Also there is a difference between education and being educated.
 

Titanium

Don Juan
Joined
Jul 4, 2006
Messages
100
Reaction score
0
Location
Canada
I'm all for education, although I didn't do well in high school. I dropped out after one year. For me, I did feel it was useless.

There is obviously need for improvement in our educational systems. What stood out as a big problem for me, was the fact that HS teachers have to assume the role of babysitters. I felt disrespected and I lost respect. I always wanted to be treated like an adult, and did much better in a college and university setting, where there's almost a world of difference in maturity level.
 

Holland

Master Don Juan
Joined
Jun 3, 2005
Messages
783
Reaction score
10
Age
37
Location
Holland
There was a lot of social conditioning I had to over-turn later in life because of the 12 years of school I had where I was never the "popular" kid
There's only one to blame for that

And no, it's not the school system
 

Permission

Banned
Joined
Apr 29, 2006
Messages
168
Reaction score
4
Holland said:
There's only one to blame for that

And no, it's not the school system

While technically that may be true, I don't think so, because I was a child. I didn't know any better back then.
 

diplomatic_lies

Master Don Juan
Joined
Aug 4, 2002
Messages
4,368
Reaction score
8
So what's an alternative to the education system?

Most of you seem to want an individually-tailored program, offering different subjects/teachers/lesson plans for every single student. Unfortunately, that's kind of difficult. Maybe if you pay $50K a year, you can have your own teacher/lessons/individual class :)
 

Titanium

Don Juan
Joined
Jul 4, 2006
Messages
100
Reaction score
0
Location
Canada
diplomatic_lies said:
So what's an alternative to the education system?

I think its somewhat up to the individual to come up with a tailored plan. Some options are correspondence – especially easy with computers now days. Home schooling is another option. I think a half / half approach would be more ideal, because it is good for kids to be exposed to HS and to integrate in a social sense. Some really enjoy their high school experiences, but there’s another faction that just doesn’t fit in or excel in that environment.

Stats show that kids (in Canada and US) do considerably poorer than kids in other countries. I think this is a cultural issue. The desire to learn, to do well, and to be serious at that, comes from the home. Thus, I think our education system is mainly spoiled due to bad parenting and not enough discipline. Teachers shouldn’t have to be babysitters, or put up with the bs that they do on a regular basis. We can pour all the money we want into education, and we can self tailor all we want, but overall, things will not improve substantially until values change.
 

A-Unit

Master Don Juan
Joined
Aug 6, 2004
Messages
1,516
Reaction score
44
Re:

I want you people, you guys, and girls (I'm sure some view, but don't post)...to imagine life WITHOUT school. Imagine not going anywhere FORCED to be there, TOLD "these things are what you need in the world, OUR world, and they will make you valuable to yourself." Imagine this world ABSENT of that pressure, of that expectation, of that "path." Imagine you are 5 and don't know of leaving your home. You don't go somewhere else where COMPLETE strangers, not familiar with your community, teach you things that are mandated by the Government whom are told by Big Business "this is what we need." And by mandate of the Federal Government and the school's need for funding and accreditation, and teacher's and professor's tenure, they oblige.

It's handed down from the top, TOLD that these things will make a better world. A world which we, the majority populate are told will help us lead happier, fulfilling lives. And that these skills are USEFUL to us in the world THEY created for us.

And now imagine that GONE. Imagine you, or your parents that brought you into this world DECIDE what's of value, and what isn't. They teach you things useful to survival within the country you reside. They teach you about money, since when you're young, you can earn it, and grow it, even at the tender age of 5. And they teach you to defend yourself, because not everybody is 'nice' in this world, and 'good', and when you have a family, you will need this. And they teach you household skills, that save you money and time, and build your value up as a useful member of the community you live in. They teach you language arts, so you can communicate with other people of other cultures. They teach you your heritage, of a family and race to be proud. They focus on what you LIKE or LOVE, and build upon that from an early age. And at an early age, you work alongside Dad, fixing things, building things, creating things. Learn to use your own mind at a young age, growing ever-more confident in your abilities. Growing more confident that you are right and ok. Never experiencing at a tender, young age, the slurs and backhands of complete and utter strangers that see you as but a paycheck and a number.

You learn from your parents, bringing the bond of family ever-more closer, knowing you have a safety net to return to, but not needing it because you're prepared. You aren't held back as a person by simple teenage trivialities, like drinking, and sex, and drugs, and video games. And though they're fun, and a way to waste time or relax, they aren't YOUR LIFE. They don't consume your free time to the detriment of your skills, which eventually atrophy in the aforementioned world. Instead you focus on self-confidence building skills. And your mother, if you're a boy, teaches you about women. About what she does. And how women are.

This is an idealized scene, to say the least, but just imagine what you would do WITHOUT forced schooling?

The supposition behind FORCED schooling is that people wouldn't do anything with themselves if they were not pushed to do SOMETHING. This is completely and utterly wrong. Look at our forefathers, and our fore-relatives, who worked from sun up to sun down, JUST to survive, and brave few who broke free of their circumstances. Were they lethargic? Did they lay about because they had no HS education, or college education? Today more than ever kids do that. Today more than ever, the idea of chores is a distant past where parents' would also, God-forbid, SPANK their kids!!! They don't know about it, just like they don't know Atari or Pong. Kids don't know, and it's not entirely their fault. This was engineered from the start. And it's the lax nature of parent's, most parent's anyways, to ALLOW it to happen. Playing victim. Being afraid, or ignorant.

The driving force to better oneself and one's circumstances is as NATURAl as the sun rising, as the tree growing, as the lion hunting. It's WHO we are. We do not NEED the threat of truant officers, or a ruler, or a vengeful God. Improving is what our consciousness is about. Pure and simple. We as conscious receivers are here to EXPERIENCE perception, and do that by ENHANCING that experience. The only thing school provides is a negaton of that fact and a hindrance of our TRUE abilities, but disallowing kids the chance to remain innocent and to follow their TRUE fancy, which yields ultimate joy. Eventually nature will win out, and the person who follows one's fancy as the grasshopper who never prepared for winter, will live or die. Eventually they make happen what their greatest desire is, or they die, or they change their desire to survive and find a means. They don't need to be TOLD "This is what our economy needs..." Because what you witness is the creation of someone else's dream. What you see is someone's dream unfolding, telling you THIS IS THE REALITY we will have, without asking the other participants, because THEY believe we are nothing more than ignoramuses meant to generate wealth. That we are virus, a plague, an infestation not fit or worthy of our lot in life. Is this true?

You men, you women, KNOW your worth. You know your dreams. Much of them are not in concert with that? And yet, you are told "Life is not about following your dreams." Then what is it about? I ask. When your last breath is done, what is LIFE about if not wanting to experience every desire that comes into your conscious being and following that path, GOOD or BAD? What is it? To turn the wheels of industry...for more profits to buy more things, yet living unfulfilled? To procreate but to disdain your procreations and leave them unfulfilled too, following your aimless path? To lie down with unkempt, unclean women, of whom you would never sire a child, to fill that hole inside you yearning to experience your deepest desires?

Unlock Reality.



A-Unit
 

A-Unit

Master Don Juan
Joined
Aug 6, 2004
Messages
1,516
Reaction score
44
Re:

I want the system abolished, and the funding paid to the retirees and beneficiaries of Social Security, and then that system dissolved.

It's already pitiful enough. Our disclosed defense budget is 100 times the educational budget. And that's only the numbers we know. The middle east conflict will gobble far greater funds than education. Greater than we can imagine.

I want people, parents to determine what their kids learn. Let mom stay at home. Let her pocket the daycare expenses, because when all is figured and laid out, her wage truly amounts to working @ mcdonalds, when taxes, commutting, dresses, daycare, and 2 vehicles are factored in. There are few mothers who's 2nd jobs add much value to the family income stream. And the long-range losses that IMPLICIT (i.e. handing kids over to the state to be told what they must learn, psychological impact of what school is and does, potential risks of pregnancy, drugs, and booze, and the lack of connection as a family unit) are FAR greater than EXPLICIT benefits yielded by her job AND the kid going to daycare AND then onto schooling.

Libraries are FREE. What schools teach in a year, can be done in a week, maybe less. Kids, children USED to read at what we know as 8th-12th grade levels. The bible, the oldest book around, was ready by many children a mere fraction of our age, if not for religion, then for wisdom.

What is learned, needn't be in a book either. But that's the PROGRAMMED mentality you develop when all learning is broken down to BOOKs and MEMORIZATION and when all CE courses are the same. Nothing hands on. Nothing truly doing. Not unless you actively search that out, or pay an arm, a leg, and kidney for it. We learn in many ways, and yet you have not come to realize that schooling teaches in but ONE fashion, ASSUMING all people SHOULD learn in the same way, the same things, for the same purpose.

It is your GOD-given right, your right of birth, TO CHOOSE what knowledge you put in your head. 100% YOUR right. It isn't to be assumed what you want to know or must know. And it's all the worse we allow the government the purpose of assigning what is of value and what isn't. Our forefathers would ROLL over in their graves if they knew of the serious implications that has.

But this is what I want. What A-Unit wants. I care not what other people think. That if you agree or disagree, or even read this. All I care is that it's done, or at the very least I will do it FOR my children. And enlighten MY loved ones to the robotic system known as forced schooling, which leaves the student CONSTANTLY seeking, CONSTANTLY searching for themselves, since they never were allowed that chance as a child. They were thrust into some system which gives no care about them, assigned values, and ideas, and thoughts, and labels, ridiculed according to societys perceived values and roles, and told "this is life." Not so, good sir, not so. Not mine. Not now. Not ever. Not for my kids or loved.

Find your passion.
Love what you do.
Do what you love.
That is life. And life is the best education you will find, and it's free.


A-Unit
 

Morphiex

Master Don Juan
Joined
Jun 11, 2005
Messages
663
Reaction score
1
HS isnt just about learning psychological intellect , HS is also about learing social intellect , learning to function in large and small groups with other individuals....

yes most people get branded as social outkast by theyr fellow highshcoolers because they do not fit the certain Norms and rules that apply to that school/people .....
Others force onto themself believing that acting certain ways or surpressing theyr true interests while just tryng to adapt to the ruels and norms of the group so that they will be accepted...
Now adays we get segregated in the shcools , well its not really somethign new , alining ourself into groups to define who we are is sumthing that we have done for a long time.... Its just it is more cruel these days....

Highshcool is more then learning stupid facts , its also a way to start you off into having a career a job .... having stability and knowing what prioreties to make is sumething that schools teach us , by having a stabil timetabel , maintaining that time table helps us later in life to maintaining a job , we learn to prioritize and have things ready for the work rather then waking up late, going to work late, failed to do your task adn eventually get fired for beign a slob like you were in highschool....

yes the school education system is bull**** , here we have set 5 hours each week to learn about former dead poets and what theyr poems meant and for me having that knowledge is stupid when im gonna apply for a job as a it consultent or sumthing ,
they have this idea of what general education should be but they neglect the true issues that the students struggle with , for example math , about 70 % here now are failing math...
the Math curricolum (sp?) is becoming more and more difficult for each year , the teachers are as uninspired as the students adn just fast forward through the book not caring if anything sticks or not... this clearly reflects on the students as they gain even more carelessness for learning , and end up just showing everything away....

Then we have Gymnastics , this is sumthign that is clearly not priotitized , we sped only two hours a week on this , i belive that we should be spending about minimum of 5 hours in a week on gymnastics , cuz by not prioritizing it we are telling children that maintaining a healty and strong body isent neccesary but knowing wich poet wrote this and which sister he fuc'ked back in the 1500 century is ...
Unfortunately the shcool educational system will alwasy be flawed as the governments arent really interested in making this area function as properly as it should be , and they rather spend funding on having weapons for a preemtive strike if the neighbouring country decides to attack....

I hate fuc'king Politicians and governments.....
 
Top