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Date Posted: 08:31:52 02/20/08 Wed
Author: EJetson
Subject: Re: We be dumb, and proud of it.
In reply to: Lynx 's message, "Re: We be dumb, and proud of it." on 07:42:51 02/20/08 Wed

>>Yeah, there are other factors. One of the biggest is
>>complacency. Eventually the poorer, well-educated
>>countries will have all of the US jobs that can
>>possibly be outsourced, and all we'll be left with is
>>service-oriented jobs that don't require an education
>>and executive jobs that do, and the gap between the
>>rich and poor will increase. Meanwhile, the economies
>>of the countries where we're outsourcing everything
>>will improve, and things will level off, and we'll
>>just have to accept that countries like India and
>>China will surpass us. And maybe the same cycle will
>>happen to them eventually, but it's unlikely given the
>>work ethic inherent in their culture.
>
>The middle class is nearly gone already. *sigh*
>America was once known for its strong work ethic, you
>know. That's another thing that's no longer valued.



Stupidity is being lauded everywhere. The dumber you are, the more famous you can become.

I've never been a fan of home schooling, because it greatly hampers a kid's social skills, but home schooled kids do tend to end up smarter than most who attend organized schools.

The thing is, it really doesn't take a lot of effort for a teacher to drill the basics into kids at a young age. Rote memorization of basic spelling and arithmetic rules can be learned by 6-8 year olds, and most would end up remembering them throughout their lives.

Too much emphasis today is put on catering to the weakest students. You can't put kids into "remedial" classes because it "hurts their self-esteem". Bullshit. You want out of remedial classes, work harder.

Those who design curriculums aren't the ones who actually do the teaching, in most cases. It is the school boards that do this based on pressure from just a few parents of kids who don't make the effort.

Rewards and grades are given to kids for making effort rather than getting it right. It shouldn't matter how you arrive at your answer as long as it is correct, unless of course, it's the process of arriving at the answer that you're teaching.

For basic math (addition and multiplication), I could teach kids how to do these in their heads for a minimum of 3 digit numbers in just a few seconds, so they wouldn't need a calculator. Once they learn the technique of adding from right to left, then teach them a shortcut of adding from left to right. If you've drilled the 1-9 addition tables into them, it is simple. Multiplication is a little tougher, but not much.

Spelling is mostly basic rules and actually SEEING words written out. That's where the reading helps. These should be some of the first things that kids are taught in first grade.

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