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Hey, cut us some slack. Some of us older students, myself included. may have went to high schools that didn't offer or require algebra.
Then your school system is lacking. (don't mean that in a snippy way!)
I am an 'older student', having graduated HS in 1973.
I has algebra in 9th grade, followed by geometry, algebra II/trig, and precalc.
My kids, who graduated HS in '02 and '05, had the same, except they both took AP Calc their senior year.
Algebra should NOT be offered in college as kids should be getting that in HS.
What are they studying in HS for 4 years then, if they are not even getting algebra?
Then your school system is lacking. (don't mean that in a snippy way!)
I am an 'older student', having graduated HS in 1973.
I has algebra in 9th grade, followed by geometry, algebra II/trig, and precalc.
My kids, who graduated HS in '02 and '05, had the same, except they both took AP Calc their senior year.
Algebra should NOT be offered in college as kids should be getting that in HS.
What are they studying in HS for 4 years then, if they are not even getting algebra?
Perhaps they are like myself, who while taking algebra in high school couldn't make heads or tails of it and had to retake it when in college. I went to a private catholic high school and took ap classes in everything except math. Some students are not good in math. When testing for general ed classes in college, my scores were not high enough to get enrolled in Calculus. (Thank goodness, algebra was hard enough.)
For the record in high school I took: algebra 1, algebra 2, geometry (rocked at that, go figure) and the last year I think I took trig. So long ago I don't remember anymore.
Then your school system is lacking. (don't mean that in a snippy way!)
I am an 'older student', having graduated HS in 1973.
I has algebra in 9th grade, followed by geometry, algebra II/trig, and precalc.
My kids, who graduated HS in '02 and '05, had the same, except they both took AP Calc their senior year.
Algebra should NOT be offered in college as kids should be getting that in HS.
What are they studying in HS for 4 years then, if they are not even getting algebra?
Yes, it was definitely lacking. They offered beginning algebra, but was not required. Obviously most kids given a choice didn't think it was needed.
How I wish I had been forced to complete it then instead of now. I love math though, so not a huge hardship. It's just going to take longer to get the pre-reqs done.
We did have to take 4 years of English classes though, and way too much history. Funny how different schools focus more in some areas than others.
Both my kids have taken courses from, and graduated from the local State university. I have helped both of them with their various assignments over the years, and have been able to compare not only the course content, but also the level of grading rigor that predominate now.
It's not so much that the courses are "useless" but rather that they are so poorly taught, and the students are not encouraged or challenged enough to really gain much out of them.
In a nutshell, things are much easier now. Too many graduates can barely speak English properly (grammar, structure, thought and argument presentation, comprehension and researching skills). Sessional term paper assignments have become largely an Internet "cut-and-paste" process and once they have handed in that particular particular assignment, if they are questioned two weeks later about their so-called independant findings, they'll more likely look back at you with that RCA-Dog look ("His Master's Voice"), complete with the tilted head and "Huh? look in their eyes.
This is in stark contrast to the level of learning (and testing of that knowledge) in, say, Asian and East Indian cultures. Or, the required levels of learning from "my day".
Our N. American cultural laziness (and iPod-ism) has infested our institutes of higher learning, and the results are beginning to show up everywhere, sadly. I'm pretty sure it's roundly approved of by the dreaded NEA, who see it as a nice way to produce generations of vacant-headed entitlement-oriented, big-government supporting non-skeptical thinkers.
Bah Bah Bah.
Last edited by thotful1; 01-29-2009 at 11:22 AM..
Reason: clarifications
Perhaps they are like myself, who while taking algebra in high school couldn't make heads or tails of it and had to retake it when in college. I went to a private catholic high school and took ap classes in everything except math. Some students are not good in math. When testing for general ed classes in college, my scores were not high enough to get enrolled in Calculus. (Thank goodness, algebra was hard enough.)
For the record in high school I took: algebra 1, algebra 2, geometry (rocked at that, go figure) and the last year I think I took trig. So long ago I don't remember anymore.
Yeah, i disagree. I wasn't very good in math and had to take algebra in college as a prerequisite to calculus. Talk about scary! They were my worst classes and I am a very good student, probably smarter than average. I just didn't do well in math or didn't have very good teachers. Ironically, I did well in geometry in high school.
I do think that high schools should do a better job of educating the general education requirements and it would be nice if we could do it more like they do it in Europe. It would require a big increase in our standards though and I'm not sure if the majority of the american public would like that. Most of them as it is, think we push children too much as it is
I am surprised that you think adequate high school education is a 'high horse'!
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Some of us older students, myself included. may have went to high schools that didn't offer or require algebra.
"huh?"
