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I'm not sure that these classes need to be tax-payer funded (and maybe they're not...)
I'm over 60 and I've NEVER changed a tire, even though my dad showed me and my siblings when I was about 17 or 18. I thought way back then "yeah...I'm not going to do that." And I've never ever had to. Change my oil? Pfft. I'll go to Jiffy Lube. Thanks.
Knowing how to balance a checkbook? Why? Nearly every teenager carries around a smart phone that can tell you the balance in your checking acount at any given moment. Is it REALLY the best use of tax dollars to teach that to a teenager? And if it must be taught, can't it be taught in math class?
Stuff like that. IMO, the best use of tax dollars for these teens is how to get the most use out of a smart phone, the best apps, and so on and so forth.
I agree with you. Except, I’d not want tax dollars spent on using a smart phone either.
Schools today do so much more than they used to. I really think they should be tasked with teaching academic subjects. That should be their focus. American are notoriously poorly educated and informed. The one exception would be decent sex education. Kids will have sex; but they might not use protection or birth control.
If I ruled the education world, I’d make sure every kid knew how to protect themselves. But other than that, I think kids need to learn critical thinking by reading literature and discussing it, math, geography so they are not ignorant about the world, science so they understand the mechanics of nature and the scientific method, government, art, and whatever sport they want to play. They also need to learn how to write competently and how to speak to groups.
Parents are responsible for teaching kids how to do living.
I’ve noticed that some elementary schools are having kids write as they are learning to read. And to make presentations. Both of these skills are necessary in this world.
It seems that educators are forced to teach the standardized tests that are so important now. IMO doing this treats education as rote learning, something that is temporarily learned and then forgotten or discarded when no longer needed.
And then there is the problem of parents who do not value education at all.
I DO think it's necessary to teach modern computer use, and perhaps have a section on "practical applications in day to day living" or something like that. But otherwise...it just doesn't seem necessary to be teaching "adulting" in the classroom.
And I agree, schools should be focusing on academics. That's what schools are supposed to be for.
There are many things a young adult new adult needs to know that they don't graduate high school knowing. a personal finance class that covers everything from estimating a budget to understanding financing. These students will be getting student loans and no clue what an amortization schedule is. Practical skills like how to cook basic dishes, nothing crazy but beyond a microwave. Basic nutrition. Basic childcare, because planned or not, a new baby is a scary thing. And changing a tire is SIMPLE AND EASY if you know how, calling a tow truck and spending 150-500 to do something you can do for free in about 20 minutes is absurd to me. Some of you may never have changed a tire but not everyone can afford to call someone to change a tire for them/tow their car to a shop. I (female) helped a friend of mine change his tire at 4 am because he didn't know how ( we delivered newspapers so he called me). Basic things like if your car dies in the middle of the road how to safely move it to the side of the road instead of blocking traffic. How to create a resume and attend a job interview. Basic healthcare/first aid. These would benefit our next generation. and as I tax payer I would gladly pay for it.
I DO think it's necessary to teach modern computer use, and perhaps have a section on "practical applications in day to day living" or something like that. But otherwise...it just doesn't seem necessary to be teaching "adulting" in the classroom.
And I agree, schools should be focusing on academics. That's what schools are supposed to be for.
Not worth it. Schools are always behind because of the layers of bureaucracy involved in getting anything approved.
It's usually the opposite with the kids teaching the adults how to use the latest technology and the latest apps to use.
Also, with a lot of single parent households, dual income households and just different economics than was in past generations, a lot of young people aren't learning the basic lessons that used to be taught at home. And so now need to be taught at school
I used to go give a reality talks to a High School Lifeskills class. That class covered things like how to file a tax return & make a household budget. My topic areas were related to finance.
I think they are a good idea. There are some basic things I would have loved to have learned.
Here are just a few suggestions of what I think would be helpful.
Filling out the EZ tax form
how to sew on a button and hem
hanging a picture and curtains
Simple recipes for when you don't have much money to spend and how to cook them... beans and rice, soup, eggs, etc.
Growing basic food plants like tomatoes
Basic cleaning and laundry
Time budgeting
How to set a table
Personal hygiene
All of that "was" taught in school.
Accounting Class (taxes)
Home Ed Class (sewing, cooking, house cleaning)
Technology Class (home repairs, home improvements)
Science Class (botany)
Health Class (hygiene)
All of these were part of the basic education. The rest was to expand on it.
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All of this focus on STEM is pushing the basics aside. This I can just look it up on my cellphone is BS. If your precious cellphone fails you what are you gonna do? Cry, my phone, my phone?
Yeah keeping track of your finances with your cellphone is convenient. But is simple addition & subtraction really that hard? It helps keep you mentally sound.
It's nice to have a GPS in your car. But if/when it fails you, knowing how to read a paper map and compass is useful. Having AAA is great when it "can" help you. What do you do if the nearest AAA provider is 2-3 hours away and you have a flat tire? That's why you learn how to do it yourself.
Sure you can hire a "maid" to cook, clean and sew for you. But don't come crying when your "maid" cleans you out, leaving only dust bunnies behind.
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We need a simple test to see how bad the education system has become.
How about we have a simple "writing test"? We take a selection of students from a range of ages
4-26 (preschool - college). They would be divided in groups 4-11, 12-18, 19-26.
Each group would be asked to "write" a couple original stories appropriate for their ages. One factual, the other fictional. The only stipulation: They must "physically write or print" these stories themselves "without the aid of any technical device" (computers, tablets, cellphones, etc.) If they need help with spellings, words, definitions, they must look them up in a physical dictionary, thesaurus, etc. They also can not have outside help from parents or teachers. Each student would have 30 days to finish both of their stories.
At the end of the 30 days the stories would be read by groups of parents, teachers, administrators, throughout the country.
Then we will see how far behind our children truly are.
I live near Raleigh. Not exactly the “big city”. It’s probably been 10 years since the last time I encountered an area with no cell reception. Coverage has increased drastically since then. And even the most rural areas have tow trucks closer than two or more hours away.
Ah, I see. We have a calibration problem. Raleigh is a big city. I have been places where Mayberry (yes I know. NC joke) would be considered the big city. Where I work is just off the interstate yet, except for Verizon, no coverage. I don't have to go far from my house to have no coverage. Sure, the carrier maps show us as all colored in, but reality differs. That's why everyone around d here is willing to over pay Verizon because they at least have service. Sprint and others don't.
Over time they got rid of those classes because they weren't important in the push to get everyone to go to college and got replaced along the way.
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If your precious cellphone fails you what are you gonna do? Cry, my phone, my phone?
