Open the Books: U.S. Department of Education wastes billions each year

[Belsnickel]

(04-10-2019, 07:00 PM)Dill Wrote: It is a good system, but Americans might not accept it.

I was a bit horrified when one of my daughter's friends had a recommendation to Gymnasium and her parents wanted her to go the Hauptschule route instead.  Germans were more comfortable with tracks and lesser options than most U.S. parents would be. 

The Realschule is a good deal for many though. People are already apprentices at 16 and working.  And they still have a good basic education.

It would definitely be a big culture shock to a lot of people, but I'd be willing to bet that a state that is a bit more blue collar would do it. Try it out in West Virginia, for instance, and you would see some good results.

(04-10-2019, 07:15 PM)TheLeonardLeap Wrote: Oh man, could you imagine the reaction if Hitl-- I mean Trump suggested adopting a system from Germany?

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Mandatory Trump-is-Hitler jokes aside, reading up on it a bit it seems like I could support their system if there were some changes.

Most notably, I don't think it should be at age 10, but probably 14 (when you go into Highschool). That's in my mind where the mandatory education stops being quite as useful for all. Chemistry and memorizing the periodic table, Algebra II, Pre-Calculus, and the like, really aren't things that everyone needs to know. You can probably throw Robert Frost and the like in there as well. That's probably stuff that should be included based off ability/interest rather than standard-for-all.

Granted, I have also always been of the opinion that there is a lot of fat in our education standards and not a lot of meat. What's the purpose of being required to know Au is Gold on the periodic table, while never being taught how to check your car's oil, make a budget for yourself, interview for a job, or set up a bank account? Things that would be actually useful for everyone in life who ISN'T going to grow up to be a scientist, aka the vast majority of the world.

So you're thinking grade ten instead of age ten. I can see that.

One thought I had for a reconfiguration is based on my middle school experience. In sixth grade, we spent six weeks each in a different class that was designed to give us an idea of the electives that would be available in the coming years. Then in seventh, you started taking some of those lower level classes for things like shop class, and some others I can't remember because I didn't care too much about them. So what about something like that in sixth, or maybe all through middle school/junior high?

So elementary, K-5, is same education for everyone. Middle/jr. high would be all about looking at different options for secondary school. In doing this, it gives the students/parents more of an idea of choice. They get to experience a taste of it, see what the student has the aptitude for, etc. It's not going to solve all of the problems because, as everyone seems to be agreeing on, the "special little snowflake" situation is a strong one here in the US. But I do think that using a state as a bit of a laboratory for this would be a good idea, and there are some states I believe would embrace it full on. Honestly, take this idea along Appalachia in general and it would turn out well.