Stop teaching pseudoscience in school

[_Droopy]

Well, my experience with public education has been mostly positive.

Part of mine was as well. l learned how to spell, write, and read. I learned basic math. I learned various tidbits of history and science. This ended in Junior High School throught the end of High School, which was, for the most part, an utter waste of my time.

I'm sure there are inferior public school teachers, but, I hate to see public education criticized wholesale, because in my experience, it's not deserved.

Study the issue, look at the empirics. American kids on average are the most unaware, most unprepared, and intellectually shallow in the industrialized western nations. What's interesting is that American kids, on test after test in which their skills are matched against foreign kids, the American kids think they're very well educated and have done well on a test aganst their peers in other countries. When the reality manifests itself, shock sets in. American kids on average score high on self esteem, but low on tests of actual knowledge.

Any doubt here will be wiped away by a study of what American college students know, and the remedial education needed to get many of them to a point where they can make it through 100 level courses.

This should be of interest, as a tip of a long standing iceberg:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bx4pN-aiofw

[_Moniker]

Hey, Coggins, I agree there are issues with our public education system. Mainly we teach kids to memorize and not think. We want them to regurgitate for tests without understanding context. We want them to be ready made workers and we don't challenge them to think critically or explore -- of course the more standardized tests we prepare for them the more likely the teachers will continue to preparation these students to only think true/false or multiple choice. What to do? We test to see how they're doing -- yet, the tests themselves ensure they're taught to not think, really.

The teachers are given course work they MUST go through within a year -- nothing indepth. They must get through all of these things and the children lose. We cram facts and data at them at an alarming speed and then blame the teachers for this.

[_KimberlyAnn]

Hey, Coggins, I agree there are issues with our public education system. Mainly we teach kids to memorize and not think. We want them to regurgitate for tests without understanding context. We want them to be ready made workers and we don't challenge them to think critically or explore -- of course the more standardized tests we prepare for them the more likely the teachers will continue to preparation these students to only think true/false or multiple choice. What to do? We test to see how they're doing -- yet, the tests themselves ensure they're taught to not think, really.

I agree with this, and have been dismayed to find many teachers "teaching to the test" at the urging of school administration. High test scores look good for schools, and there's a tendency to work toward that, disregarding subjects that aren't included on achievement tests.

I have also found that a loudly complaining group of parents can have a major impact on school administration, especially when such parents have pull with several members of the school board. ;)

KA

[_EAllusion]

Every major ID argument is either prefigured in scientific creationist literature or is a exact repeat of it with the label simply changed.

Of course, this isn't shocking as the former evolved directly out of the latter. Yet, somehow, ID arguments are serious criticisms, but "scientific creationist" ones are not.

[_Moniker]

Look at this for 7th grade Science in my state, Coggins:

http://www.tennessee.gov/education/ci/sci/grade_7.shtml

Look at the facts these kids must memorize in Social Studies:
http://www.tennessee.gov/education/ci/ss/grade_7.shtml

If a child doesn't get it -- no time to slow down! It has to be complete by the end of the school year. Hurrah for those students with good processing speed, no disabilities, don't miss too many days of school, etc... otherwise they fall behind and the teacher must keep on trucking along. The student will need to go to tutoring (which is offered at many public schools) or the student will be sent to special education classes to help them master the content (if they qualify)-- of course they'll still be behind their peers.

That's to be done anywhere between 170-180 days (it varies by state).

[_Moniker]

I have also found that a loudly complaining group of parents can have a major impact on school administration, especially when such parents have pull with several members of the school board. ;)

Heh! Good for you!

[_Moniker]

Every major ID argument is either prefigured in scientific creationist literature or is a exact repeat of it with the label simply changed.

Of course, this isn't shocking as the former evolved directly out of the latter. Yet, somehow, ID arguments are serious criticisms, but "scientific creationist" ones are not.

We've hijacked this thread and you're trying to reel it back in, eh?

Maybe all the education posts can be split off that don't deal with ID. Mods?!

[_Moniker]

karl61 linked to this article in another thread that dealt with male circumcision (I'm not certain the relation) and thought it would be pertinent here:

In this photo released by Mount Vernon, Ohio, City Schools as a part of independent investigation report, a Mount Vernon student with a branded cross on his arm is shown. A public school teacher taught creationism in his science class and used a device to burn the image of a cross on students' arms, according to a report by independent investigators. Mount Vernon Middle School teacher John Freshwater was insubordinate in failing to remove a Bible and other religious materials from his classroom and continued to preach his Christian beliefs despite complaints by other teachers and administrators, the report also said.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080620/ap_ ... cher_bible

Other findings show that Freshwater taught that carbon dating was unreliable to argue against evolution.

[_Paul Kemp]

karl61 linked to this article in another thread that dealt with male circumcision (I'm not certain the relation) and thought it would be pertinent here:

In this photo released by Mount Vernon, Ohio, City Schools as a part of independent investigation report, a Mount Vernon student with a branded cross on his arm is shown. A public school teacher taught creationism in his science class and used a device to burn the image of a cross on students' arms, according to a report by independent investigators. Mount Vernon Middle School teacher John Freshwater was insubordinate in failing to remove a Bible and other religious materials from his classroom and continued to preach his Christian beliefs despite complaints by other teachers and administrators, the report also said.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080620/ap_ ... cher_bible

Other findings show that Freshwater taught that carbon dating was unreliable to argue against evolution.

Disgusting. What if a parent wanted to brand their child with a cross? Should they have that right?

[_Paul Kemp]

karl61 linked to this article in another thread that dealt with male circumcision (I'm not certain the relation) and thought it would be pertinent here:

In this photo released by Mount Vernon, Ohio, City Schools as a part of independent investigation report, a Mount Vernon student with a branded cross on his arm is shown. A public school teacher taught creationism in his science class and used a device to burn the image of a cross on students' arms, according to a report by independent investigators. Mount Vernon Middle School teacher John Freshwater was insubordinate in failing to remove a Bible and other religious materials from his classroom and continued to preach his Christian beliefs despite complaints by other teachers and administrators, the report also said.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080620/ap_ ... cher_bible

Other findings show that Freshwater taught that carbon dating was unreliable to argue against evolution.

Disgusting. What if a parent wanted to brand their child with a cross? Should they have that right?