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RE: Content is Dead
October 17, 2012 at 3:52 pm
You are absolutely right, but the problem is that no matter what era you're living in, critical thinking is important. It was as true in Archimedes time as it was in Isaac Newton's, as it is today. And schools are not teaching critical thinking. It used to be, when I was younger, that my teachers had much more rein on how much was SOL based and how much was actual contextual learning. This changed as I went through high school due to the higher demand for testing requirements and passing in order to continue receiving government money. Good test scores make people happy, regardless of whether or not it's teaching people how to exist out in the world.
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RE: Content is Dead
October 17, 2012 at 4:17 pm
I certainly agree that schools do not place nearly enough emphasis on critical thinking. But, I also think there are more opportunities for kids to discover critical thinking, and multiple viewpoints, on their own today than has ever been the case before. I have most certainly learned many times as much since graduating high school as I did before doing so. Education is trending towards career training, and having a degree is more important than having a well-rounded understanding of the world around you.
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RE: Content is Dead
October 17, 2012 at 4:19 pm
Well, I'm not advocating the school giving you a well-rounded view of the world (I might have misrepresented myself in that last sentence in my post) - only that they stop focusing on cramming memorized facts into your head. It doesn't matter what career you go into - critical thinking is a, if you'll excuse me, critical part of life AND a career.
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RE: Content is Dead
October 17, 2012 at 8:31 pm
Excuse me while I set up my soap box.
OK I'm on it now.
The presumptions in education are not being looked at, and because of these presumptions education is failing dramatically in Britain, and I think it is true for swathes of the English speaking world.
Presumption 1.
The more able child learns faster.
This is Bollocks of the first order. There are many strategies used to learn, and some will be inclined to one method while others will not engaged by it.
To think there is one proper method of teaching that will cover all, is similar to expecting every person on this forum to express themselves in the same way. It would crush the individual and destroy the forum by curtailing any interaction.
Some children can quickly learn by rote, but others have to take longer to understand the concept. For instance some learn 2+2=4 then they have to learn 2+3=5 and they gradually build up a set of sums until they can see the commonalities and get the concept of addition. Other children like to first understand the concept and then put it into practice.
Problems arise because teachers are expected to cover specific amounts of a set curriculum, so if a child has not understood a concept they are moved on and that exercise has been a waste, you only have to repeat this process a few times and the child cannot see why it is worthwhile bothering in the first place as they will never get anything. You see the lights going off.
Testing if the test is carried out quickly after the learning children who learn by rote will get relatively high marks compared with the other group even though they do not understand the concept. Tests themselves favour clear measurable answers, they are not so accurate at measuring concepts and a child's understanding. An instance of this was the history exam my daughter took three years ago on American civil rights; max Five point answer. Points awarded for mentioning people involved and situation. One point For John F Kennedy. One point for Martin Luther King, also you would get a point for JFK, and MLK, I as an Englishman have never heard him referred to as such, but was told it would be racist if the white and men of colour were not treated the same. Thus you get four points for the two people, but However well you explained the background to the question you could only get one point.
This points to an education system that does not promote learning and understanding, but selects simple see and do people who can follow orders.
That's enough from me for now.
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RE: Content is Dead
October 17, 2012 at 8:47 pm
I agree Jon... I see it with my oldest who is struggling to master reading and writing (moreso the writing). He's a total math-science brain and just doesn't see why the writing or regurgitation of what he has learned has to do with anything (as far as he's concerned he's got it down, why prove it?), so he's not motivated to learn it or to perform like a trained monkey on a test. It's a difficult concept to express to a 6 year old. We're lucky he's in a good school district. Last year his teacher flat out told me that he was way smarter than what his test scores suggested based on simply talking with him.
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RE: Content is Dead
October 17, 2012 at 8:49 pm
That^ so much.
One of my issues with the SOL was that it involved mostly multiple choice questions. As a result, I'm FANTASTIC at taking those tests. What didn't get taught was how to write a coherent and concise answer in a "short answer" test. Fortunately, I did have a teacher who insisted on teaching us how to take timed "essay" tests.
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RE: Content is Dead
October 17, 2012 at 9:01 pm
Haven't watched the video yet, but that looks like Bill Nighy.
![[Image: Untitled2_zpswaosccbr.png]](https://images.weserv.nl/?url=i1140.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fn569%2Fthesummerqueen%2FUntitled2_zpswaosccbr.png)
