Zitat

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There you have it. Now you know. We don't need Karl Marx's conception of a grand warfare between the classes to see that it is in the interest of complex management, economic or political, to dumb people down, to demoralize them, to divide them from one another, and to discard them if they don't conform. Class may frame the proposition, as when Woodrow Wilson, then president of Princeton University, said the following to the New York City School Teachers Association in 1909: "We want one class of persons to have a liberal education, and we want another class of persons, a very much larger class, of necessity, in every society, to forgo the privileges of a liberal education and fit themselves to perform specific difficult manual tasks." But the motives behind the disgusting decisions that bring about these ends need not be class-based at all. They can stem purely from fear, or from the by now familiar belief that "efficiency" is the paramount virtue, rather than love, liberty, laughter, or hope. Above all, they can stem from simple greed.

There were vast fortunes to be made, after all, in an economy based on mass production and organized to favor the large corporation rather than the small business or the family farm. But mass production required mass consumption, and at the turn of the twentieth century most Americans considered it both unnatural and unwise to buy things they didn't actually need. Mandatory schooling was a godsend on that count. School didn't have to train kids in any direct sense to think they should consume nonstop, because it did something even better: it encouraged them not to think at all. And that left them sitting ducks for another great invention of the modem era - marketing.

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John Gatto
http://www.wesjones.com/gatto1.htm

wonderful!!!

First thought, the teacher writes well - uses proper grammer but is certainly "wordy". Ouch. Oftentimes I see teachers use poor grammar so that was a plus.

Second thought, the reason they have gone to standardized testing - stifling the creativity of teachers is they have to have a standard by which they can measure progress and if one teacher is teaching one thing and another is teaching something very different, there is no way of measuring progress.

Some teachers have too much creativity, passing their own political views to the children. Seen alot of that in the news lately.

Only good answer to the public education system is private or homeschool. Wish I had done that with my youngest especially.

Quote: ozarkian wrote in post #4

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First thought, the teacher writes well - uses proper grammer but is certainly "wordy". Ouch. Oftentimes I see teachers use poor grammar so that was a plus.

Second thought, the reason they have gone to standardized testing - stifling the creativity of teachers is they have to have a standard by which they can measure progress and if one teacher is teaching one thing and another is teaching something very different, there is no way of measuring progress.

Some teachers have too much creativity, passing their own political views to the children. Seen alot of that in the news lately.

Only good answer to the public education system is private or homeschool. Wish I had done that with my youngest especially.

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Zitat

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1. Teaching Math In 1950s

A logger sells a truckload of lumber for $100. His cost of production is 4/5 of the price. What is his profit?

2. Teaching Math In 1960s

A logger sells a truckload of lumber for $100. His cost of production is 4/5 of the price, or $80. What is his profit?

3. Teaching Math In 1970s

A logger sells a truckload of lumber for $100. His cost of production is $80. Did he make a profit?

4. Teaching Math In 1980s

A logger sells a truckload of lumber for $100. His cost of production is $80 and his profit is $20. Your assignment: Underline the number 20.

5. Teaching Math In 1990s

A logger cuts down a beautiful forest because he is selfish and inconsiderate and cares nothing for the habitat of animals or the preservation of our woodlands. He does this so he can make a profit of $20. What do you think of this way of making a living?

Topic for class participation after answering the question: How did the birds and squirrels feel as the logger cut down their homes? (There are no wrong answers, and if you feel like crying, it's ok. )

6. Teaching Math In 2009

Un hachero vende una carretada de maderapara $100. El costo de la producciones es $80. Cuanto dinero ha hecho?

7. Teaching Math In 2013

Who cares, just steal the lumber from your rich neighbor's property. He won't have a gun to stop you, and it's OK anyway cuz it's redistributing the wealth.

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And here is a math test from 1910 (when standards were set more locally) for the 8th grade:

Zitat

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1. Divide 304487 by 931.
2. Find the sum of 5/9, 5/6, 3/4, 11/36.
3. A gardener sells his celery for 8 1/3 cents per bunch. How many bunches should he give for $5.00?
4. How many board feet in a piece of timber 14 inches square, and 12 feet long?
5. What number diminished by 33 1/3 percent of itself, equals 38?
6. By selling my horse for $156 I gained 8 1/3 %. How much did the horse cost me?
7. A note for $200 was given January 1, 1909, rate of interest to be 8%. How much was due April 1, 1910?
8. Find the square root of 95.6484.
9. What is the cost of enough lumber to floor a room 24 feet long and 16 feet wide, at $32 per thousand feet?
10. How much will it cost me to pave a street 42 feet wide, and 625 feet long, at $11.65 per square yard?

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http://www.eagleforum.org/educate/2004/july04/1910.html

Here's a little joke that demonstrates the dumbing down of education in the US:

Zitat

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1. Teaching Math In 1950s

A logger sells a truckload of lumber for $100. His cost of production is 4/5 of the price. What is his profit?

2. Teaching Math In 1960s

A logger sells a truckload of lumber for $100. His cost of production is 4/5 of the price, or $80. What is his profit?

3. Teaching Math In 1970s

A logger sells a truckload of lumber for $100. His cost of production is $80. Did he make a profit?

4. Teaching Math In 1980s

A logger sells a truckload of lumber for $100. His cost of production is $80 and his profit is $20. Your assignment: Underline the number 20.

5. Teaching Math In 1990s

A logger cuts down a beautiful forest because he is selfish and inconsiderate and cares nothing for the habitat of animals or the preservation of our woodlands. He does this so he can make a profit of $20. What do you think of this way of making a living?

Topic for class participation after answering the question: How did the birds and squirrels feel as the logger cut down their homes? (There are no wrong answers, and if you feel like crying, it's ok. )

6. Teaching Math In 2009

Un hachero vende una carretada de maderapara $100. El costo de la producciones es $80. Cuanto dinero ha hecho?

7. Teaching Math In 2013

Who cares, just steal the lumber from your rich neighbor's property. He won't have a gun to stop you, and it's OK anyway cuz it's redistributing the wealth.

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Love it!!

Quote: algernonpj wrote in post #5

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And here is a math test from 1910 (when standards were set more locally) for the 8th grade:

Zitat

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1. Divide 304487 by 931.
2. Find the sum of 5/9, 5/6, 3/4, 11/36.
3. A gardener sells his celery for 8 1/3 cents per bunch. How many bunches should he give for $5.00?
4. How many board feet in a piece of timber 14 inches square, and 12 feet long?
5. What number diminished by 33 1/3 percent of itself, equals 38?
6. By selling my horse for $156 I gained 8 1/3 %. How much did the horse cost me?
7. A note for $200 was given January 1, 1909, rate of interest to be 8%. How much was due April 1, 1910?
8. Find the square root of 95.6484.
9. What is the cost of enough lumber to floor a room 24 feet long and 16 feet wide, at $32 per thousand feet?
10. How much will it cost me to pave a street 42 feet wide, and 625 feet long, at $11.65 per square yard?

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http://www.eagleforum.org/educate/2004/july04/1910.html

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A child's only hope is to be tested as particularly intelligent and gifted, because those classes still exist for the "brighter" student. I don't believe that will last very long, especially because the teachers will not be taught higher level math.

Calculus will be stricken because too many students will need remedial geometry in the twelfth grade in order to graduate.

Quote: Palinista wrote in post #7

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Quote: algernonpj wrote in post #5

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And here is a math test from 1910 (when standards were set more locally) for the 8th grade:

Zitat

---

1. Divide 304487 by 931.
2. Find the sum of 5/9, 5/6, 3/4, 11/36.
3. A gardener sells his celery for 8 1/3 cents per bunch. How many bunches should he give for $5.00?
4. How many board feet in a piece of timber 14 inches square, and 12 feet long?
5. What number diminished by 33 1/3 percent of itself, equals 38?
6. By selling my horse for $156 I gained 8 1/3 %. How much did the horse cost me?
7. A note for $200 was given January 1, 1909, rate of interest to be 8%. How much was due April 1, 1910?
8. Find the square root of 95.6484.
9. What is the cost of enough lumber to floor a room 24 feet long and 16 feet wide, at $32 per thousand feet?
10. How much will it cost me to pave a street 42 feet wide, and 625 feet long, at $11.65 per square yard?

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http://www.eagleforum.org/educate/2004/july04/1910.html

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A child's only hope is to be tested as particularly intelligent and gifted, because those classes still exist for the "brighter" student. I don't believe that will last very long, especially because the teachers will not be taught higher level math.

Calculus will be stricken because too many students will need remedial geometry in the twelfth grade in order to graduate.

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There are already moves being made in that direction. I spoke with someone whose child made the honor roll in the gifted program in high school. They were very upset because the high school has stopped announcing and displaying the names of students on the honor roll because it 'might hurt the feelings' of other students!

This is partly why kids can't learn

Quote: Eglman wrote in post #9

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This is partly why kids can't learn

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