The state of public education.

[warriorangel]

I spent the weekend helping sort and pack Annemarie's grandfather's home. I came across sveral very old text books (ca. 1886). I feel that if 120 years ago, elementary school children in Indiana were required to know how to multiply 769724 by 388, then elementary schoolers today should be able to multiply 7,697,245,445 by 467142

Comments

[mmestrange]

Indeed. The modern educational system is only concerned with results (i.e. good grades). The should be more cncerned with turning out good people. The emphasis on good grades has led to the simplification of lessons so much so that the youngsters grow up to be insular... and speaking with my political philosopher's hat now, I must say it does not breed effective political education. Political education is supposed to teach young people how to have justice in their souls (as the Ancient Greeks would say) - to know the good that is good in and for itself and embrace it. Only when you have justice in your soul, can you treat others with some modicum of respect. However, the state of society nowadays only demonstrates how far we have fallen from the past...

[christina_step]

I think that some children have a lack of motivation, they think that they don't need college, don't need to try because either their parents will help them or either they can find a job which requires only you to graduate from high school. I dislike the system of education I must say. To get a good education, you must have rich parents who could pay for a private school...
And may I ask if it has to be multiplied by mind or possibly on paper?