Quote:
Originally Posted by matt
No, Mark....this is where you're wrong.
As a member of the media, I don't think I can do a better job. Certainly not a better job than the very small percentage of teachers whom I would hold in very high regard.
I think with a minimum of training, however, I could do at least 'as good' a job as perhaps many teachers in the system these days teaching English and Media Studies.
What I certainly believe is that, speaking generally, standards have fallen to a critical level and something needs to be done to address the slide.
And as a member of the media...I sympathise with your sentiments. Every man, woman and armchair commentator alive reckons they can do a better job than most journalists!!!   |
Matt, standards have both fallen and risen depending on where you look. The kids do maths that used to be considered university level only. Chemistry is the same as when I went to school. English has become sociology and there is much less emphasis on the 3 R's and more on the ability to analyse and form an argument supported by work of previous authors. Physics has been contextualised and much of the math removed. Why, not enough girls were taking up engineering so they changed the sylabus to suit what they thought girls would be interested in. This has failed, no more females take up the subject and boys can't write essays, their one out (maths) has been taken away from them. Society and environment is dead, kids just don't care anymore. Much of this has stemmed from silly academic claptrap being forced into schools. They want kids to be working at abstract levels of thinking without giving them a chance to learn the basics. If you read some of the english assignments my kids have to do you would cringe, I know I do. I often sit down with my chem kids and a dictionary after class. Together we try to work out what they have been asked to do in english.
Mark