[geeks] New Tech Schools: Digital Harbor in Baltimore

[Charles Shannon Hendrix]

Wed, 11 Apr 2007 @ 14:13 -0400, Patrick Giagnocavo said:

> On Apr 11, 2007, at 1:53 PM, Brian Dunbar wrote:
> > I'm more distressed about them teaching 'Word'.  Not a MS bias but
> > observation that 'teaching office automation' usually involves
> > memorizing 'how-to' run MS Office and not, say, the broad concepts
> > behind the thing.
> >
> 
> Public school education these days:
> 
> 1.  A form of mental cruelty to children (child abuse).
> 2.  A way to force people to conform (the stupider the lesson plan the 
> better, actually).
> 3. A way to force people to accept, even expect, drudgery in their 
> future jobs.

Well, you know... that really was the original idea behind public
education.

You guys should try to dig up some papers on US education system
proposals in the early 1800s and onward.

It's decidedly orwellian.

> I was talking to a pastor, asking him which Bible translations he 
> recommends in addition to the KJV.  He made the point that in the 1950s 
> the average vocabulary was 10,000 words for high school graduates.  Now 
> it is 4,000 words.  KJV requires a vocabulary of (I think) about 6,000 
> words, RSV requires 4,000, ESV (based on RSV / KJV blended) requires 
> 8th grade vocabulary which I think is about 2,000 words.

I could read the KJV when I was 4 years old.

I remember in third grade we had to read these mind numbingly stupid
books, and I refused so I got bad grades.

I'm firmly convinced that this was precisely to prepare you to be
mindless and accept drudgery.

The irony is that even the "lowest" work need not be drudgery if
organized properly.

-- 
shannon          | I want this Perl software checked for viruses.  Use Norton 
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                 |         -- Charlie Kirkpatrick (software manager, Infinet)