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About LinkBacksIn our own personal opinions, what is the most important kind of lessons and subjects that is important to teach to our next generations in schools?
Sciences? Psychology?
Please share thoughts.
February 10th, 2010, 11:18 AM
In our own personal opinions, what is the most important kind of lessons and subjects that is important to teach to our next generations in schools?
Sciences? Psychology?
Please share thoughts.
No single subject is important. What is important is the range of topics and the balance between them.
Everything is important, really. Language Arts, Mathematics, and the sciences/philosophical exploration are high up there on the list, History and the arts for those who have little aptitude in the sciences and philosophy.
maybe im still young, and i still have alot to experience and learn, but in my point of view it is history, maths and science. But its just me, it can completely be wrong.
social studies, the study of everything that ever happened to humans
Lunch - It's where you learn to socialize and interact with fellow humans, which you'll need to be good at to succeed in nearly any vocation later in life. Lunch - The most important subject in school because it reminds us how we're pack animals and rely on others within our community to be successful.
I think the Maths is all time great subject in school, college as well as in your life. It is the basic subject which we have to learn it. Also, it is an interesting subject.
I totally agree. And I really don't like the way California make you to take more English than mathematics, and more social studies than science to graduate high school.Originally Posted by Arcane_Mathematician
I find it irritating that reading fictional books about emo-vampires trumps science...the whole reason we are here in the first place...or better yet, an explaination of it. Here in Texas, Language Arts "counts" over science...rediculous. Not to say reading and interpretations of literature are not important, but for dog's sake...how many of these authors would have been dead before writing their first book without immunizations...THANK YOU SCIENCE.
Classic.
As an FYI, one would hope your language arts teacher would have taught spelling... or at least spell check usage.
This is an online, informal message board. Your options are:Classic.
As an FYI, one would hope your language arts teacher would have taught spelling... or at least spell check usage.
A.) Bypass the human tendency to make errors, and you yourself become perfect;
-or-
B.) Get over yourself.
Option A is my preference.
There isn't an English teacher in the world who teaches Twilight, at least I hope not.
I think the tendency in this thread to consider the arts as something for people who just aren't good at science to be a little silly. If I practiced for the next 100 years I don't think I'd be able to produce anything near the quality of the top writers alive today, let alone who have lived in the past. The world would be incredibly boring if all people ever talked about was science and engineering.
I agree...and I'm actually a guitarist (acoustic) and painter...and I'm too ADD to sit and read fiction.
My point though, is our technological progress will be largely determined by our scientific pursuits...yet science is marginalized in some places.
Needed for pleasure's sake: good science fiction/ poetry, philosophy
Needed for curiousity's sake and potential practical application: multicultural studies, history, language
Needed in order to potentially cure AIDS, reverse negative effects of aging, discover the origins of life, create new diabetes, heart, antidepressant medications, etc, etc (all the things that truly matter):
Science
HARUMPH!!!
inow...let me know how that works out for you.
Oh...and if this wouldn't make your head spin...we have an English teacher at our school that is writing a fictonal series along the same vein of Twilight, but modernizing, and alluding to biblical themes. I watched in horror on FaceBook as a student posted that they just realized some subplot followed some biblical tale...then the author's gitty post that someone picked that up. The first of the series was published a couple of years ago, and has been taught since then. The author even used school hours and manpower in promoting the book.
Welcome to the "bible-belt'.
Twilight is already overflowing with Christian conservatism, it's a blatant allegory promoting abstinence. A poorly written one too.
Edit: As opposed to the other recent children's literature craze, Harry Potter. This one has that whole notion of new younger generations taking over, progressive change, multiculturalism, and codifies racism as inherently evil. I'd rather Rowling be taught in schools before Meyers, even if neither of them is particularly impressive as an author.
February 11th, 2011, 05:42 AM
The 3Rs along with science and reasoning and at least one art....say music.
Logic.What is the most important subject in school?
Most important?
That's the big problem with classification.
According to me English is the subject which is important in school. The English language is one of the most widely spoken languages in the world,
To me the most important subject isn't even taught in most schools..
1. Environment science (global warming, energy crisis, habitat destruction etc)
2. Languages (why aren't we all learning Mandarin in school? and Arabic)
3. Politics (nothing of importance will get done without delving into this)
If I were forced to rank subjects I would do it as such. Math is required for Science and Math, so math ranks above science. Literature doesn't really do much for you, except for grammar, and as such should be ranked lowest. Social Studies is needed to understand the world and why people behave the way they do, but is not very practical compared to math and science in real life. So my rankings are as such:
1. Math
2. Science
3. Social Studies
4. Literature
Math is not required for Biological Anthropology, which I'm majoring in..so I'd rank math second or third, behind or before History. Which is extremely generous of me since I despise Math.
1. Science
2. History/Math
3. Everythinh else
My answer is Linguistics, particularly.
Here is the reason why it's not science, art of any of these kinds.
Language Acquisition is the most explicit process through we perceive how our brain function, and get to know ourselves.
Learning Math surely changes the way you approach problems , but only if the problems are complete new to you. However, since study has unfortunately become an end to get your exam checked rather than a means to train yourself, you saw kid doing enormous similar practices to reduce number of questions requires new techniques, and they did get pretty grades......
Art is another great subject to explore not only yourself but much more on the society itself. Yet, a great artist aren't usually people shut themselves in their room and just create...Because art isn't a thing you study like psychology, and biology..it's essentially a way to express yourself, to objectify your ideas, experience in a particular form... Hence, you need to have something to express, to tell....
Teaching art without context is like a doing business without a product...
Learning a second language a is really awesome, to be blatant
it's a process of replacing the existing way to store ideas, experiences you get used to ----your mother tongue, with a new form [the 2nd language]...People spent 10 years to study a second language will still give some sort of clue of being a foreign speaker...
It gives you the chance to understand the essential difference between people --- the way they communicate, and therefore their history, their nature..
PS: Almost all the subjects taught in school has its profound meaning, but thanks to the creepy system we set up to examine students, subjects like history, biology, social science have evolved into book reciting, exercise practicing, statistics show casing [for social science], but not its basic purpose ---- understanding...
Since I am know the Swedish school system better than any other my reply will be concerned with its structure, meaning that in Sweden the mandatory number of years in school is 9 (off topic, but imho, that should be raised to 12).
Now, to make this post to the point I'd say that the most important subjects to teach our kids is those that they will need in a society such as we have at present, but also might have in the future.
The most important subject imo, must be the native language (speaking, writing and reading) so more of that at the beginning of the education, because if a person can't communicate with other individuals in any way, then that person will have many difficulties later in life (especially when learning other subjects). Kids should also be taught a secondary language, they could start lightly, with very basic things until they are proficient enough in their native tongue, then proper education should set in. At present I would say that English is the right candidate, because it is quite widespread. At a later stage a third language should be introduced, this could be an Asian language, such as Chinese, or Russian or Spanish perhaps, Chinese or Russian mainly because of the probable future benefit regarding the countries economic dominance in the world economy (Chinese > Russia).
The second most important subject must be maths because that is the basics of science, and because a person simply can't survive in a modern society without the very basic understanding (more to do with logical reasoning) and using maths as a tool in everyday life. It should of course be taught at the beginning of the education and all the way through!
And the third most important subject imo, is History.A person needs to know the history of mankind; the origins or mankind, the evolution, the beginning of society, the evolution of it and how it has shaped our present society. But a person also needs to know how the Earth has formed and its "evolution" to the present state. To have a general understanding of this is vital for the future of mankind, so that we at least won't redo the same mistakes twice. Since memory is one of the most vital (and few) advantages a human has compared to animals, not that that makes man more superior, but it is a truly unique ability that can't be matched by any animal, afaik, one can claim that history of for instance medieval Europe is the collective memory of mankind but written down instead of passed on verbally (perhaps not the best analogy, we do have other means of course in deciphering the past). To learn of past ways of thinking, of questions that we still ask to day and of the different attempts on answering those questions is important so that we won't stagnate but instead learn from our past and move ahead with new questions and ideas, ideas that are suited for a society, not just for tomorrow, but for at least a week ahead.The present is the key to the past - J. Hutton
To summarize:
- Language
- Math
- History (historic and prehistoric)
Ps. Sorry, perhaps a bit of rambling at the end there, but it's 03:46 here..
I"ll have to go with Math, Sciences, and humanities all are necessary in society vs something like dance elective.
Every subject holds it own importance!
Moral science is the most important subject . All the other subjects knowledge is useless , if you dont the basic morals of human life .
___________________
biomedical engineer
chemistry
Hi,
According to me, i consider Math and Science is both useful subjects. If a students wants to pursue engineering,medical then these 2 subjects will be useful.
Hi, I think philosophy is the MOST important subject.
It teach us how to be a civilized person.
It teach us the meaning of ethics, moral & values that we currently hold (if we don't understand them, we won't respect other people's value, we will glorify war, tyranny, and genocide as our means).
War and genocide is not eradicated by technical know-how or scientific understanding and still exist today. For example in Myanmar there were ongoing ethnic cleansing and in Congo there were people killing people. If we only teach science & math, people are not going to be better & civilized world will collapse.
I would think that understanding whatever you learn is very important in school. Many people can learn something but many can't understand what it is they learned.
Then I'd think social interaction is a very good thing to be doing while in school, it leads to a better way of communicating and working with others.
Actually I'm just a freshman and I have every single one of those classes (not Arabic though)
English, assuming that that is your native language. All your text books will be written in it, no matter what the subject; you will have to express your learning in it, explain yourself to everyone with it and so on. The better the command of your language the less likely you are to meet the brick-wall that all the inarticulate have to face: they need to say something very important but they lack the words and the mode of expression.
Personally, I have known people fail science exams because they did not understand the wording of the questions. When this was explained they could come up with the answer, too late of course!
Thanks
I have to add my support to those who have named one's language as the most important subject.
Without good reading, writing and comprehension skills, it is difficult to pursue other subjects to their maximum optimization. I am not suggesting that everyone needs to be a grammar cop or literary critic, merely that they should be able to convey information concisely and accurately.
A great deal of conflict arises around misunderstanding and much effort is wasted in the attempt to clarify same.
The most important subject?
How. To. Learn.
This is a very good point, for not all learn by the same methods of instruction.
Absolutely. I used to get so frustrated when we had the tuition business. Parents would ring us when the offspring hit the middle of year 8 or the beginning of year 9. Child would be having trouble with science - "..but he's always been so good at maths" they wail. I only had to ask what they were like at reading and spelling - and especially vocabulary.The most important subject imo, must be the native language (speaking, writing and reading) so more of that at the beginning of the education, because if a person can't communicate with other individuals in any way, then that person will have many difficulties later in life (especially when learning other subjects).
And then I had to coach parent through the novel notion that science was about concepts (ideas) and language. If you're not adept at understanding words, paying attention to the way ideas are expressed and ensuring that you build vocabulary as you go, you simply can't get along with high school science.
Students who've never seriously thought about getting meanings clear and spelling correctly - otherwise known as living in a vague cloud of shapeless words - are never going to 'get' what they need to in science. If they are obliged to work with words like nitrate, nitrite, nitrous, nitride, they must be completely specific and explicit about what each means and that they can never be substituted for each other. Those who 'don't read' and whose language use is sloppy can't do chemistry along with similar issues of nomenclature and classification in biology and in general environmental without putting in a massive effort - which they're ill equipped to do.
Good knowledge and use of language is the precursor to logic and clarity of thought as well as elegant or eloquent expression in language based studies.
I'm always quite surprised to see middle school and high school science teachers who don't use any of the proven tools to help kids learn science vocabulary--the expectation is they learn each word in isolation by rote, when it's just so much easier to also learn the root words and their several common constructions which can can applied to lots of other words.
I'd like to add to that as a cosubject, home economics. A human being at the very least needs to know how to feed themselves. and properly use a microwave.
Why was this guy banned?
If you click on a member's name, you can get to look at all their posts. If you're wondering about suspensions or bans there are 4 main reasons.
1. Some use offensive language.
2. Some are rude to other members..
3. Some are persistent in an inappropriate way. (That includes cranks.)
4. Some try to use this site to promote links to commercial sites - and do so repeatedly. (When you check posts of this kind you will see that moderators have deleted links - sometimes several times.)
And some manage to combine 2 or more of these problems. Not hard to work out for most such people.
Yeah but that's why I asked. I may well have missed something but I went over all his posts and didn't see anything. Sometimes, mistakes happen, as well. So it's better to ask and check than to just assume that it's something I missed.
Sometimes the fourth category is hard to spot because links have certainly been deleted, and occasionally txt recommending the offending link went with it.
In grade school and high school, I think a well rounded education is very important. There are some things that should be taught but aren't. One thing that causes a great deal of pain and suffering for a very high percentage of adults is lack of relationship skills and no understanding of how to raise children when they come along. When relationships go bad it usually takes years to resolve the problem and during that time many lost productive days and a dysfunctional family to give the kids something to remember for when they become parents.
Good relationships take knowledge and work on the part of both parties, and I hate to say it but these skills are just not taught very well or consistently in the home. Many kids graduate high school and get kicked out of the house at 18 totally unprepared for life, wondering what to do now. But they are horny and looking for companionship regardless of whether they ready or not. We all know that the current generation breeds the next unprepared generation, don't we?
I'm starting to see some improvements developing here. Not so long ago there was a lot of blushing and foot shuffling about teaching, badly, the bare biological facts and mechanics in sex education classes. Nowadays, there are lots of teachers who are quite relaxed doing genuine sex ed, including the classic banana demonstration for condom use. So far so good.One thing that causes a great deal of pain and suffering for a very high percentage of adults is lack of relationship skills and no understanding of how to raise children when they come along.
The newest course designs are now oriented around relationships. Not the tired old wait till you're married, nor the newer self-consciously PC stuff about including homosexuality (a bit of blushing and foot shuffling going on there too), but real stuff about dealing with sex and intimacy in the context of a whole relationship - even if that relationship is brief. Getting people to think about what their own likes and dislikes are, what they prefer and what they don't, and about Using Their Words to say so.
And this will continue to gather pace. Why? In a word, pornography. A lot of teachers are having to deal with questions girls raise about their boyfriends wanting them to perform certain sexual acts or to change their appearance, even suggesting they need surgery, so that the real life girlfriend will be more like what they watch on their computers. Much better to have a course that tells kids, explicitly, not just to treat pornography as unrealistic, but that they need to agree on what is and isn't on the table. Above all else if your sexual partner tells you that they're not willing to do / say / perform unsafe or other things you suggest or ask for then you must accept that. Above all else, the absence of 'No' does not mean 'Yes'. Unspoken or non-explicit consent to intimate activity is only for partners who've already established their boundaries.
And all this leads to better discussions about all aspects of a relationship. It doesn't "come naturally" for many people - especially not the family stuff. When you call in on friends or neighbours unexpectedly, do you go to the back door or the front door? Lots of little things like this can surprise people about each other. Learning to Use Your Words in intimate matters sets the scene for better discussions about matters like raising children or having them at all.
That's good to know, but it needs to be elevated in importance and classes required in all high schools. If necessary the school day could be a little longer so that it wouldn't have to cut into other important subjects.
I agree with those (Mr. Galt) who advocate the broad range of topics equally. I also would advocate creativity, and more exposure to mythology and literature through story telling. Something that gives students without solid families or religious affiliations a place to draw values from (I never did my reading assignments but I had to listen when teachers told the stories themselves). In the end, school is only the primer and not entirely important to where you will actually end up, so no one should be force fed any one specific thing.
I think Americans could use more language and cultural interaction in their schools. As diverse as some parts of America are I still find Americans to be some of the most racially and culturally insensitive people. I'm not saying they aren't sensitive to it, but I find Europeans, Australians, and Asians to be a bit more capable in these areas. This might just be my own experience however.
Note on lunch. I don't entirely agree with the lunch thing. I personally think socializing is way over rated in our current culture. I can't count how many people I've talked to where I feel like I'm just talking to a machine with auto response. Socializing, listening, and connecting with people are things one has to learn actively.Being forced into a room with shallow people is only going to make a person more shallow. I never went to lunch, specifically because it felt like people weren't really connecting, and it was just loud and noisy, with bad food (in middle school I did outdoor activities so I'm mostly referring to the US public high school system here).
In my personal opinion, this is my order of the most important subjects in school.
1. English
2. Mathematics
3. History
4. Sciences
5. Physical Education
My opinions of what would be good "classes" are:1. Gardening & Farming (new and old ways)2. Outdoor and Urban disaster survival 3. Mechanical skills and engineering.And 4. More vocational degrees.
imo
'tain't what is tought
it is much more important how it is taught, and by whom
(eg: i sucked at english until i found myself in teacher Don Beveroth's class, and slowly, I began to improve)
for the student, the most important subject is the one that instills a love of learning
Reading, Grammar, and Writing. Without these basics you will not be able to research on your own or convey queries.
Main: Reading, Writing, Grammar, Mathematics, Conduct
SubMain: Humanity/History & Science
I said humanity history because I don't want you to think History = Only "history of America and others" rather humanity history makes one suppose I am talking about "history of humanity and others."
School must contain very low subjects mainly be in three parts, Language, Science and Arts(Social Science). Three Subjects compulsory and after all selected by Students as he wants to Read Technology, CS etc or not.
"The most important subject?" it's always the subject you never paid attention to
recess.... :P
Lunch, I've ran into too many intelligent people who have limited social skills.
Social skills are over-rated.
Why would anyone want to interact with people?
I vaguely remember having to do that once or twice when I was at school. It was awful.
That and the more you do it, the more you have to do it.Social skills are over-rated.
Why would anyone want to interact with people?
I vaguely remember having to do that once or twice when I was at school. It was awful.
'Reading' you can't study any other subject in any depth without first being able to read.
Morality would be a nice subject.. By the way, is Morality a some kind of a part of Psychology?
And how many people would not have received immunizations if journalists had not communicated their importance? All subjects are important.
Morality is subjective and varies from one culture to the next. Some would argue that morality doesn't really exist, that it is simply a psychological construct. And therefore should be left to the parents to teach their children.
Well this is the problem.. Some parents are not so good with children.. I've seen a lot of those parents sadly... Morality is a sense, more like conscious.. At least let's try get the basic morals.. Though after looking into this it really wouldn't have an affect on children or teenagers, meh.. Not such a good idea. I'll just stick with P.E. lolMorality is subjective and varies from one culture to the next. Some would argue that morality doesn't really exist, that it is simply a psychological construct. And therefore should be left to the parents to teach their children.
Critical thinking would be an important subject.
I don't think it is taught in many schools though.
But I also second Tamorpgh's suggestion of 'reading'.
I don't see how morality being subjective necessarily means that only parents should teach it.Morality is subjective and varies from one culture to the next. Some would argue that morality doesn't really exist, that it is simply a psychological construct. And therefore should be left to the parents to teach their children.
Anyway, I like the idea of a morality class. Not to tell people what's right and what's wrong, but how to think morally. Asking someone why they think something is wrong tends to put them off-guard. Most people don't have to defend their morals, and subsequently they never give them much thought. Rather than having a rational basis, most morals just "are." It would be healthy to teach students how to think about moral questions so they don't fall into the trap of believing in something just because their parents did, or just because society does.
I don't see how morality being subjective necessarily means that only parents should teach it.Morality is subjective and varies from one culture to the next. Some would argue that morality doesn't really exist, that it is simply a psychological construct. And therefore should be left to the parents to teach their children.
Anyway, I like the idea of a morality class. Not to tell people what's right and what's wrong, but how to think morally. Asking someone why they think something is wrong tends to put them off-guard. Most people don't have to defend their morals, and subsequently they never give them much thought. Rather than having a rational basis, most morals just "are." It would be healthy to teach students how to think about moral questions so they don't fall into the trap of believing in something just because their parents did, or just because society does.
Here I would agree with you, I don't think either that it matters to much about who teaches about morality, but was does matter is that people are taught to understand the concept to really know what morality is about. Also agree about teaching people to be able to understand and work out for themselves what they believe to be moral, these are qustions for the individual and you can't or shouldn't just expect people to adopt the morals of their parents or teachers or you'll end up surely dissapointed if you try. The fact is not everyone will place the same emphasis on honesty or integrity, but they will have their own views on why and their own reasoning, this means we have to accept people for they are and can't always judge the morality of others by our standards. This being said we still want future generations to have a sense morality regardless of what particular form this may take.
You make a very good point. I hadn't really thought of that because I was one of those kids that pestered my elders constantly asking them "why?". I was a hated child. lol.I don't see how morality being subjective necessarily means that only parents should teach it.Morality is subjective and varies from one culture to the next. Some would argue that morality doesn't really exist, that it is simply a psychological construct. And therefore should be left to the parents to teach their children.
Anyway, I like the idea of a morality class. Not to tell people what's right and what's wrong, but how to think morally. Asking someone why they think something is wrong tends to put them off-guard. Most people don't have to defend their morals, and subsequently they never give them much thought. Rather than having a rational basis, most morals just "are." It would be healthy to teach students how to think about moral questions so they don't fall into the trap of believing in something just because their parents did, or just because society does.
I never accepted "because it just is" or "because I say so" as an acceptable argument. Perhaps the critical thinking vs morality could be taught in the same class. But wouldn't it be a type of social studies course? Perhaps social psychology or something like that?
I don't think everyone would put the same emphasis on honesty and integrity. Imagine if someone thought being honest was as important as I do, but they were a spy. Espionage is a necessary "evil" at times. Governments spy on each other, supposedly, to protect the welfare of their own citizens from the deception of other governments. Sometimes the only way to uncover a lie, is by lying. Sometimes the only way to lure out a dangerous criminal is by trickery and deception. Wearing camouflage is an act of deception but is necessary to protect the life of the one wearing it.I don't see how morality being subjective necessarily means that only parents should teach it.Morality is subjective and varies from one culture to the next. Some would argue that morality doesn't really exist, that it is simply a psychological construct. And therefore should be left to the parents to teach their children.
Anyway, I like the idea of a morality class. Not to tell people what's right and what's wrong, but how to think morally. Asking someone why they think something is wrong tends to put them off-guard. Most people don't have to defend their morals, and subsequently they never give them much thought. Rather than having a rational basis, most morals just "are." It would be healthy to teach students how to think about moral questions so they don't fall into the trap of believing in something just because their parents did, or just because society does.
Here I would agree with you, I don't think either that it matters to much about who teaches about morality, but was does matter is that people are taught to understand the concept to really know what morality is about. Also agree about teaching people to be able to understand and work out for themselves what they believe to be moral, these are qustions for the individual and you can't or shouldn't just expect people to adopt the morals of their parents or teachers or you'll end up surely dissapointed if you try. The fact is not everyone will place the same emphasis on honesty or integrity, but they will have their own views on why and their own reasoning, this means we have to accept people for they are and can't always judge the morality of others by our standards. This being said we still want future generations to have a sense morality regardless of what particular form this may take.
There is a time and place for everything, up to and including dishonesty, murder, theft, and violence. The challenge is determining when these things are appropriate and when they are not. That is why critical thinking is so important. The concept of morality, seems to ignore that there are times when doing things that makes us uncomfortable are not only acceptable but required in order to survive. In order to protect our sense of morality, we deceive ourselves into thinking doing these things at appropriate times somehow makes them something other htan what they are.
When a police officer kills someone who is wielding a gun and threatening to hurt others, he took out an armed suspect. When an average citizen shoots a cop who had his gun out aimed at someone, the average citizen is MURDERING a peace officer.
Both people killed someone who was threatening another person with a gun. They both did the exact same thing. But one was acceptable and the other was not.
Morality tends to imply absolutes in a reality where there are no absolutes. This is why I tend to think teaching morality is not really possible. But I do like the idea of teaching a course that forces students to evaluate their own morality and ask themselves WHY they believe something is moral or immoral. In my case, asking myself why all the time, is what led me to understand that there is no such thing as absolute right or wrong. It's all a matter of perspective.
Morality is one of the most important subjects--without it schools and classrooms cannot function. It's also not nearly as "subjective" as most people think it is. The same morality that applies to American schools I saw in Iraqi schools for example almost to the letter--cooperation and respect with others, no stealing, no destruction of school or others property etc.
In socioeconomically depressed areas there often isn't a set of parents, there's one parent trying to survive.
When I started teaching part time, I hit me like a ton of bricks one day that I was the only role model of a responsible man in some of my student's lives--modeling and teaching morality is vital.
Morality is studied in philosophy.
In the US, philosophy is not a required course and I have never seen it offered in any of the schools I attended or that my children have attended. it is taught at the college level and is usually only an elective unless your major is something that requires it. And unless you intend to teach philosophy or go into some sort of theological field, I don't know where philosophy would be a necessary field of study. It seems to me that the only people who MUST study philosophy are those who intend to teach it. which seems like a useless loop of nonsense.
I studied political philosophy in university. Philosophy involves ethics so it is also useful if you are studying law. Plus, if you are going to be a scientist, it would be nice if you have some understanding of complex ethical concepts, as you may have an opportunity to do things like experiment on animals or design weapons. That is one of the reasons I switched from science to majoring in political science, because I care what science does to people. Even if there isn't an official philosophy class at the lower grades, hopefully teachers in different classes will encourage students to discuss philosophical concepts that relate to whatever is being studied, similar to how you use English in all your classes even if they agent English classes.
Edit: A scientific research project may also have to get past an ethics committee before it can begin, or researchers may have to use moral arguments to convince organizations or governments to fund them.
Last edited by Alec Bing; March 20th, 2013 at 11:05 AM.
I have never attended an officially declared philosophy class. But I have to admit, discussing the philosophy behind anything historical, political, artistic, or even scientific, always makes the class more interesting. In my junior high and high school social studies courses I always slept in the classes where the teacher stood up and lectured constantly and made us remember dates and events. But in my US government course, which I dreaded the idea of having to take in college, the teacher got us all talking about how we viewed the US constitution and how we interpreted it to apply to life today and how different laws seemed to violate the constitution. Sometimes the class discussions got quite heated but it was exciting for me and I learned more in that one course than I ever did in the entirety of all my social studies classes in middle school and high school life. In the end it was my favorite class of my entire degree program.
it is a major part of what motivates me to be here on this forum. the effects of philosophy and human psychology on every aspect of our lives is amazing and cannot be escaped. Without it, we are merely machines running on programs. It is what makes us different than computers.
In my personal opinion, there's only one true subject worthy of being studied upon and that's Science.
I know that it contain multiple compartments but i'ts figure of speech.
All the people who cannot understand the beauty of Knowledge may proceed their other occupations, it are only those whos entire life is based upon learning who even may understand the value.
Philosophy is of lesser concern, although it comes in handy for comparisons of the contempory and the Classic Antiquity.
When it was my call, I would reduce the teaching of languages to the basic to communicate and place the Sciences on a statue.
I would also like to second the earlier statement on this thread about the importance of learning social skills.
When I was in school, I was always the smartest, or second smartest kid in every class. I got A+s in every class I took, in every subject, won all the academic awards. All my teachers said I would succeed in everything I tried. I was confident that I would.
Once I went out into the real world, I learned that was all a load of bull. Success depends on having good social skills. When you go on a job interview, you are being judged on how likable you are and whether you will fit in with the other people you would be working with. If someone going for the same position as you is slightly less intelligent than you and doesn't have all the qualifications that you have, but that person is nice and fun to be with and you are an annoying, unfriendly person, you are not the one who is going to be hired.
If you are going into a line of business where you need to get clients or you need people to give you funding money, you are going to have to learn how to be friendly and social. I have always been a nice person (I think) but when I was young I didn't have many friends and I was happy to be by myself reading, writing poetry and so on. Since then I have had to learn how to do things like mingle and make small talk (which I am still pretty bad at, but I am getting better.)
As a matter of fact, tonight I am going to an astrophysics lecture and planning to get there a half hour early just so I can mingle with people as refreshments are served and try to promote myself.
I am a woman and it might be that society expects women to be friendlier and more social than men (there is no female "strong, silent type"), so developing social skills might be somewhat more important for women than for men, but it is important for both genders.
There is a strong silent type female. but it usually means she is plotting someone's death. I know Neverfly gets nervous when I'm quiet.
I completely concur.
It is my job at work to convey information to management. When I reach the point of being beyond speech, they are really, really concerned.
And so they should be, lol...
I know it exists at the university level, but I'd like to see it high school. I'd also like to see it be its own class, rather than simply a week in social studies or whatever. And it could encompass a study of morality throughout history, and those values could be juxtaposed with our modern values, and teachers could explain why we don't hold them anymore, or maybe why we never would. Explaining the rationale for why we hold moral values could do a lot of good for people who really haven't ever given it any thought before. A class could even get into the specifics of contemporary moral hot-button issues and dissect them for the class, such as abortion and homosexuality.
I thought it was a type of fish.
The foray strays into mores and morays.I thought it was a type of fish.
moraysThe customs of a people are its mores. These may include its morals (ethics), but the word “mores” is not synonymous with “morals.” Some eels are morays, but they aren’t known particularly for their social customs, though both words are pronounced the same.
You spoilt it with the quote and the link!
If someone didn't get the joke they should have had to look it up for themselves.
I greatly feared that only a couple of us 'mature' folks would get it, lol....You spoilt it with the quote and the link!
If someone didn't get the joke they should have had to look it up for themselves.
So sorry to spoil the fun for you. I have this dreadful condition where I occasionally feel the need to hit the audience over the head with a cudgel.
Just because I can, lol...
We can and should teach the better parts of philosophy in High School without the baggage and esoteric garbage. Reasoning and logic applied to all topics--particularly maths and sciences--but widely applicable to most other subjects.
This!
I find that usually when people misunderstand scientific topics or pass on wrong information about science, it is because they make logical fallacies (philosophy) or have poor reading comprehension (English.)
And I hate to break it to you anti-philosophy people, but scientific method is philosophy.
Anti-philosphy people? Really...? Really...?This!
I find that usually when people misunderstand scientific topics or pass on wrong information about science, it is because they make logical fallacies (philosophy) or have poor reading comprehension (English.)
And I hate to break it to you anti-philosophy people, but scientific method is philosophy.
According to me Indian education systems desperately need to be revamped... Here it is like one's life is all about marks gaining and no serious interest is placed in conceptual learning is not given equal importance or the emphasis that is needed.. The subjects that is the content taught in each and every subject is excellent , But there is no practical implementation of concepts one has learned that creates a very staggered and non-concrete foundation for our knowledge base .. Lastly i would like to say that everyone has his own fields of personal interest ... so a favourite subject will vary widely from person to person....
....
(Pounds fist on table)
I AGREE!!
In my opinion Language is the most important, without Language I would imagine it being pretty tough to teach, though some people manage just fine.
The most important lessons are life lessons.
Sensible grade school education can make some of the really hard life lessons entirely avoidable or, at least, much less damaging. Learning how to calculate percentages and total costs of financing purchases is a good protection against people entering usurious contracts to buy cars or paying too little each month on their credit cards or taking on excessive mortgages.The most important lessons are life lessons.
Similar things go for basic reading comprehension and general science knowledge for understanding instructions on administering medication, understanding the dangers of driving speeds and/or tailgating .... and dozens if not hundreds of apparently routine, but actually quite sophisticated, actions and decisions of life in modern society.
\
Or learning to avoid Nigerian scams, education about drug use etc.
To me, [ and Im still a highschool kid] maths was the most important subject. Because it opened my mind alot and I can take real-life decisions by thinking the problems mathematically...
I regret not spending more time studying it.
But well, yeah, the educational system need improvement in Romania too. Yet I do not think that education about drugs should be introduced in schools, because I don`t see anything wrong with cannabis usage [ and yeah, Im looking for someone to tell me what`s wrong with that].
It's not about categorizing things as right or wrong. It is about making informed choices about your health. There are other drugs besides cannabis, by the way.
Although it is also a good idea to discuss the legality of particular activities, as school should also be training you to participate in the political process.
Anything that you ever learn will one day either might help you or will help you out in real life as time goes by. So try to learn all that you can for the more you know the less you'll be taken advantage of.
I think ELA because if you can't learn to communicate and write out your ideas, we would never be able to expand our knowledge in any of the other core subjects.
Well yeah, obviously.
Um, WTF is ELA?
Wiki:
ELA or Ela may refer to the following:
In organizations:
- English Language Academy, part of University of Auckland, New Zealand
- Euskal Langileen Alkartasuna, a Basque trade union
- English Lacrosse Association, the governing body for lacrosse in England
- Epanastatikos Laikos Agonas, see Revolutionary Nuclei
- ELA Aviacion, a Spanish gyrocopter producer
- Exit Left Apparel, a clothing business from England
- Emotion Literacy Advocates, a U.S. non-profit organization
- European Latvian Association
- Englewood Leadership Acedemy
In places:
- Ela (woreda), a woreda or district in Ethiopia
- Ela Township, Lake County, Illinois, an American municipality
- Parc Ela, a Swiss nature park
- Piz Ela, a mountain therein
- Ela River, a river in the United States
- Ela Airport, now known as Naypyidaw Airport
- Ela, a town in Mandalay Division, Burma (Myanmar)
- Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, official name for the Commonweallth of Puerto Rico
- Experimental Lakes Area, a scientific study region in northwestern Ontario, Canada
In persons:
- Ela, Countess of Salisbury (1187 – 1261), English noblewoman
- Jacob Hart Ela (1820-1884), U.S. politician
- Ruslan Ela (born 1983), Equatoguinean footballer
- Jacinto Ela (born 1982), Equatoguinean footballer
- Mohamed Aboul Ela (born 1980), Egyptian footballer
In music:
- E.L.A., an album by Elastinen
In other:
- East London Advertiser, a newspaper established in 1866, covering the East End of London
- Engineering Leadership Award, an RAEng award for outstanding British engineering students
- Equilibrium line altitude, see snow line
- English Language Amendment, an amendment to the United States Constitution proposed in 1981
- English Language Arts, a middle school class where children learn literature and writing skills.
- ELA, acronym for Elektroakustik Lautsprecher Anlagen (German) a low-fi European public address system which can use long wires, German origin
- ELA, short for Experience Level Agreement.
- Emergency Liquidity Assistance
- Enterprise License Agreement, as opposed to per-user or per-CPU software licenses
Learn why things are done or made not just how to do things.
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