How smart would American Kids be

[K1052]

Judging by some of the threads I?ve seen here, more history (+ a government/civics course) classes should be required, not fewer.

 

[datalink7]

Those who ignore history are condemned to repeat it.

 

[puffff]

i had good grades in high school, I took AP Calc, but I have to admit, I don't remember the first thing about integration.

 

[DrPizza]

1. I'm a math teacher, and adjunct math professor (calculus). I think that history has a place in school

2. The reason the foreign countries kick our butts in math is because their early education is much better in mathematics, not their high school education. While American students can compete at the 4th grade level, already the foreign students are getting an education that leads to a more in depth understanding of the basic concepts and fundamentals that are crucial for success later on. (Or, to put it another way, when the students get to 8th grade and begin adding fractions like 3/(x+2) + 4/(x-5), the teacher doesn't have to spend 2 periods simply re-teaching the students how to add 1/2 and 1/3 without a calculator.

3. If you think that "no normal human lacks the ability to do calculus I" then you are sadly mistaken.

 

[Firsttime]

Honestly how many people use all the math they learned in high school regularly? Math teachers maybe.

 

[Kenny1234]

do you honestly think that all high school students are capable of passing calc II and linear algebra? assuming the classes are taught at a difficulty comparable to what one would find in college.

 

[Anubis]

jeasus i didnt even take that much math in college and i was a fing physics major

 

[CellarDoor]

I think this thread should read "How smart would American Kids be if we stopped having PE teachers teach history."

That's the problem really. Most of the time nobody took history seriously because it was tought by the football coach. History is underrated IMO.

 

[Firsttime]

They may score 700 on their SATs but how well will they do on their AP World History exams? Smartness isn't measured in how much math you know, and if you think it is you aren't smart.

 

[igowerf]

That schedule isn't TOO difficult, but it's definitely a lot to cram into high school. I took Calc II in my senior year in high school, but it was a year long course. I started with Algebra II, and I took pre-Calc at summer school so I could take AP Calc II in my senior year. My school didn't offer Linear Algebra.

I took World History and AP U.S. History in high school too. My AP U.S. history teacher was one of the best teachers I've ever had. We had regular debates that taught us the basics of rhetoric and public speaking, which are also very important skills to have.

 

[SampSon]

99% of mathematics is useless to the vast majority of the population.

 

[Schadenfreude]

Originally posted by: Jzero
I must have gone to an advanced school becuase I had history AND math. Science, too!

What makes the OP think that if they, and I quote, "remember almost nothing" from history classes, they'd remember anything from math classes?

From this post I can conclude that;

1.)The OP is a math nerd,
and,
2.)The OP is a socially awkward math nerd.

I say to the OP; "FTL; FTL indeed sir." :thumbsdown:

 

[bunnyfubbles]

Originally posted by: Jzero
I must have gone to an advanced school becuase I had history AND math. Science, too!

ditto

 

[DaiShan]

Originally posted by: Chiropteran

Originally posted by: jmagnum

Originally posted by: Amplifier
So we force kids to go through 3-4 years of history in highschool of which they remember almost nothing.

What's to say they are not going to forget the math?

The math classes build on each other. You remember algebra while you do geometry because you still use the algebra. Your remember functions while you do calculus because you need to know how to do functions in calculus.

Uhh, history builds on each other too. Event A causes Event B which in turn causes Event C. See how nicely that works out? Perhaps if History were given more importance we would have learned something from Vietnam...

 

[DaiShan]

Originally posted by: waggy
while i would like to see that math put in place kids also need history, science etc. Get away from the BS of worrying if you are going to hurt the kids feelings because he does not know something. If the kid deserves a F give the little ****** a F.

Also stop doing all the standardized testing. it is a huge waste of time.


i feel sorry for kids today. they are not getting a education like they should.

Meh, standardized tests are needed because it doesn't make any sense to compare some kid that graduated from a public high school with a 5.0 with someone that has a weighted 4.2 or so when that wasn't even a possibility at my private school, and I gaurantee that I had a better education than some of the local public school kids did.

 

[shopbruin]

by that logic, i'd be a genius since i took algebra i, geometry, alg 2/trig, pre calc and calc in high school, along with my two years of history and one year of govt/econ.

but alas, i can't remember calculus to save my life.

more math won't solve the problem.

 

[tfinch2]

Improving the education system in this country should begin with the parents. Wipe out their goddamn lazy attitude and sense of entitlement that rubs off on the kids. (I'm obviously not talking about everyone here)

 

[ShadowBlade]

Originally posted by: oboeguy
I'm a math guy and I say don't take away history classes. They're important, IMO.

QFT

 

[esun]

Originally posted by: Amplifier
So we force kids to go through 3-4 years of history in highschool of which they remember almost nothing. I wonder how smart they would be if they took math classes instead... check out this four year math schedule (in my school they used 4 period semesters)

1st Semester Freshman - Algebra I
2nd Semester Freshman - Algebra II
1st Semester Sophomore- Geometry
2nd Semester Sophomore- Trig
1st Semester Junior- Precalc
2nd Semester Junior- Calc I
1st Semester Senior- Calc II
2nd Semster Senior- Linear Algebra

Even if the kid fails a couple classes, they can at least graduate with Calc level math skills (no normal human lacks the ability to do calculus I). And if you were a little more advanced in Math, you could graduate having taken Calc III, Diff Q, and Linear Algebra. Two-Three classes away from a math minor!

We'd see almost every kid get above a 700 on their math SAT and put the Japanese and French schools to shame in math. All we have to do is replace a class that may or may not be useful with classes that are required for every high paying degree. They say those who don't remember history are doomed to repeat it, I say find me a high school graduate who even knows our constitution. By the way, I rule.

That'd be a terrible idea. I think math should move more quickly in high school, i.e. start with algebra in 7th grade, geometry in 8th, algebra II in 9th, trig in 10th, calc I in 11th, and calc II in 12th. That is as solid a math education as almost any high schooler would need. There is no need to throw away any other portion of the curriculum to accomplish that goal.

 

[sandorski]

Probably pretty smart, but uselessly smart.

 

[n yusef]

Originally posted by: Amplifier
So we force kids to go through 3-4 years of history in highschool of which they remember almost nothing. I wonder how smart they would be if they took math classes instead... check out this four year math schedule (in my school they used 4 period semesters)

1st Semester Freshman - Algebra I
2nd Semester Freshman - Algebra II
1st Semester Sophomore- Geometry
2nd Semester Sophomore- Trig
1st Semester Junior- Precalc
2nd Semester Junior- Calc I
1st Semester Senior- Calc II
2nd Semster Senior- Linear Algebra

Even if the kid fails a couple classes, they can at least graduate with Calc level math skills (no normal human lacks the ability to do calculus I). And if you were a little more advanced in Math, you could graduate having taken Calc III, Diff Q, and Linear Algebra. Two-Three classes away from a math minor!

We'd see almost every kid get above a 700 on their math SAT and put the Japanese and French schools to shame in math. All we have to do is replace a class that may or may not be useful with classes that are required for every high paying degree. They say those who don't remember history are doomed to repeat it, I say find me a high school graduate who even knows our constitution. By the way, I rule.

Do you honestly think that any of this knowledge is useful to the average citizen? Unless my job depended on knowing high level math, what would I do with any of the information in these classes?

 

[Kadarin]

They need to ditch World History and teach Biblical History. This way we can learn the truths behind Creation, the Flood, and Sodom and Gomorrah (let's not forget the all-important lesson in morality here, too) as taught to us by our Lord, Jesus Christ. Come to think of it, mathematics is silly too, because it encourages us to think rationally, and such modes of thought tend to take us away from the Glory of the Father.

 

[Shortcut]

It appears someone is good at math, but craptastic at world events.

 

[kogase]

I wouldn't do for everybody to be smart, the world needs ditch diggers too. In fact, that's pretty much what we need the most of, and they are in good supply.

 

[TitanDiddly]

Originally posted by: ElFenix
they'd we'd end up with a bunch of human calculators who don't have the knowledge of the past to calculate what the future should be if this course of action is pursued

People need to be well rounded, but it's not like every person is singlehandedly juggling the future of the earth, here. Specialization is a good thing.