To think the school system is ridiculous

I'm so curious to know what OP does in this school.

FYI to answer your question OP I did A level maths and am now a data scientist.

My undergraduate degree was in Religious Studies, which is a subject many people also like to claim is worthless. I found the philosophy and ethics side of RS helped view problems from different angles, and my maths A level helped me train up my brain to tackle and solve problems via logical reasoning.

A lot of my job is being able to identify a problem, understand what caused it, automate a solution for it, then analyse the effect of what I did. I couldn't do what I do without algebra. I also wouldn't be as good at what I do without having learnt skills I picked up from subjects such as poetry, literature and religious studies (i.e. being able to look beyond the surface and practice interpreting things in different ways, being creative etc).

I don't think there's any such thing as a useless subject, just crap ways of teaching. Schools need to better engage students and explain to them how their learning helps them develop different skills and areas of their brain.

I do agree with letting kids specialise in subjects they have a bigger passion for, but core concepts such as algebra should be mandatory for all. It's just a shame that so many parents confer their fear of maths to their children - it does such a disservice to them, especially nowadays where there's more job opportunities available in tech.

@MsJJones that's a helpful overview and makes sense. It would help if the subject matter were such that it engaged interest. It truly is hideously dull for so many. Where the subject is relatable I believe you're going to engage. Therefore Greek Gods may for many be dull as dishwater and will not illicit engagement. I recall history at school. I hated it. Now, I love it. Because I choose to learn about fascinating, more exciting subjects that I find intriguing. I hope it has been updated since my day. Miserable and depressing experience learning about Tsar Nicholas 😭.

I don't see anything about this thread criticising teachers. It isn't their fault. It's in hands way above them how this is dictated.

OP makes some valid points and I'm confused by the outrage and personal attacks on her which are absolutely insane. Is this the witching hour approaching? Twilight zone?

Algebra develops several aspects of logic which you (hopefully) use all the time in all sorts of different ways.

One particularly relevant skills is the ability to deduce and reason from what you have in front of you and to restrict your deductions to what you have evidence for or to name your assumptions. If you aren’t using this skill in your daily life you’re missing out hugely.

I do think maths is taught poorly in terms of showing people how the skills they are developing apply to life in general. The early emphasis on arithmetic seems to make people think maths is about numbers, when that’s really a tiny part of it (and, IMO, the least interesting).

But again, they dont know what will be relevant to them. If they all follow your idea and decide that algebra is outdated and not needed in the modern world, they are going to be in for a hell of a shock when they discover that it is necessary for hundreds of jobs that they hadn't considered. On this thread, people have given you lots of jobs, careers and situations that use algebra, that you had already ruled out and not realised it's importance. So all these kids you claim to care should be making their own choices would be making UNINFORMED choices.

And that's just one part of one subject.

AI will code itself!

You said he was disordered. Disordered means not normal. So abnormal. I know you said studying English is worthless but understanding synonyms really is.

Anxiety is not a medical condition either. There is no pathology behind it.

Say i had meningitis I would have symptoms of it but the underlying cause would be the infection. I could test using a lumbar puncture to check if I had it.

Anxiety I would have symptoms but the underlying condition is not something medical. There are no tests to check if you have it as there isn't anything going on inside your body that is wrong that needs fixing.

Only 5 symptom checkers - it is always 5 symptoms with the stigma field.

He was worried and showed fear, that is not a medical issue, that is a normal response to something that scared him.

A deer running from a fox doesn't have anxiety disorder they are scared. It is fear from what they are experiencing.

To label is to use stigma

Hi, OP -

I know maths can be taught badly. I disliked it myself in high school.

But it is the language of nature or, if you like - being Irish and therefore possibly appreciating a metaphor - one of the languages of God. Good maths either serves a purpose or is as elegant as good poetry. Sometimes both. But, as with poetry or art or music, it takes a certain amount of education to appreciate the beauty.

It wasn’t for you. That’s fine. I am very sorry you may have been badly taught. However, in your day to day life, please don’t moan about maths to impressionable young people who might otherwise feel differently and may even go on to a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) career.

This is especially important for girls. I was once one who almost didn’t go for my STEM PhD because of the influence of people like you. Now I can get high thinking about my field, and its language is mathematics.

I saw this posted online the other day and it really resonated with me as a teacher and a parent.

TLDR:
Children are not there to learn WHAT they are learning. They are there to learn FROM what they are learning.

Full post:
Children aren’t taught algebra to solve simultaneous equations. They’re taught it as it has real world application in budgeting, scheduling, bills, in subtle ways we take for granted.

They aren’t taught about the Greeks so they can recite the Gods. They’re taught about the Greeks so they can learn deduction and inference based on evidence, can discuss human rights and democracy and learn to argue their opinions effectively.

They’re not taught Pythagoras’s Theorem so they can UsE iT aLl ThE TiME. They’re taught it as a vessel for understand space and spatial awareness, applicable in every aspect of our lives from home renovations to getting from A to B in the most effective way.

There is such a clear lack of understanding of the importance of learning in schools that baffles me to this day. Children are not there to learn WHAT they are learning. They are there to learn FROM what they are learning.

We continue to disregard the importance of education, when for SOME (and when I say some, I mean far too many) children, school is:

• their one meal a day
• the only place they’ll receive a smile
• where they’re taught to use the toilet, wash their hands, eat with a knife and fork
• their home.

Education, rightly, comes under scrutiny as, for the most part, it’s public funded. However, it’s high time we opened our eyes to the real lessons schools teach, as opposed to the sheeple belief that schools ‘never taught us anything I use in my adult life’, as this statement is simply a lie.

No school is perfect, no school has all the answers and I’m certainly not saying every child has a great school experience - no one is denying work is constantly ongoing.

But most of what you apply day-in-day-out stems from the impact your school life had on your development, learning, exploration and understanding, EVEN IF you had a ‘negative’ school experience. The sooner you realise that, the better your own children’s education will become.

Teachers, you have real impact. Be proud of you and keep going.

When would you have them narrow it down then OP? Like I said my dd has just done the JC, she will be doing Transition year but lots of her friends in a different school are going straight on to the LC curriculum. Dd and most of her friends don't have a clue now at 15 what they will want to study in 2 or 3 years time when they leave school. How do they know at 15 that maths or Tech graph or biology won't be relevant to them in the future?

Ds always used to complain about being in a Gaelcholaiste, why would he need Irish anyway? Who uses it in day to life? Fast forward a few years and he is hoping to study Irish and translation, he is so passionate about the Irish language, an involved member of our local Irish language scene and has his eye on translator jobs in Brussels. If you would have told 15 year old him what 18 year old him would be like he would have laughed at you.

How are they going to code AI systems without maths?

YANBU.

especially now with the advent of AI which is going to turn the world of work even more upside down than it already is, compared to when the education system was first created for the masses 150 years ago. We won’t equip our young people for this new world if we don’t overhaul the system.

So much of the curriculum is outdated and pointless. I speak as an ex teacher too.

Oh I would love to see that curriculum, an in depth analysis of Love Island and all the other vacuous crap on TV, the lives of the greatest 'influencers' and so on! Yet another opportunity for a poor parent to opt out then when their sprog is unemployable they can blame everyone else. Sounds like Home Schooling is the way forward for many.

None of the things were covered when I went to school. I did listen during my schooling. How fucking rude are you?

What do you DO in this school?

I work for a newspaper but that doesn't necessarily make me qualified to comment on journalism.

Just waiting for the compulsory Irish posts....
My husband works in third level, They had an external examiner in from a UK university. He reckoned the standard of writing in undergraduate dissertations was better in Ireland than he was used to. Maybe because of leaving cert English?

But you hate your job. And don’t think there should be bosses.

Do you think your unresolved childhood trauma might have influenced your views about education/childhood, perhaps?

Tell me you are thick without telling me.

Most of those are covered! You just have to be listening!

Yes.

And I did accounting as part of a degree - for fun! <shock>

You said he was abnormal because he had a fear and clearly he has said that he was abnormal too for you to know this.

Why is fear abnormal? It is a normal response to something. It isn't anything abnormal or wrong with someone internally! It is just responding to what you experience. If he thinks that being scared is an abnormal thing and uses stigma then he shouldn't be near patients.