Disgustipated
Deity
maybe it appears that way, but I can't help that. Much of it is society that doesn't push women to believe they can be engineers or doctors. But that is getting off topic for this thread, so I won't go into it more here.
Stuff you wish they taught in school
- Thread starter Narz
- Start date
maybe it appears that way, but I can't help that. Much of it is society that doesn't push women to believe they can be engineers or doctors. But that is getting off topic for this thread, so I won't go into it more here.
ParadigmShifter
Random Nonsense Generator
Nah, I'd rather you'd elaborate on how come you appear to be incredibly sexist and ignorant.
Your personal school experiences are not representative of the profession. Teachers are on the whole a pretty smart bunch of people, they need to be to keep on top of all the elements of the job. It is also worth noting that it is easy to confuse subject knowledge with intelligence... I know many teachers who teach in a subject that is not something they studied previously; to a school child they may appear to be dim but in reality they are simply out of their comfort zone.
Subject knowledge is certainly not the be all and end all of being a good teacher. There are many good teachers who know only slightly more about their subject than they teach at school, while their are others who could teach their subject at university level.
What's important is that a teacher knows how to teach; that's the skill that makes a good teacher. As much as I have a vested interest in seeing pay rises for the profession I'm not sure that they would do anything to ensure more good teachers in schools.
useless
Social Justice Rogue
That there is nothing wrong with not being straight, or not cis-gendered (Transgendered).
_random_
Jewel Runner
That "cisgendered" is a stupid and unnecessarily pretentious adjective.
useless
Social Justice Rogue
Well, what other word would you use then?
Yeah, public school teaching has been by FAR, the hardest thing I've ever done. It doesn't necessarily require an exceptional academic pedigree, but you cannot do it well if you are dumb, and most people do not do it well at all.
A big reason teachers face a pay and prestige gap in my country is because the profession is dominated by women.
EnglishCrusader
AYEEEEE
How to shoot. That would be fun.
I used to tutor a science lab at an inner city middle school. Let me tell you, the teachers there were doing the best they could with what they had been provided. Sadly, they had not been provided with much.
Yeah, I'm going to stop reading about there.
You really don't have any experience in this field, do you? Or do you just take your talking points from Fox News? They seem to be flagrantly anti-education these days.
Firefighting and police work are both jobs with mind-numbing mundane boredom punctuated with a few moments of sheer terror. If you think putting out "small house fires" is chump's work, think again. There are several types of fires sorted based on fuel source, they have to identify what type it is to make sure the extinguisher they use is appropriate, etc. They also serve as safety inspectors while responding to calls (i.e. when they go into a lab, they have to check to see if there are any other hazards present).
And hanging out in a rat-infested crummy firehouse isn't exactly living at the Ritz. It's not a cushy job.
Yeah, I'm going to stop reading about there.
You really don't have any experience in this field, do you? Or do you just take your talking points from Fox News? They seem to be flagrantly anti-education these days.
Firefighting and police work are both jobs with mind-numbing mundane boredom punctuated with a few moments of sheer terror. If you think putting out "small house fires" is chump's work, think again. There are several types of fires sorted based on fuel source, they have to identify what type it is to make sure the extinguisher they use is appropriate, etc. They also serve as safety inspectors while responding to calls (i.e. when they go into a lab, they have to check to see if there are any other hazards present).
And hanging out in a rat-infested crummy firehouse isn't exactly living at the Ritz. It's not a cushy job.
_random_
Jewel Runner
I honestly can't think of any circumstances where I'd be discussing that.
I've certainly known some very poor teachers, though. Who would appear to be doing the job because they like being in charge, or in the case of my former boss (he owned a tutoring business), he had a science degree, couldn't get a job, so did a dip-ed and had no trouble getting a job, because science & maths teachers are in short supply. He was a very, very poor teacher. Nice bloke though.
Or in some cases, they don't even know the subject. I had a housemate struggling with the last year of his engineering degree. I tutored him, and he passed. I did this despite not actually knowing the subject, and just teaching myself enough out of the textbook to help him.
But yeah, teaching is a skill. Some people who are very good at maths (or whatever else) are also very good at teaching. Some people who are very good at maths make very poor teachers, for reasons like struggling to break down & communicate the concepts.
I think teachers are underpaid, I also don't know if better pay would actually result in better teachers. I think the really good teachers love seeing people learn stuff, they're probably going to do it regardless. Better pay might help draw more of the mediocre teachers who see teaching as an easy job. I met enough of them through school, I don't think we need more. Better pay might also draw the intelligent people who might enjoy & be good at teaching, but who don't do it because there's more money & more interest elsewhere.
Hard to measure how good a teacher is, too.
That's what she said?
Midgard Eagle
Warlord
To add to the ever-growing list... this has probably been listed already, but:
How many times haven't you heard someone say something like, homoeopathy works -- I tried it and got better afterwards.
I know this sounds condescending, but the fact that anecdotes are not evidence is one of the most elemental rules of critical thinking. It's like living in a big city and not knowing that a red light means stop and a green light means go.
Or the other ways people tend to extrapolate single incidents: no, I won't get vaccinated, because I heard a girl died from the vaccine.
Er, 30 000 people are killed by seat belts every year, do you want those banned, too?
Or, this one summer, in this one area, has been colder than average. Therefore, global warming is a myth.
We need critical thinking classes in our schools.
Basic critical thinking skills
We live in the Age of Information. We're bombarded by political statements, fad diets, alternative medicine, conspiracy theories and so on at every turn. Our kids need to grow up with the skills to separate the chaff from the wheat.
How many times haven't you heard someone say something like, homoeopathy works -- I tried it and got better afterwards.
I know this sounds condescending, but the fact that anecdotes are not evidence is one of the most elemental rules of critical thinking. It's like living in a big city and not knowing that a red light means stop and a green light means go.
Or the other ways people tend to extrapolate single incidents: no, I won't get vaccinated, because I heard a girl died from the vaccine.
Er, 30 000 people are killed by seat belts every year, do you want those banned, too?
Or, this one summer, in this one area, has been colder than average. Therefore, global warming is a myth.
We need critical thinking classes in our schools.
Narz
keeping it real
Word. I get myself in quite a bit of trouble by saying what I shouldn't. I've gotten better at this though.On that question, one thing I wish they taught people in schools is when it is best to keep ones mouth shut. Im sure that could help the vast majority of people (including myself IRL, I tend to rant too much).
Mango Elephant
Deity
Disgustipated
Deity
It's not me who is that way, it is society.
Syterion
Voodoo Economist
Hey man, we don't all look like homeless people. I've seen how you dress. Getting your jeans altered makes 40 dollar jeans look like 150 dollar jeans. And it costs like 10 bucks unless you're getting like a full taper.
Yup, amen here. Part of this goes along with distinguishing between anecdotes and facts, hypotheses and theories that I talked about earlier. I'm wondering if a basic research and critical thinking class is necessary in high school, or if it should be dispersed into other classes along the way. Part of me thinks that if it is dispersed, we'll end up where we are right now.
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