Unusual School Subjects?

[Zardnaar]

As the title says. What are some subjects that you took at high school. You may or may not have had a choice.

What's normal here may be unusual somewhere else. Several here I can think of.

1. In intermediate (age 10-12) we had Manual. This included metalworking, woodworking, sewing, cooking and art. Throughout the year you would switch every few weeks and then repeat. And do it again the following year with more advanced options. Boys did sewing, girls did metalworking everyone did it not optional.

2. Agriculture. First year of high school became optional year 2+. Our school had an attached field with a few sheep and crops. We learnt a lot of theory and would go and plant stuff and tend to it age 12-13. All male school.

3. Transition. Year 3. Once a week the class taught you about what to expect outside school. How to apply for jobs, CV/resume, some basic life skills etc.

In hindsight I grew up in a town that was a hub for the surrounding farms. You could also leave school aged 15/16. I had my first job aged 13 some had paper runs aged 10. Age 15/16 I was buying my own clothes and shoes.

Probably a bit of the DIY cultural mentality as well. Not all schools had the required facilities eg workshops, attached farm etc.

Stereotype from talking to foreigners NZ males fairly useless at wining and dining and "romance" things but a bit more useful around the house in terms of cooking and cleaning. Personally I could do most if that at a basic level from around age 10. If you wanted pocket money chores and/or cooking was expected.

That might be a generational thing as well. You don't typically leave school now aged 14-16 but parents, grandparents and Gen-X often did.

 

[amadeus]

We had all those subjects in school. I didn’t take them because I had taken Cisco networking and computer graphics.

 

[Zardnaar]

We had all those subjects in school. I didn’t take them because I had taken Cisco networking and computer graphics.

Computing wasn't an option until high school. Old BBC computers in 91.

 

[amadeus]

Computing wasn't an option until high school. Old BBC computers in 91.

This was also in high school. Elementary and junior high only ever had intermittent typing classes.

 

[Zardnaar]

This was also in high school. Elementary and junior high only ever had intermittent typing classes.

We had Commodore 64's circa 64 mostly with educational games.

 

[stinkubus]

The high school I attended wasn't all that great but we did have a really good chemistry teacher. He offered an AP Organic Chemistry course. The chance to start college with sophomore level credit is pretty good for a rural school.

 

[AmazonQueen]

When I was in school there was only 1 computer and only the top set in maths got to use it.
Girls did 1 term of woodwork and metalwork, and technical drawing and 2 terms of cooking and sewing up until to year 4, boys the reverse
Year 4 you chose the 'O' grades you were taking and either sex could take any of the craft subjects but in practice it was unknown for a girl to take metalwork or a boy to take cooking etc. I dropped all those practical subjects.
1 girl took physics 'O' Grade in my year and was regularly mocked in front of the whole class by the teacher

Unusual subjects? Scottish Country Dancing. Fortunately only a couple of classes a year in the run up to Xmas and the School Dances.

 

[Bamspeedy]

Agriculture-believe it was optional when I was in high school, 30 years later it was required for stepdaughter to take. Different school, so don't know if it was changing of the times in rural areas or the two schools have always been different in that way. More advanced agriculture classes would take class trip to chicago stock exchange.

Typing-keyboard and computer, not the old fashioned typewriters if anyone was thinking that.

Family economics-cooking, budgets, etc.

Drivers ed -they don't do it in schools during regular school hours anymore. When I was in school the classroom part was part of normal school day just like any other class, for one quarter your sophomore year. The actual behind the wheel part was after school/weekend.

Tech Ed-welding, wood working, etc.

There were computer classes, dont remember specifically the names of the classes, but word processor, spreadsheet, paint. Dont remember the computers we used, but they were 'fancy' for what we were used to previously in lower grades (green screen playing Where in the world is Carmen, and Oregon trail).

 

[lymond]

In intermediate (Muricans call it Middle School), we had a Home Economics class with cooking, sewing, crafts, and stuff. Shop class was a separate class - really enjoyed it.

As a junior, I took a semester Typing course. Definitely one of the most useful things I learned in school. We had Phys Ed, of course, up to 10th grade, but I took a separate Gym course junior and senior years with weight training, conditioning and track stuff. It was a nice break from the other advanced course I was taking, and helpful as a varsity Wrestler.

I think Driver's Ed was part of Phys Ed in 10th grade as most turned 16 that year. We also had a Nutrition course.

 

[AmazonQueen]

No driver's ed in UK but we did do cycling proficiency. Schoolchildren having their own cars is a very recent (and annoying) thing here.

 

[Ajidica]

My school district offered a number of specialized courses, such as small engines or welding. While those were very good courses, there was the general understanding those courses were for near screw-ups; to give them one useful skill or jumping off point for tech school.* One of my friends was really into cars and wanted to take the small engines course, especially as it was offered at our school, but the guidance counsellor tried to steer him away, all but telling him it was for "alternative learning pattern students".

*Beyond that it was ALC - Alternative Learning Center - though commonly known by everyone (even teachers) as A-holes Last Chance; where it was the school districts last attempt to ensure the student scraped by with a high school degree, or at least kept out of juvenile detention.

 

[Chukchi Husky]

The school I went to never offered any kind of special or unusual courses. The school focused on trying to improve grade scores from what was predicted from each student. I guess it didn't help that it was one of those schools that other schools would send their troubled students. The school always had a reputation since it opened that it was a rough school. After I left the school was turned into an academy and it eventually had to close down a few years ago because of a lack of students.

 

[really]

Ages 13 - 17 I was in a Catholic all boys school in the middle of town in Ireland. (In the 90s)
Agriculture and metal/woodwork - that was for the students in the 'tech' (state run/comprehensive/vocational school)
Home economics (cooking etc) was for the girls schools.

The less common options available compared to other schools.
Higher level maths, physics, chemistry, economics and applied maths.
The economics and maths I took covered me for a lot of my first year in college.

Unusual compared to other countries and some of the other schools: being a Catholic school run by monks religion class was explicitly Catholic with a nod to other experiences.
I was shown pictures of aborted babies when I was about 16 or 17 and the indoctrination worked on me for years after.

Thankfully there is a new mixed sex, comprehensive school opened near me that my kids will be going to that offers a very broad range of subjects and levels and I know for example the agriculture class is predominantly but not exclusively boys.

 

[Remorseless1]

Heck, when I graduated from high school in 1977, there were NO computers in the entire school! Even through college, the only time I used a computer in class was when I took a programming class. At least it wasn't card punch by then...

We had shop, Home economics, sociology, psychology, physics,a slew of foreign languages, music, drama, band, chorus, life mathematics (balancing checkbooks, budgeting, taxes, etc), and agriculture, plus we had a regional vocational technical school where they had classes in HVAC, constructionn, nursing, accounting and bookkeeping, pharmacy technician, business management, and more.

Forgot driver's education.

 

[Valka D'Ur]

In intermediate (Muricans call it Middle School), we had a Home Economics class with cooking, sewing, crafts, and stuff. Shop class was a separate class - really enjoyed it.

It was the same in the junior high school I attended. I don't know how the city schools did these subjects; I attended a county school.

I remember what a fit and fuss it caused the teachers in Grade 7 (1974) when one of the girls wanted to take shop and a couple of the boys wanted to take Home Ec. They were so convinced that the girl would "distract" the boys and the two boys in the other class would either complain or screw something up. The teacher was very emphatic that they would have to sew the same things the girls had to sew. The guys just looked at her with a "Yeah, what's your point?" expression.

Everything worked out fine. I was forced into that Home Ec. class two years in a row, and finally managed to fail it badly enough in Grade 8 that they didn't force me to take it in Grade 9 and I could finally take typing as my preferred option. My optional classes (the ones I wanted) were music, French, typing, astronomy (science option; the teacher pushed as hard as he could to convince me to take biology, but I told him the list included astronomy and I would NOT dissect anything, thankyouverymuch), practical math, and a social studies option. To this day all I got out of that Home Ec. class was basic sewing - by hand, as I have a fear of getting my fingers caught in the sewing machine needle - and the ability to make a decent batch of applesauce.

The music class was fun. That's how I got introduced to Broadway musicals, Gordon Lightfoot, and opera. Our class and the Grade 8 music class got together and put on what was probably the worst production of Carmen the world has ever seen (my grandmother liked it, and my grandfather's opinion was "Somebody needs to teach those boys how to march!"). We did much better in our performances at seniors' homes, and performing Christmas music at the mall and in the Kiwanis Carol Festival. This was around the time when I started formal organ lessons.

As a junior, I took a semester Typing course. Definitely one of the most useful things I learned in school.

Definitely. I remember the typewriters we used were ancient - I didn't get to use an electric typewriter until Grade 11, in high school.

One interesting thing the Grade 9 teacher said to me one day: He asked if I played music, as in piano. I told him I played the organ, and he said he could usually tell which of the typing students played keyboard instruments, because our typing rhythm was so even, regardless of the wpm we were doing.

I think Driver's Ed was part of Phys Ed in 10th grade as most turned 16 that year. We also had a Nutrition course.

Hm. It was part of our Guidance Counseling course. We were all given the written portion of the learner's permit test, and I aced it (just one mistake). My dad was very pleased about that, as he figured it meant I'd be good at driving.

I never did learn to drive. Being able to do well on a written test doesn't guarantee being able to do well on a practical test. There are medical reasons why I realized why it would be a bad idea to try driving.

 

[Zardnaar]

It was the same in the junior high school I attended. I don't know how the city schools did these subjects; I attended a county school.

I remember what a fit and fuss it caused the teachers in Grade 7 (1974) when one of the girls wanted to take shop and a couple of the boys wanted to take Home Ec. They were so convinced that the girl would "distract" the boys and the two boys in the other class would either complain or screw something up. The teacher was very emphatic that they would have to sew the same things the girls had to sew. The guys just looked at her with a "Yeah, what's your point?" expression.

Everything worked out fine. I was forced into that Home Ec. class two years in a row, and finally managed to fail it badly enough in Grade 8 that they didn't force me to take it in Grade 9 and I could finally take typing as my preferred option. My optional classes (the ones I wanted) were music, French, typing, astronomy (science option; the teacher pushed as hard as he could to convince me to take biology, but I told him the list included astronomy and I would NOT dissect anything, thankyouverymuch), practical math, and a social studies option. To this day all I got out of that Home Ec. class was basic sewing - by hand, as I have a fear of getting my fingers caught in the sewing machine needle - and the ability to make a decent batch of applesauce.

The music class was fun. That's how I got introduced to Broadway musicals, Gordon Lightfoot, and opera. Our class and the Grade 8 music class got together and put on what was probably the worst production of Carmen the world has ever seen (my grandmother liked it, and my grandfather's opinion was "Somebody needs to teach those boys how to march!"). We did much better in our performances at seniors' homes, and performing Christmas music at the mall and in the Kiwanis Carol Festival. This was around the time when I started formal organ lessons.


Definitely. I remember the typewriters we used were ancient - I didn't get to use an electric typewriter until Grade 11, in high school.

One interesting thing the Grade 9 teacher said to me one day: He asked if I played music, as in piano. I told him I played the organ, and he said he could usually tell which of the typing students played keyboard instruments, because our typing rhythm was so even, regardless of the wpm we were doing.


Hm. It was part of our Guidance Counseling course. We were all given the written portion of the learner's permit test, and I aced it (just one mistake). My dad was very pleased about that, as he figured it meant I'd be good at driving.

I never did learn to drive. Being able to do well on a written test doesn't guarantee being able to do well on a practical test. There are medical reasons why I realized why it would be a bad idea to try driving.

Heh I liked sewing better than metalwork and art.

Teacher was great.
Woodwork teacher was OK had very unfortunate name.

Cooking kinda enjoyed it (mostly baking) didn't like the teacher.

Made a pair of shorts for myself iirc outside of school. Fluorescent orange iirc (89/90).

 

[Valka D'Ur]

Heh I liked sewing better than metalwork and art.

Teacher was great.
Woodwork teach was OK had very unfortunate name.

Cooking kinda enjoyed it (mostly baking) didn't blime the teacher.

Made a pair of shorts for myself iirc outside of school. Fluorescent orange iirc (89/90).

Dare one ask what the woodworking teacher's name was, or would it violate forum rules?

It took me 10 years to get to the headspace where I actually wanted to try needlework. I saw someone doing needlepoint during a few minutes' downtime backstage when we were working on a production of Gypsy. I looked at how she did it... up, over, down, keep the floss tension even... it looked easy enough.

So I went to the mall, and bought some basic supplies. My first efforts were pretty awful. But I practiced, got better, got confident enough to give away some of it as gifts, and after a couple of years of steady practice I decided to see if I could actually sell this stuff.

Thus began a 12-year-long home crafting business to go along with the typing and music lessons. Since all three depended on the seasons of the year as to when the really busy times were, it all worked out to be fairly steady at one of them, even with taking January and July off. By the time January rolled around I was absolutely brain-fried from term papers and Christmas craft fairs, and July was too hot to do much of anything, certainly too hot to fuss around with needles and thread. In February I started on the Mother's Day craft fair items and planning preliminary ideas for Christmas. The only sewing I did in July was science fiction convention costume stuff that was for personal use. Then in August I'd dive back into the needlework to get ready for the September, November, and December craft fairs.

 

[Zardnaar]

Dare one ask what the woodworking teacher's name was, or would it violate forum rules?

It took me 10 years to get to the headspace where I actually wanted to try needlework. I saw someone doing needlepoint during a few minutes' downtime backstage when we were working on a production of Gypsy. I looked at how she did it... up, over, down, keep the floss tension even... it looked easy enough.

So I went to the mall, and bought some basic supplies. My first efforts were pretty awful. But I practiced, got better, got confident enough to give away some of it as gifts, and after a couple of years of steady practice I decided to see if I could actually sell this stuff.

Thus began a 12-year-long home crafting business to go along with the typing and music lessons. Since all three depended on the seasons of the year as to when the really busy times were, it all worked out to be fairly steady at one of them, even with taking January and July off. By the time January rolled around I was absolutely brain-fried from term papers and Christmas craft fairs, and July was too hot to do much of anything, certainly too hot to fuss around with needles and thread. In February I started on the Mother's Day craft fair items and planning preliminary ideas for Christmas. The only sewing I did in July was science fiction convention costume stuff that was for personal use. Then in August I'd dive back into the needlework to get ready for the September, November, and December craft fairs.

I can't remember exact spelling but his name was Cundall.

All turned into hole you can guess the front half. His daughter got teased over it.

 

[Quintillus]

Some of the ones we had that haven't been mentioned here:

Research & Communications - This was a bit of everything, but the part that stands out now was that it taught you how to research things, including on the Internet. How to find reliable source, that sort of thing. This was in 2002 or 2003. I've sometimes been amazed by how gullible people can be with fake news on the Internet, but most people haven't had a class that taught them how to tell what was trustworthy on the Internet. My middle school had a class on that.

U.S. Political Thought & Radicalism - As far as I know, this class is still taught at my high school. It focused on teaching you about the political world outside the mainstream Democrats and Republicans, and various philosophies that are out there. There was another class (which was required) about the form of government, this one was purely elective, and only open to seniors. A bit over half of it was lectures from the teacher, including history lessons on political movements (e.g. the Black Panthers, the Weathermen, the Symbionese Liberation Army), the remainder was guests speakers, who were required to answer questions from the students as well. It was always a balance of a speaker from a group with one stance on an issue, and a day or two later a speaker from a group that had the opposing stance. If a group ever claimed that the teacher endorsed their viewpoint, they were never invited back, and that had happened once.

You might think that this would result in a whole bunch of super-radical high school graduates, but if anything it seemed to have a moderating impact. You got to hear both sides of issues, so you didn't just hear one side and latch on to it. And the really radical speakers tended to spout off in ways that showed you just how outside the mainstream (and in two cases, racist) they really were. You got to see the ugly side that their PR machines wouldn't want you to see.

I think the most mainstream speakers were from the Green Party, the Libertarian Party, and PETA. The Nation of Islam was one of the groups whose speakers was notably racist, the other was neo-fascist and much more blatantly racist, and the Anti-Defamation League had a guest speaker for two days as a counterweight to those groups. The Communist Party speaker's car broke down on the day he was supposed to speak so he had to call in by phone. I'm probably forgetting a few, I think there might have been pro-and-anti-abortion groups too. It ranged from, "this is kind of interesting" for groups like the Greens and Libertarians to "oh wow, I can't believe there's people who really believe that" for the more extreme ones. But knowing that there were really people who believed that stuff gave some immunity to the "they can't really be as bad as their campaign speeches sound" thought commonly cited in U.S. political parlance around, say, 2015 and 2016.

You'd probably expect parents to complain about some of the guest speakers and the class to be shut down by the administration, but that didn't happen. Which is another reason why I'm guessing not many if any students bought into the radical stuff.

 

[Kyriakos]

We only had arts class (drawing), music class (basics of reading music, for the most part) and a few freak classes that were only 1 or 2 year long (constitutional class, which no one cared about, and how to prepare your own food, which sadly became a farce though it could have been useful).
In elementary school, I also had a class about learning a musical instrument.

The secondary education school I went to also had a "clubs" system, because it is an american institution. I did join a few of them, and even played a significant role in a play. But they were optional and if you wanted you could just not join any clubs.