tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4357415193462649988.post3221581213243665254..comments2023-11-22T21:30:35.388-06:00Comments on My Own Mind blog / Homeschool Atheist Momma: Rethinking Tertiary EducationKarenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03309932952235453461noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4357415193462649988.post-15533035244942416722013-05-11T00:31:21.705-05:002013-05-11T00:31:21.705-05:00I'm so torn on this very issue! I've admir...I'm so torn on this very issue! I've admired the American system for its broad approach for a long time, but at the same time, if I had needed to take a maths test to get into uni I would never have been able to go. In Australia I think it is quite common for a degree to have a major (or two in humanities) and a minor, so you can study something completely unrelated to your main degree, but only one thing (ie, major in computer science and minor in French). It's not a bad system. On the other hand, I am really interested in how early kids in Japan chose their specialities. JHS is standardised but high school is insanely specific. For example, there is a high school for Japan's space program. There's a dental high school. These high schools have close industry links and they virtually guarantee employment for graduates. On the one hand 15 is very young to be making a big choice like that; on the other hand, there really isn't much you need to learn in an institutional setting past that age, so why not just focus on what will be relevant for your career?Sopheliahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09891110033136610235noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4357415193462649988.post-4521743953871985542013-05-09T04:54:25.787-05:002013-05-09T04:54:25.787-05:00In some parts of Australia, such as Tasmania or th...In some parts of Australia, such as Tasmania or the ACT (where I grew up) we finish High School at year 10 (around 16 years old), then go to College (year 11 and 12) which includes a lot of this preparation. <br /><br />It's included in the public system, so costs nothing, and is more like university in the way the students are autonomous and given freedom to choose majors (there are no compulsory subjects).<br /><br />I had great fun at College!<br />jonnihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03146414333457441889noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4357415193462649988.post-10022022121535308472013-05-08T21:55:01.845-05:002013-05-08T21:55:01.845-05:00I think those general studies should be the focus ...I think those general studies should be the focus of jr/sr years of high school, since all young people could benefit from them but not all young people have the option of college. Then those who want to pursue a college degree can just focus their time and money on their career field and not on classes that are generally irrelevant to their future job. The financial burden for those general courses are the very reason I stopped school. It became too much for our family to take on, especially once we decided to homeschool-meaning I wouldn't be joining the workforce anytime soon even if I did spend the money to finish my degree-. I think more people would go the college degree route if they didn't have to spend money on general studies and could just focus on what they want to study/need to study for their future job. Rholmeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16563042593918868331noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4357415193462649988.post-27928179810428255562013-05-08T20:53:43.907-05:002013-05-08T20:53:43.907-05:00The thing is, I get his side. I loved my cocoon o...The thing is, I get his side. I loved my cocoon of a college experience. It's lovely and intense and wonderful if you can swing it. <br />But it isn't ESSENTIAL.<br />I realize it sounds like I'm arguing both sides of the argument because I am happy to have had the "well-rounded education" that I did. To have been introduced to so many different fields of knowledge changed me, enriched me, made my mind open and fertile to ideas. I wouldn't have changed it.<br /><br />But it still isn't essential.Karenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03309932952235453461noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4357415193462649988.post-59982005128552731542013-05-08T19:44:02.182-05:002013-05-08T19:44:02.182-05:00My husband (who teaches statistics in a local coll...My husband (who teaches statistics in a local college) and I have been having some pretty intense discussions about online courses and the importance of a general education component to college. I cannot convince him of any redeeming value to online classes. I can't decide if he just disagrees with the concept, or if he's feeling threatened as a professor/college. Of course, he can't convince me they're a terrible thing like he thinks, so we're at a bit of an impasse.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com