I posted a comment (see further below) but want to give a very short additional example to illustrate my point -- namely, that true social studies is more important than math and science.
Suppose Apple, Jones and Smith are heads of households living in poor neighborhoods with high crime rates and low literacy. They both want to move to better neighborhoods.
Apple, with neither math nor social studies, sees an ad for house mortgage too good to be true, moves there, and discovers it is, in fact, too good to be true. His life is pretty well ruined by this error.
Jones, with extensive math and science, is able to compute Net Present Value, Annual Percentage Rates, etc. with ease. He understands that a jump in interest rates from 3% to 6% is a doubling of his monthly payment, not a "small percentage increase." He figures out he cannot move to the suburbs and becomes depressed. He avoids a tragic error but is stuck in the ghetto.
Smith, with true social knowledge, finds a wise person in his community who does understand math and science, and asks this person about the great mortgage deals. He finds out they are a trap for the unaway and avoids them. But he still wants to move to the suburbs so his kids can grow up in a better life. He searches around and finds two other families with similar problems, and despite their individual low income, collectively can afford a nice place in the suburbs. They move out there together, sharing a large house, able to resolve and reconcile problems because they understand how to deal with social relationships.
Quiz question - Who has the better solution?
Extra credit - if that's the better solution, why isn't it taught in school?
Wade
=========================
My post to the NY Times under my pseudonym "Raymond"
Ann Arbor, MISeptember 29th, 20096:16 amAmen. Still, it might be good to have our educational system learn, and then teach basic skills of leadership, mediation, social interaction, and relationship building and repair. This is not really covered by the dreaded "group work" unit lesson where students learn to divide up a task into pieces they can all go work on separately without needing to get along with each other, let alone inspire each other to greatness.
I realize it's playing devil's advocate, but, as a former physics grad, I'll argue strongly AGAINST more math and science in this new world, and much more in the way of applied reasoning and social skills. And, no, I have seen no signs that an education in science trains people to be rational or to be able to parse an argument or make a case, thank you.
More serious discussion of alternatives on my weblog:
http://newbricks.blogspot.com...
No comments:
Post a Comment