The problem with this analysis is that we’ve got examples in the US where these things have been done at a state level, and the results are appalling.
States are not going to pay for what would be required to set it (vocational education especially) up, nor would they allow teachers to have that kind of input into developing workers like plumbers, mechanics, nurses, cops and so on. This will be seen as socialism, taking opportunity away from private education (where the students pay for the training).
What you’ll also no doubt find is that the narrow requirements of the plan will be only able to be met by a narrow band of providers, so any market benefits will be lost as well and the whole thing will see even more waste than there is now. In a decade you’ll end up with demoralized and ill-educated people who are way behind their contemporaries in Europe, Asia and elsewhere, and a smaller number of people in better run states who go on to make hay against those others.
As usual with you mate you make a solid counter argument. It's appreciated in spades btw.
There's a huge debate about which is better, centralised power or dispersed power. Central government or state.
Which is better, which is worse, etc. I guess a lot depends on who they government is and which state you live within.
I'm not sure how focusing on core subjects with an additional focus on vocational professions will make the USA fall way behind other rising countries though.
Because that's exactly what the countries like China etc are doing themselves.
Do a blind straw poll of twenty Chinese graduates and twenty western ones, look at what subjects they studied and look at what professions they are now in.
Pretty sure you'd see a stark difference between the two, you won't be seeing many degrees that aren't practical and put to use on the Chinese side, I'd doubt you'd have more than 10% om the western side worming in a s field that the degree pertained too.
I also doubt you'd have many Chinese graduates in the fields of 'recreation and leisure studies', 'LGBTQ+ studies' (a San Diego state major btw), Equity studies
I’m all for teaching kids the history of this country. The trouble is that even that is highly politicized. We’re nearly 160 years on from the end of our Civil War and we can’t even come to a clear consensus on who the bad guys were. I don’t have any kids so I can’t really speak to how it’s being taught now, but when I was in HS in the late 90’s I can assure you that a HEAVILY whitewashed version of the history was being taught that legitimized the cause of the Confederacy in a way that it ABOLUTELY should not have.
Even more than history, we need to be educating young people in this country about Civics. How the government works, and the importance of participating in it, namely through showing up to vote. One of my biggest takeaways from the past ten years or so is that the average knowledge level in that area is appalling.
As to prayer in schools, he’s not talking about Catholic schools. Privately funded schools who are affiliated with a religious organization already have prayer in them and always have. If you don’t like the prayer, you’re free to not pay the tuition to send your kids to a school like that. He’s talking about re-instituting prayer in taxpayer funded public schools, which anyone with the aforementioned knowledge of Civics would know is a blatant violation of the 1st Amendment. Freedom of religion also means freedom FROM religion.
Great post
and a lot of interesting points
For me, for the US - bury my heart at wounded knee should be a mandated read for example
The full causes for the civil war should be taught, not slavery was the reason, but slavery was a major factor and the other reasons also - a full understanding, but I e most history teachers these days probably would struggle to teach sadly.
the religion thing, I didn't know in the US catholic schools were feeling paying ones, in the UK they aren't , I went to one for example - but if schools have freedom of choice and as he stated he wants freedom for parents to move schools, then imo that is a good thing - unless a state mandates ALL schools MUST proscribe which is a worry I'll admit.
Absolutely agree on your point about civics and civic responsibility btw, it should be a fundamental thought for every kid growing up
en.wikipedia.org
