Questions regarding education & zeroing in on the most valuable skills 3

[John2004]

Hi everyone,

I would like to ask some questions & start a discussion related to education, which is of course fundamental in self improvement and getting ahead. I don't expect the answers to be definitive, I'm just interested in hearing different opinions.

1. What do you feel are the most important skills and knowledge that a person should have in order to achieve success in the modern world ?

I think the ability to read, write, and speak well, along with good math and social skills, form a solid foundation to build on. Once the core foundation is formed, it seems a person could learn whatever they want if they apply themselves.

I am interested in hearing some opinions on what skills and knowledge (beyond a solid foundation as mentioned above) is most useful & valuable in the modern world.

Ideally, beyond having a solid foundation, a person could simply learn what they find interesting and fulfilling, but as a practical matter, people generally do not get to do *exactly* what they want with their lives. Even if a person does have a completely satisfying career and life, it is always nice to have useful / valuable skills and knowledge to fall back on in case you decide you want to do something else, or in case something unexpected happens.

2. What (if anything) do you feel should be taught in public high schools and colleges that is not currently being taught ?

I feel that critical thinking, creative thinking, and problem solving should be a bigger part of the public school system. Students are generally taught to memorize facts and figures & take tests. The student may score well on a test, but 6 months to a year down the road, they often forget much of what they *learned*.

The goal is to really learn the information for the long term, so I think that not only study skills, but learning & thinking skills & techniques should be a larger part of the public school systems.

I feel that more time should be spent on teaching students what careers are available (the occupational outlook handbook is excellent). Students need to know what choices are available to them in order to make the best career decisions. Especially during the last two years of high school, I feel an actual full year class should be required that allows students to explore all of their career choices and provides counseling to help them decide what they want to initially try to do as far as a career is concerned.

I also think a course on social skills, ethics, and the value of having respect for other members of society should be required as these are all very important aspects of life & getting ahead. I know this is basically common sense & people generally should learn these things from family and friends, but I think they are important and seem to be somewhat lacking today, so perhaps it should be addressed to some degree by the school system.

I would appreciate any thoughts, opinions, or feedback you may have regarding my two questions and comments above.

Thanks
John

 

[handleman]

The most valuable skill that anyone can have is the ability to learn on your own from a book. If you have this skill you can learn any other. I was homeschooled from birth through high school. Very early on, my mother concentrated on teaching me how to learn things by reading. This is different from just reading or even reading comprehension. As a result, I was able to go through calculus and physics on my own during my senior year - subjects that she never touched on in her education.

-handleman, CSWP (The new, easy test)

 

[graybeach]

Good table manners are extremely important. I am involved in a mentoring program at a local community college, and I think it is fantastic that the participating students take a seminar on the subject.

 

[KENAT]

Being able to self educate like handleman says is valuable. I get sick of being told people don't do stuff correctly because they don't know how/no one taught them when it's all written down in a procedure or standard etc that they've been told to look at.

KENAT,

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[jimgineer]

Good table manners? Really? I wholeheartedly disagree with that statement. I don't think they're important at all.

I’m not sure if that was serious or not.

I think one of the most important characteristics is competitiveness. It doesn’t have to mean competitiveness with co-workers, but it can. I’ve noticed that the culture of the engineering firm is one where on its surface, it appears that people are arguing a lot – at least the ‘good’ respected senior engineers seem to be. I think that this is healthy because people are being competitive about understanding and solving problems effectively and efficiently, which is the name of the game.

At the same time, it is very important to have the soft skills to be able to mentor and encourage others to get better. I’ve encountered engineers before where these ideas are very foreign to them.

 

[Co]

In regards to education in general. I think that high schools should better prepare the student for the variety of majors in university. Although there were some good aspects of high school, for example in my high school we built a practical car similar to that of the FSAE student cars built by many universities. However, the manner in which most of the academic subjects were taught was not sufficient.

just a thought,

 

[cry22]

Coppola,
I agree and disagree, it starts much sooner than high school, it starts in elementary school, I'd say even before that, in Kindergarden.

When my kids were 4 years old and then pre-schoolers, I noticed that they were being taught time and money, this darn obsession with money in America.

The problem is that the kids did not know how to count to 25, and they were being taught to add nickels and dimes. The kids were taught how to tell time before they could count to 60.
No sir, you learn how to count to 60, know that one minute has 60 seconds, the hour 60 minutes and so on, before you can tell time.

I had to step in to correct the situation, the schooling was way off.

The point is: teaching things in a chronological order, THAT's the base for analytical skills development.

 

[Co]

cry22-
Yes I do see you point. I remember when I was in elementary school we only started learning basic math skills like adding and subtracting in grade 1. Even though it was in a very primitive manner, nothing chronological at all.
Now that I am a graduate student I have more of an open mind to social impacts on education.

cheers,