Hi,
My graduating class in high school could read and understand pretty much everything written in English. We'd read at least 150 major novels (triple that for the college prep programs). We could write in appropriate style for a report, a letter, and fiction. We'd each written at least one poem, with meter and rhyme. Oh, and we could diagram a sentence, two different ways, before getting to high school. Grammar wasn't taught in high school, but incorrect grammar cost you in everything you wrote. And most of us knew what a gerund is.
Everybody had at least one year of math and one of geometry. We could actually make change or figure the paint required for a room. The prep program took one up to the edge of calculus (some public schools went even further).
Two years of a foreign language were required (Latin qualified). Many of us took two of Latin and three of something else (Spanish, in my case). History and civics were covered, but unfortunately just from the American/English viewpoint. Knowledge of geography from elementary school was expected. Most of us could sketch a pretty good map of any continent, with most of its countries and most of their capitals (as well as some other major cities).
Biology, chemistry, and physics were offered. At least one was required to graduate, but all three were expected in the prep curriculum. One year of either music or art appreciation, and four years of religion rounded out the curriculum.
Both from the incoming college students I've had in my classes in the past, and from the children of my friends in the present, I do not think that the modern curriculum is any fuller or any more difficult than mine was fifty years ago.
--Pete
Hi,
Actually, I was the one who wrote that. This ability to nest quotes is neat, but it adds a new opportunity to screw up.
--Pete
(05-06-2010, 12:26 AM)MEAT Wrote: I agree with you about the time you attended school, however you failed to mention that schools now have a mandate to teach much more curriculum in a much shorter time.Really? And on what do you base this conclusion?
My graduating class in high school could read and understand pretty much everything written in English. We'd read at least 150 major novels (triple that for the college prep programs). We could write in appropriate style for a report, a letter, and fiction. We'd each written at least one poem, with meter and rhyme. Oh, and we could diagram a sentence, two different ways, before getting to high school. Grammar wasn't taught in high school, but incorrect grammar cost you in everything you wrote. And most of us knew what a gerund is.
Everybody had at least one year of math and one of geometry. We could actually make change or figure the paint required for a room. The prep program took one up to the edge of calculus (some public schools went even further).
Two years of a foreign language were required (Latin qualified). Many of us took two of Latin and three of something else (Spanish, in my case). History and civics were covered, but unfortunately just from the American/English viewpoint. Knowledge of geography from elementary school was expected. Most of us could sketch a pretty good map of any continent, with most of its countries and most of their capitals (as well as some other major cities).
Biology, chemistry, and physics were offered. At least one was required to graduate, but all three were expected in the prep curriculum. One year of either music or art appreciation, and four years of religion rounded out the curriculum.
Both from the incoming college students I've had in my classes in the past, and from the children of my friends in the present, I do not think that the modern curriculum is any fuller or any more difficult than mine was fifty years ago.
Quote:EDIT: This forum just combined two of my posts and messed up the tags on them....Yeah, that's been happening to me, too. It treats the second post as an edit to the first (I think).
--Pete
Hi,
(05-06-2010, 01:38 AM)kandrathe Wrote:(05-06-2010, 12:26 AM)MEAT Wrote: So? Doesn't make it right, just makes it another poorly thought out law.
Actually, I was the one who wrote that. This ability to nest quotes is neat, but it adds a new opportunity to screw up.
--Pete
How big was the aquarium in Noah's ark?