Links to interesting postings - 20 Jan 06

With the recent John Stossel 20/20 report about how American students fall behind the longer they are in public schools it was interesting to read one of Joanne Jacobs' posts today. Korean students score at the top in international science and math tests. But it appears to come at a heavy cost, high school students are pushed to sleep only four hours a night and study the rest of the time. Parents who want to escape a heavy focus on rote learning literally will leave the country. FirsTnews reports how the mothers will take the children and go to countries with more relaxed attitudes towards education, and what the parents see as a more balanced approach.

Anne at PalmTree Pundit has a good discussion about the lack of skills many college students have. She makes the point that by homeschooling her children she has developed a greater appreciation for math. My wife has often made a similar point. Janine says she has learned a lot of history over the last couple years. She is surprised by how little she was taught in school. Part of what prompted Anne's discussion is a recent study on how most college students lack some basic skills. The Head Girl at The Common Room also has some thoughts about the study. And Kimberly at Number 2 Pencil shares her comments.

Spunky writes on SpunkyHomeSchool about how it is important to first teach children how to act socially, and then let them practice the principles they've been taught. This is a better way to socialize children. It is the way science classes are taught, first you take the lecture, and then you go to lab to use the principle in action. Many homeschoolers challenge the assumption that public schools do a good job of socializing children.

On EducationNews.org, David Kirkpatrick has a column School Funding: An Invalid Excuse; A Futile Hope. He writes about the public school systems constant call for more money. I liked this line: "The ability of the system's adherents to resist change is vastly underestimated." And later he asks "What will it take to get the taxpaying public to realize that even the districts that are financially flush are educationally bankrupt?" Unfortunately so many taxpayers were taught by the public school system, and so it may be a long while before they realize the severity of the problems with public schools.