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Major Curriculum Changes Coming to BC Schools starting this fall


TOMapleLaughs

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I'm personally in favour of teaching people the ability to think critically at higher levels rather than just spout memorized facts. Teaching people how to think, not what to think. The best courses I took in high school were the ones were ones with very intelligent teachers who challenged the class to really think about issues rather than just memorize certain facts and formulas. I disagree that foundational skills are lacking moreso than the ability to grasp complex concepts and think at higher levels, especially with technology increasingly taking over menial "thought-tasks".

Take social studies class as an example. At the end of the day, it doesn't really matter what day a certain historical event occurred. If you really need to know, you can Google that information. What's important is understanding how these events affect society. Understanding a concept can also help you remember small facts because you know why these details are important and how they can be related to the big picture.

In the workplace and in the world, the most successful people (the ones who become CEO's and hold other influential roles) are the smart people who can really think actively and innovate. There are plenty of people that can follow a routine or procedure perfectly, but these skills are better suited to entry level jobs or middle management.

Higher education values these skills as well. The further you go along, from high school to undergrad to masters to doctorate programs, the more important it become to be able to think, not just know.

Critical thinking is definitely important, but memorization of things is still important in many subjects, especially when it comes to math.

Agreed that with things like history/social studies, the "why" is extremely important, but remembering dates or where cities/countries/bodies of water are is also necessary to provide data for the critical thinking. As with so many things, balance is important.

Einstein is attributed with a quote, "never memorize something you can look up, and I put a fair amount of stock in that, as an adult. However, I believe it is important that fundamental skills need to be developed so that students don't need calculators for simple calculations that they should be able to do in their heads. Otherwise, they will spend too much time "looking up" simple concepts, the less time they have for other thinking.

Otherwise, I agree with pretty much everything else you say there.

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I've been a big advocate of offering basic, informal & formal logic to highschool students. Students that want to think critically would be well served by this, and even kids who do not necessarily like math or science might get interested in a different form of reasoning in humanities subjects.

More choices for the kids.

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How many of us have backgrounds in pedagogy?

Granted I'm more bitter than anyone I've ever met over my experiences in BC's K-12 school system. It sucks.

Until the Libs gutted it, it was the model for the rest of the world. The BC curriculum, prior to 2006, was used in many many countries.

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Would you mind elaborating?

I'm not challenging you, I'm genuinely curious as to what kind of brainwashing you feel is happening at schools.

Who do you mean exactly by they? Big Brother?

Teachers, staff, etc.

And by brainwashing, I mean teaching kids they're inherently special and entitled to success because they exist.

Likewise, that you have to morally accept everything (or anything) religious or liberals/environmentalists/politically correct people tell you.

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Teachers, staff, etc.

And by brainwashing, I mean teaching kids they're inherently special and entitled to success because they exist.

Likewise, that you have to morally accept everything (or anything) religious or liberals/environmentalists/politically correct people tell you.

Lol just so silly

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Indeed. Always some social correcting to do at home from the brainwashing they do at school.

There are some good teachers out there.

My son in grade one this last year had a female teacher in her fifties. Very intelligent. Multiple degrees. Old school. Consistent.

After meeting her at the parent teacher nights I became very confident in her. Imo she was exactly the type of teacher my son needed at this early stage. His progress under her instruction was incredible.

He may have not been her biggest fan, but the results where there.

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There are some good teachers out there.

My son in grade one this last year had a female teacher in her fifties. Very intelligent. Multiple degrees. Old school. Consistent.

After meeting her at the parent teacher nights I became very confident in her. Imo she was exactly the type of teacher my son needed at this early stage. His progress under her instruction was incredible.

He may have not been her biggest fan, but the results where there.

Nice. That's the kind of parents and teachers we strive to be around.

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