Missed the boat in 2008 downturn!

[Terri]

@aalj

… do a mid-life career change?

I think you should just go back to college at that point. Gets you a fresh degree for your next job.

[hanera]

@Terri

That’s a great question regarding the direction colleges should take. Historically, I think there was this idea that you should have a broad knowledge, so required courses cover English, HIstory, Math, and your own subject.

For most, high school level is good enough. However, California enforces GE courses… about 1/3 of a major.

[Terri]

@aalj

@hanera

May be should include mountain climbing, living in Alaska, volunteering in third world nations, working in refugee camps, etc.

One can learn something from any experience. The trap that people fall into is that thinking that character-building-learning (like those experiences that you mention above) are directly translatable to specialist skills that are sought after by employers.

This is often not the case.

However, to assume that there is no value in the above experiences is to limit oneself’s growth.

I think those experiences imply a level of maturity and responsibility that are not necessarily present for grads. Should be, but might not be.

[Terri]

@hanera

@Terri

That’s a great question regarding the direction colleges should take. Historically, I think there was this idea that you should have a broad knowledge, so required courses cover English, HIstory, Math, and your own subject.

For most, high school level is good enough. However, California enforces GE courses… about 1/3 of a major.

That is unfortunate for kid #2. He is not keen on doing any more English/History courses ever at all. And he’s only 10.

[hanera]

Not many teachers know how to teach language and history We need to know our roots and appreciate how we get here It is the outcome of our predecessor’s blood and tears.

[hanera]

@aalj

One can learn something from any experience.

That is my point. It doesn’t have to be those you’ve mentioned.

@aalj

However, to assume that there is no value in the above experiences is to limit oneself’s growth.

You caught my sarcasm and miss some. I have yet to see you talk about appreciating the effort of the society (past, current and future) and your contributions back to society.

[aalj]

@hanera

@aalj

One can learn something from any experience.

That is my point. It doesn’t have to be those you’ve mentioned.

@aalj

However, to assume that there is no value in the above experiences is to limit oneself’s growth.

You caught my sarcasm and miss some. I have yet to see you talk about appreciating the effort of the society (past, current and future) and your contributions back to society.

Heh, I intended to list a few benefits of a broad education model vs. focusing on a narrow, applied education model. I did not set forth to detail out all possible benefits, but if that is something you are looking to expand on, I think that would contribute to the conversation.

[Terri]

Maybe we should start a different thread for discussions on college? I think it could really take off.

[BAGB]

No college needed if you want to be business owner. High school is enough. The broadest education is life.

College is more or less a tool to land the first job. If you don’t need help in getting a job, college would be a waste of time. Of course, most people are dumb enough to have to work a job.

College is still useful to the society. But only 5% of the population needs to go to college.

College is more like an expensive young adult daycare center to remove kids out of patents home.

[BAGB]

Most people go to college purely based on FOMO. Most parents also send their kids to college due to FOMO.

College education is more a tool to divide people into classes using number of years of education. It used to be more useful when it was more selective. Nowadays, college education does it add much value anymore due to too many colleges and too easy admission. That’s why Ivy and top colleges are more valued today, that’s the only way to get yourself an edge in employment competition.

What many people study on college is of no value to them. But a degree would make hem eligible to some job opportunities.

Since Bill Gates did not graduate from college, he would be disqualified for some job positions automatically. But Gates never needed to look for a job, so it did not matter for him.

[BAGB]

So college is basically a tool that benefit the employers more than students themselves. College helps to separate hard workers from lazy workers. What you learn is not important. But it gives you more credibility to employers since it saves the emloyer’s time to interview too many people.

[hanera]

@BAGB

The broadest education is life.

You get it

@BAGB

College is more like an expensive young adult daycare center to remove kids out of patents home.

Always thought college trains the next leadership (not referring to political) for the society. Now it degenerates to just land a job? And to removing kids from home?

[aalj]

@hanera

@BAGB

The broadest education is life.

You get it

@BAGB

College is more like an expensive young adult daycare center to remove kids out of patents home.

Always thought college trains the next leadership (not referring to political) for the society. Now it degenerates to just land a job? And to removing kids from home?

Leaving home and being independent, living among peers — one learns a lot about “life” that way — one gains wisdom that is much more difficult to amass by living at home with parents.

[BAJacket]

I think something more useful than MVC that isn’t taught is basic life finances - budgeting, mortgages, taxes, retirement savings and investing, etc. Almost everyone needs it, yet so few come out of college knowing or understanding those simple concepts unless a parent taught them or they self learned. It’s amazing how many people I talk to still don’t understand that the income tax is a graduated tax and not a flat tax percentage.

[BAGB]

Exactly. Many PhDs from top universities does not even understand how mortgage works, what the property tax is used, whether owning a home is better financially than renting. They know many advanced topic they never need to understand, but they don’t know many basic life skills.

It’s not a good idea to become an Einstein want-to-be who doesn’t know mortgage and can’t even get a tenure faculty position.

It’s better to be a plumber who owns homes than an economics professor who can’t afford rent after retirement from SFSU and regret not taking advantage of rent control by renting a rent controlled apartment 30 years ago. Instead he rented a university housing since it was cheaper than rent controlled unit 30 years ago, but with no rent control for university housing.

Education somtimes makes poeple dumb. I think I was dumbed down by my education and I needed to unlearn stuff to make myself less dumb.

[hanera]

@BAGB

needed to unlearn stuff to make myself less dumb.

Never too late

[marcus335]

@Terri

@aalj

Public School is one way. But then you’re moving to a place like Lafayette — great place for families and schools, but your housing costs are going up too.

Unfortunately there are times that the schooling your child needs is private. We’re actually lucky to be districted for one of the few high schools that have classes for mutlivariable calculus, Diff EQs, linear algebra, and discrete math on campus.

Every time I start looking around at public high schools, I find they max out at MVC.

My HS topped out at calculus. There was a program with the local community college that allowed students to take beyond that. The downside was parents were responsible for transportation. Community college tuition is cheap.

[BAGB]

Some amount of education is good. Some part of education is good.

Other part of education is bad. Too much education can hurt. Too litttle formal education need to be compensated by good life experience including business and career experience.

Brainwashing is not education, it’s the opposite of education.

[Terri]

@BAJacket

I think something more useful than MVC that isn’t taught is basic life finances - budgeting, mortgages, taxes, retirement savings and investing, etc. Almost everyone needs it, yet so few come out of college knowing or understanding those simple concepts unless a parent taught them or they self learned. It’s amazing how many people I talk to still don’t understand that the income tax is a graduated tax and not a flat tax percentage.

A teacher at Bellarmine was telling me about their finances math class. He said “We’re proud to be offering this class. It could make the difference of a couple hundreds of thousands dollars for our boys.”

[Terri]

Ok everyone! Let’s move the college discussion here:

All about College!

Let’s talk about college. How much, when, why, what, where and how? And maybe even who?