Getting the Most out of Education

Last week, on TED Conversations, (look it up and thank me later) the question was posed:

Should public schools in the United States eliminate the traditional A to F grading scale? And if so, what assessment do we replace it with?

YES YES YES it should be replaced.

We should instill some standards of quality in the culture of our too-often-lackadaisical education system. There should only be one acceptable grade: "A"

If a student does not perform up to an "A" grade, they should have to repeat, repeat, repeat the test/paper/project/class until they can DEMONSTRATE competency.

No more pushing kids along just because the class schedule dictates. One of the most common curriculum structures is to progressively introduce new concepts which are built on previously-introduced concepts. A student who demonstrates an inadequate command of a concept gains little by getting a "D" or "F" and then continuing on with the class to the next concept. This is REALLY how we leave children behind.

Getting the Most out of Youth

This week, on TED Conversations, (look it up and thank me later) the question was posed:

Roughly 52% of the world's population is under 30. What is best way to harness the energy and ideas of youth?

 To me, step one would be to make sure that energy and creativity are informed. Some background:

I certainly recall formulating incredibly strong opinions in my teens and 20's which later, based on a broader understanding, were dead wrong. I suspect I'm not the only one.

Furthermore, nothing helps me really "gel" or solidify my opinion on something like trying to explain it to someone. Kinda like posting here on Ted Conversations!

Many curricula, especially in the US, rely too heavily on reading- and lecture-based pedagogy. Similarly, our adulthood self-education relies far too heavily on reading- and talking-head-debate based TV and print media. We sit and stare quietly, deciding to agree or disagree with the point being made. Later, over dinner when we try to explain it to our kids, we are disturbed to discover all the holes in our understanding or logic.

Innovation, dynamism, and human caprice are forcing many of us to continually reinvent ourselves professionally. Yet we still instill in our youth in a concept of "profession" tied to a specific set of skills. ("What do you want to be when you grow up?). As TED speaker Sarah Kay challenged: "How many lives can you live?" In prior centuries, the answer was one, but today's youth will be REQUIRED to reinvent themselves over and over again.

Therefore, I would advocate a two-pronged approach:

1/ further a culture of continual education. Make it socially desirable to question your opinions, to seek to further your understanding. Continued lifelong education is the best way to optimize our chances of continually contributing to (or maybe even disruptively improving) our world and thus achieving our life goals.

2/ make that education participatory and practical. University is great, but it so often misses the important applied education. We thus force our young and educated to take a leap of faith into the market across a chasm of lack of experience in applying their knowledge.

The Skyrocketing Cost of Education!

To all ye out-of-work destitute Wall Street bankers: Fear not. Minimal vocational re-education is required for you to join the next big industry .... Education.

Yes, a standard Harvard MBA only costs $175,000, leaving little room for nine-figure professorial salaries. Yes, for some people, a copy of Atlas Shrugged ($8.95) is enough of an eye opener. But the new trend in education caters to those "feeling" style learners who must experience it to learn it ... of course, with copious amounts of hand holding. For them, a few current offerings:

• Hands-on independent studies on pitfalls of Leveraged Buy Outs of failed businesses:

Course.......Price
GM...........$50 billion ($19 billion deposit required)
Chrysler.....$12 billion and 100,000 jobs (best value!)
AIG..........$170 billion plus 10% of the value of shares on NYSE
Act now! Inflation pricing starts soon!

• Popular! New! "Trial-by-fire" Style Finance 101 .... Price: $700 billion
  
• Private! Experiential MBA: .... Price: $1.9 Trillion (and counting)
  
• Investment Basics: .... Price: $ ("socially priced" at 35% of your net worth)
  
• Keynes vs. Friedman vs. Hayek: Fiscal and Monetary Policy: .... Price: $ (1 percent of GDP)
  
• Pass-or-Fail Monetary Policy 301: .... Price: $(price determined one generation after you take the class)


• And the ultimate: On-the-job-training in the White House: .... Price: $ Priceless