If you knew then what you know now.....

[hyphenate]

In high school, we all get the "you might think it's irrelevant now, but it will be something you're going to need to know in the future" lecture from teachers, after our lobbying, "what the heck am I going to do with knowing algebra in the real world?" at the teachers.

Regardless, some of that "trivial" knowledge of just about any school subject had to sink in somehow, and HAS proved more relevant than you ever thought.

So, for you, what subject did you reluctantly learn, only to be grateful for having that information available to you in your life?

If you have kids, do you give them the same speech your teachers gave you? And how many of you think that kids aren't learning as much now as they did 30 years ago, and will end up suffering for it in adulthood?

[Feathered Fish]

1. well they DID lie about math. n/t

[eternalburn]

2. Constitution - 8th grade (nt)

[vptpt]

3. One of my favorite rants to get into...

They need to put art back into schools. Turn on the radio and you can hear the lack of creativity in young people today. People keep crying that we need prayer back in schools, when really the kids need to learn how to THINK. Well, in my opinion anyway.

[trotsky]

4. Civics - government

There needs to be a course on that for every grade. People are woefully uninformed about even the basics of how government works, what political parties are, where the parties really stand, etc.

Critical thinking and political awareness are the two skills I think are most important to give to our children.

[LiberalEsto]

5. Estonian School

Every other Saturday my parents dragged me to Estonian school. I absolutely hated it. Who wants to do extra work, studying grammar, history, singing, etc. in a language that is spoken by only 1.4 million people, a language hardly anyone has even heard of? Boring and useless. I finally got to quit at 14 and was greatly relieved to end the torture.

Last summer I visited my aunt and cousins in Estonia for the first time. I got to hear a 93-year-old man reminisce about my late father and their hilarious adventures as young men. I got a private tour of the university where my parents and grandfather studied, and where my great-grandfather chaired the theology department 100 years ago. I got to talk about relatives and family history and gardening and herbal medicine with my only aunt.

Even though a few family members speak some English, many of the things I experienced on that trip would have been impossible if I hadn't spoken fairly fluent Estonian.

[pagerbear]

6. That's not what education is for

Few people have to solve quadratic equations in real life, or ponder geometric proofs, or remember any details from the Crimean War. Education is not about learning facts. Education is about learning to think rationally and critically--to think for yourself (which many in the US seem to have forgotten). Being exposed to cultures other than your own (something else many people in the US seem to have forgotten). Learning to appreciate the achievements, past, present and future of our own culture.

Questions like "When will I ever use this?" must be so frustrating to teachers and anyone who values learning.

[Red State Rebel]

7. Public Speaking, Grammar, Spelling, Vocabulary - MUST HAVES!!!

I had no problem with these, but my kids did not take much to public speaking. I insisted that they take a class for it. My son is a math nut, went to UMR for Chemical Engineering but ended up doing computers - I told him it doesn't matter how smart you are if you cannot communicate your ideas effectively you are screwed!

[Moonbeam_Starlight]

8. Um.....

probably math...