[geeks] New Tech Schools: Digital Harbor in Baltimore

[Patrick Giagnocavo]

On Apr 11, 2007, at 1:53 PM, Brian Dunbar wrote:
> I'm more distressed about them teaching 'Word'.  Not a MS bias but
> observation that 'teaching office automation' usually involves
> memorizing 'how-to' run MS Office and not, say, the broad concepts
> behind the thing.
>

Public school education these days:

1.  A form of mental cruelty to children (child abuse).
2.  A way to force people to conform (the stupider the lesson plan the 
better, actually).
3. A way to force people to accept, even expect, drudgery in their 
future jobs.

"Broad concepts" are only for Alphas like Mustafa Mond.

> Contrast that with the typing and 'office automation' courses I took in
> high school as 'just in case' courses.  We used IBM Selectrics and
> 10-key adding machines but what we learned was 'how to' manage the
> paperwork that runs a business.
>

Better for politicians that you don't know how to do all this stuff.

> I suppose I'm just a grumpy old man.  Bah.
>

No, just aware.

I was talking to a pastor, asking him which Bible translations he 
recommends in addition to the KJV.  He made the point that in the 1950s 
the average vocabulary was 10,000 words for high school graduates.  Now 
it is 4,000 words.  KJV requires a vocabulary of (I think) about 6,000 
words, RSV requires 4,000, ESV (based on RSV / KJV blended) requires 
8th grade vocabulary which I think is about 2,000 words.

Bottom line:  the rest of you are all a lot dumber than me 
^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H a lot dumber than previous generations.

--Patrick