
Are Too Many Students Going to College? - tokenadult
http://chronicle.com/article/Are-Too-Many-Students-Going-to/49039/
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sp332
I think too many students are getting watered-down educations in high school
which _necessitates_ further schooling just to get to the level of education
they are aiming for.

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pasbesoin
When I compare the curriculum I had to the one my father had... well, there is
no comparison.

Granted, he was a bit on the far edge of things. But, they were machining
amateur rocket engines in high school. In junior high, he ran a printing press
for the school paper, casing type, etc. -- the whole nine yards. He had the
opportunity to perform on the stage of Chicago's Orchestra Hall.

Pure academic work also appears to have been of a higher caliber. This was a
public school system. albeit one of the best in the area. I think he graduated
with probably the equivalent of what would these days be considered a couple
of years' worth of college level work.

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barry-cotter
In your father's day a hell of a lot more people didn't finish high school,
and that was okay. Now everyone is supposed to finish high school, so there's
pressure to ensure everybody can actually pass the required curriculum, i.e.
water it down.

Then there's a countervailing pressure, like in CA the state graduation
requirements were set by reference to the entry requirements for the UC system
(which is supposed to be for the top 12th of CA students)

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joeycfan
Yes. University should be intrinsically leet. Top 10% only.

