The list of subjects seems to be missing technology/computer science/programming? And I'll guess the 9-letter word that ends in "t" is "broadcast", that you'll be on tv.
Ooh, this is good. We don't presently have computer programming per se in the curriculum; I'd be curious as to how essential y'all think that is for the next generation. (It's easy to add electives, but the essentials really should be built into the main curriculum.)
One related thing I have been struggling with recently is the theoretical *roots* of computing — I'm thinking here that a high school education should include the utter basics of, eg, logic gates, and the understanding of how computation is a potential property of ALL matter. Basically, the stuff in the classic book The Pattern on the Stone.
(Im kicking around the idea of doing that as a Science is WEIRD summer course, though possibly it'd be a better excuse to hire a new teacher, and have us train them to teach in a Science is Weird style...)
Is writing essays an important skill for the next generation? :-) As a data scientist I'm probably biased, but I want my kids to learn to program from a young age because I think there are a lot of mental benefits to learning to problem solve in that way. And as helpful as AI is, I don't think the need for people who can write code will be going away soon. It's especially advantageous for girls to learn from a young age since they might not be drawn to it like more boys are, even though they might actually enjoy it and be good at it, and it opens a lot of career opportunities.
Does it deserve its own subject matter stream, or should it be woven into the "conventional" subjects you list in this post? Or am I, as a Bay Area techie and Progress Studies aspirant/aficionado/hanger-on, overrating the extent of its importance to a fully human K-12 education in our century?
If you're overestimating it, so am I! For our take on Jason Crawford's industrial literacy, look for a section in the elementary science curriculum, coming up soon. And Charles Mann's first essay in that series (I'm not a paid subscriber, and can't see the rest!) inspired some of the stuff in our high school history curriculum. (I mean, so has everything else Mann's written, but that essay too!)
Life has pulled me out of this orbit the last year so I’m rediscovering what you’re up to with this post… I’ve got some reading to do to catch up!
Before doing that though, I wonder if it’s helpful to share the musings that immediately come to mind. Namely, that I’m curious where the student’s autonomy (à la unschooling/self-directed learning) fits into your plans. My homeschooler is now 10 and it’s been our toughest year yet as far as engagement and resistance. We’ve tried all sorts of homeschooling approaches and now I’m researching unschooling/self-directed learning as resistance abounds and technological pursuits dominate his interests. The only “schooly”thing we still consistently do is your science program (and with ADHD, he’s doing a lot of other things during class while still seeming to engage and retain ideas). Still, he’s pushing back against deep dives when he used to love them, he’s pushing back against reading in all forms, when reading to him used to be our most successful and connecting homeschool/life activity. I suspect it’s puberty approaching, a deep desire to forge his own path (paired with the lure of media), but that said, how does your plan tackle the resistance that happens in homeschooling in a way that allows students autonomy (or inspires them to engage without being forced or coerced) and that also makes us educators/parents not authority figures exactly, but co-conspirators? These days, capturing his attention and interest feels like an exercise in futility. And this experience is something I commonly see in the homeschool community.
The list of subjects seems to be missing technology/computer science/programming? And I'll guess the 9-letter word that ends in "t" is "broadcast", that you'll be on tv.
Ooh, this is good. We don't presently have computer programming per se in the curriculum; I'd be curious as to how essential y'all think that is for the next generation. (It's easy to add electives, but the essentials really should be built into the main curriculum.)
One related thing I have been struggling with recently is the theoretical *roots* of computing — I'm thinking here that a high school education should include the utter basics of, eg, logic gates, and the understanding of how computation is a potential property of ALL matter. Basically, the stuff in the classic book The Pattern on the Stone.
(Im kicking around the idea of doing that as a Science is WEIRD summer course, though possibly it'd be a better excuse to hire a new teacher, and have us train them to teach in a Science is Weird style...)
Is writing essays an important skill for the next generation? :-) As a data scientist I'm probably biased, but I want my kids to learn to program from a young age because I think there are a lot of mental benefits to learning to problem solve in that way. And as helpful as AI is, I don't think the need for people who can write code will be going away soon. It's especially advantageous for girls to learn from a young age since they might not be drawn to it like more boys are, even though they might actually enjoy it and be good at it, and it opens a lot of career opportunities.
I'm curious what you think should be the place in this curriculum of "industrial literacy" in Jason Crawford's sense: https://blog.rootsofprogress.org/industrial-literacy
or more recently in the sense of Charles Mann's How the System Works essays: https://www.thenewatlantis.com/collections/how-the-system-works
Does it deserve its own subject matter stream, or should it be woven into the "conventional" subjects you list in this post? Or am I, as a Bay Area techie and Progress Studies aspirant/aficionado/hanger-on, overrating the extent of its importance to a fully human K-12 education in our century?
If you're overestimating it, so am I! For our take on Jason Crawford's industrial literacy, look for a section in the elementary science curriculum, coming up soon. And Charles Mann's first essay in that series (I'm not a paid subscriber, and can't see the rest!) inspired some of the stuff in our high school history curriculum. (I mean, so has everything else Mann's written, but that essay too!)
Life has pulled me out of this orbit the last year so I’m rediscovering what you’re up to with this post… I’ve got some reading to do to catch up!
Before doing that though, I wonder if it’s helpful to share the musings that immediately come to mind. Namely, that I’m curious where the student’s autonomy (à la unschooling/self-directed learning) fits into your plans. My homeschooler is now 10 and it’s been our toughest year yet as far as engagement and resistance. We’ve tried all sorts of homeschooling approaches and now I’m researching unschooling/self-directed learning as resistance abounds and technological pursuits dominate his interests. The only “schooly”thing we still consistently do is your science program (and with ADHD, he’s doing a lot of other things during class while still seeming to engage and retain ideas). Still, he’s pushing back against deep dives when he used to love them, he’s pushing back against reading in all forms, when reading to him used to be our most successful and connecting homeschool/life activity. I suspect it’s puberty approaching, a deep desire to forge his own path (paired with the lure of media), but that said, how does your plan tackle the resistance that happens in homeschooling in a way that allows students autonomy (or inspires them to engage without being forced or coerced) and that also makes us educators/parents not authority figures exactly, but co-conspirators? These days, capturing his attention and interest feels like an exercise in futility. And this experience is something I commonly see in the homeschool community.
Smelliest flatulent flowerpot? I have to do this for a year...
Bravo!