I can assure you that us humanities majors (I got my BA in poli sci), still go to libraries and do research.

I did my first papers as a middle school student on typewriters. I do not miss it at all.

Writing, while arduous for some, is something everyone should do. Granted there are studies that say that people learn differently – spatial, audio/visual, kinesthetic, etc. – being able to do research and yield coherent, organised, intellectual material is an important life skill. Personally, I think it is absolutely necessary to engage in meaningful discourse with others in the learning process but it is only one component to learning and it does not negate the importance of being able to express one’s thoughts in writing.

Writing a university-level paper synthesizes the practise of reading, researching, and honing one’s ability to put together an argument in text; it is not simply stream-of-consciousness prose. While the benefits of practising such skills is not as concrete as say, basic arithmetic, as a writing tutor to university students, both native and non-native users of English, I can attest that these benefits greatly enrich the lives of those who actively pursue them.

They’re designed to be quite good at initial contextualizing and giving generalist background information. They give you a traced outline of a complex concept, and give you some sources and some vocabulary to go forward and read more substantive sources on the topic. Britannica and Wikipedia BOTH do this quite well.

Moreover, the school that you’re working so hard to pay to attend is clearly a diploma mill. I hate to break it to you, but most people are going to see that degree and know it’s not worth the paper the diploma is written on.

Even the people I know who teach at the crappy unaccredited online schools read everything their students submit.

But it’s still funny.

Insert happy smiley here.

(Oh, and resizing is not stupid, if you can get a point out in fewer words, do it; I get scolded for writing too much).

Great logic dude.

Why don’t we all get extreme tans and burn all our belongings so we can start learning how much it sucks to live in Africa south of Sahara!

Honestly, if you were sarcastic, remember, some people are incredibly retarded, and sarcasm doesn’t transfer well over da inturwebs.

I strongly disagree, especially where parents are concerned. There’s a difference between instilling a love of learning and teaching facts. Motivation doesn’t come just from being given a bunch of information. And a parent’s role goes far beyond simply providing shelter and food.

It’s a parent’s responsibility to be involved in their children’s education, whether it comes out of a school or not. I think you do parents a disservice by discounting their role. If parents aren’t involved, it can run counter to any good work that may be happening in the school. That may be part of your point, but schools don’t work in isolation. They’re part of a broader context of community and family. Trying to ensure schools are as effective as possible is important, but if the rest of the system is broken that will only get you so far. If you really want to make sure that every child gets what they need, you’ll need to make sure that families and communities have the support and resources they need, too.

I still don’t think it’s too much to ask college students to take responsibility for their own education. And if they’re taking stupid shortcuts, I don’t think it’s out of line to ask them why they’re there and suggest it’s time to take some responsibility, regardless of their background. Maybe it’ll make them think about it. Maybe it won’t. But if they don’t want to be there, there are other people who wouldn’t mind having their seat.

Does the education system need to be reformed? Yes. Do I accept that as an excuse for mediocrity… NO!

It is not the job of those people to instill a love of learning, nor are they usually qualified. As well, not everyone has access to those resources. The saying “those who can, do, and those who can’t, teach” is part of the reason that the American educational system is so far behind the rest of the world. Anyone thinks they are qualified to teach, and because of that, they are teaching incorrectly. Just as it is a parents’ job to raise a child and provide shelter, it is a teacher’s job to teach. Occasionally individuals will be able to cross those lines, but to expect every child to be able to be reached in such a manner is unfortunately not a possibility.

The things you talk about, owing it to yourself to do your best with what you’ve got, were taught to you at some point, by someone. My point is that not everybody is lucky enough to have that, and if they never learn it, they cannot be expected to do well. That’s why reform is needed: so that EVERY child gets what they need. At that point, if a kid grows to an adult and in college suddenly decides to take stupid shortcuts, then they can be blamed, because they really did have every opportunity and the failure was squarely on their shoulders, and theirs alone.

Even when one system is broken, people can and do find inspiration in other places. Parents, families, friends, and role models can all help instill a love of learning that goes beyond whatever is taught in school.

I’m not suggesting the system is perfect. I *am* suggesting that in an imperfect world you owe it to yourself to do the best you can with what you’ve got. Personal responsibility doesn’t begin and end with saying someone else dropped the ball.

It’s a psychological paradigm that the way one’s personality develops as an adolescent will be, generally, the way it is for the rest of their life; if the seed of learning is not planted by high school, then a student cannot be blamed for not taking an interest in their education, because they will always have negative connotations in regards to it.

This is a fact that even teachers acknowledge. This is why there is now a movement in the United States to create better-qualified and more well-rounded teachers, starting at the base level of pre-K. This is the only effective way to create smarter, and better learning, students.

I can see that. Maybe school isn’t the best place for you.

Also, students always think they have learned a concept until they need to explain it. Then it is obvious they have not learned anything.

Want me to get excited about putting in work to not get it read? Hell, I have to work a year to save up for every semester I go to. I think I would have paid for the right to have my work read now and then.