Monday, October 24, 2005
Confessions of a Community College Dean: Odd Fantasies, or, Why Remediation is Always With Us
Confessions of a Community College Dean: Odd Fantasies, or, Why Remediation is Always With Us: "Odd Fantasies, or, Why Remediation is Always With Us
My oddball fantasy:
Throughout this land, there would be a flourishing of taxpayer-funded schools, targeted at kids in the 13-to-17 age range. These schools could teach teenagers a love of learning, made possible by a solid grounding in the fundamentals: writing skills, multiple languages, rigorous math and science preparation, full engagement in the arts, hands-on training in trades, a sense of history, and a citizen’s knowledge of government. These schools would train body and mind, and inculcate a love of excellence. They would embrace a plethora of learning styles, preparing the college-bound for college and the trades-bound for trades. By virtue of their location in the economically and racially diverse towns and cities of this fine land, they would teach diversity awareness simply in the course of doing other things. We could call these strange places ‘high schools.’
Alas.
Instead, judging by the amount of remediation we have to do at the cc level, what we have for the 13-to-17 population could be described as holding tanks.
Remediation is a live wire, as a political topic. Yet, educationally, it’s an obvious need."
Here's my comment on the topic:
Kelly said...
It would be great to more fully design the curriculum for the fantasy high schools . . . . . the points you make to getting rid of remediation at colleges is well taken. It would also be a good reminder to college professors of any discipline to remember that teaching the communication skills of our disciplines is also something that needs to be continually reinforced, whether you are talking about freshmen or graduate students. That's part of why I like exploring the development of historical thinking skills in my discipline. They may differ in regard to specifics by course but all reinforce the same concepts and ways of thinking about history's being more than facts and dates randomly assembled.
6:51 AM
My oddball fantasy:
Throughout this land, there would be a flourishing of taxpayer-funded schools, targeted at kids in the 13-to-17 age range. These schools could teach teenagers a love of learning, made possible by a solid grounding in the fundamentals: writing skills, multiple languages, rigorous math and science preparation, full engagement in the arts, hands-on training in trades, a sense of history, and a citizen’s knowledge of government. These schools would train body and mind, and inculcate a love of excellence. They would embrace a plethora of learning styles, preparing the college-bound for college and the trades-bound for trades. By virtue of their location in the economically and racially diverse towns and cities of this fine land, they would teach diversity awareness simply in the course of doing other things. We could call these strange places ‘high schools.’
Alas.
Instead, judging by the amount of remediation we have to do at the cc level, what we have for the 13-to-17 population could be described as holding tanks.
Remediation is a live wire, as a political topic. Yet, educationally, it’s an obvious need."
Here's my comment on the topic:
Kelly said...
It would be great to more fully design the curriculum for the fantasy high schools . . . . . the points you make to getting rid of remediation at colleges is well taken. It would also be a good reminder to college professors of any discipline to remember that teaching the communication skills of our disciplines is also something that needs to be continually reinforced, whether you are talking about freshmen or graduate students. That's part of why I like exploring the development of historical thinking skills in my discipline. They may differ in regard to specifics by course but all reinforce the same concepts and ways of thinking about history's being more than facts and dates randomly assembled.
6:51 AM
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