Originally posted by Dogg Thang
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United Kingdom VII: Taking Pride in Your Success
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Being painfully and endlessly aware of my own mortality and that I simply won’t get to do everything I want to do in life, I find myself not fully agreeing that no knowledge is wasted in the sense that the time used to learn certain things could possibly be far better spent. While it may not be completely wasted and, yes, broadens the mind, not all knowledge is equal. But that’s very much just a personal view and, again, I should admit one not informed my much actual knowledge of the subject.
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I went to a really lousy secondary school (in the bottom 50 nationwide at that time) and the idea of teaching our lot Latin is just laughable, so many of them were struggling with key skills and most learning went straight over their head. When I was in the last year, about a third of the English class when asked to read aloud would still do it a single word at a time, pausing. Each. Time. Like. This. I'm sure that Latin has some interesting uses, but we've got kids in our secondaries who should still be figuring out what happened with Billy Blue-hat and Rip the dog. A massive overhaul of key skills is required before we really start thinking about this kind of thing I feel.
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I studied Latin at school and it was rubbish.
All I can remember is that Caecilius est mortus and canis est Rex.
I do think life skills are something kids should be taught and also being more community aware.
From what I can tell, the only thing boys are taught now is how to stick your hands down your tracky bottoms and how to do a bicycle wheelie or ride no-handed.
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Originally posted by Dogg Thang View PostBeing painfully and endlessly aware of my own mortality and that I simply won’t get to do everything I want to do in life, I find myself not fully agreeing that no knowledge is wasted in the sense that the time used to learn certain things could possibly be far better spent. While it may not be completely wasted and, yes, broadens the mind, not all knowledge is equal. But that’s very much just a personal view and, again, I should admit one not informed my much actual knowledge of the subject.
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Originally posted by Dogg Thang View PostBeing painfully and endlessly aware of my own mortality and that I simply won’t get to do everything I want to do in life, I find myself not fully agreeing that no knowledge is wasted in the sense that the time used to learn certain things could possibly be far better spent. While it may not be completely wasted and, yes, broadens the mind, not all knowledge is equal. But that’s very much just a personal view and, again, I should admit one not informed my much actual knowledge of the subject.
Not that I'm opposed to those sorts of totally practical things being taught in school, at all. In fact we never learned anything like that and would've benefited from it. There probably should be more of it. But other than these purely practical, non-academic chores of life, I don't think there's a clear calculus that can be deployed for how time is 'best spent' learning in school. Few of us really need a good knowledge of the Tudors and Stuarts, or exactly how moles function in chemistry. But it's all mind broadening stuff that, in concert, gives us a more well rounded perspective on the world. I see Latin as a valuable part of that.
Just my 2p, anyway. Although I totally agree with Hirst that the absolute basics of literacy and numeracy are the bit that really does need to be nailed on first of all.
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Yeah I guess if you’re going to see it as valuable, that brings up the question compared with what? And if we’re looking at what schools teach overall, I do think there is a huge amount of practical learning missing so it’s not like all needs are filled so we can spend all that extra time faffing around with other stuff. And then if we’re going to see learning a language as mind-broadening (and I can’t help feeling there are subjects that would achieve that better), I still struggle to see why we’d choose a dead language rather than one of the many actual live languages we have that might also bring a cultural awareness of the here and now. Just for me personally, regardless of whether we’re taking useful or even just mind-broadening, I’d put Latin way, way down on that list.
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Originally posted by Dogg Thang View PostYeah I guess if you’re going to see it as valuable, that brings up the question compared with what? And if we’re looking at what schools teach overall, I do think there is a huge amount of practical learning missing so it’s not like all needs are filled so we can spend all that extra time faffing around with other stuff. And then if we’re going to see learning a language as mind-broadening (and I can’t help feeling there are subjects that would achieve that better), I still struggle to see why we’d choose a dead language rather than one of the many actual live languages we have that might also bring a cultural awareness of the here and now. Just for me personally, regardless of whether we’re taking useful or even just mind-broadening, I’d put Latin way, way down on that list.
It's a tricky one, though, because I'd never be one to say 'Yep, they've got all the other learning nailed down. It's time to faff around with other stuff.' That's not really what I'm trying to get across.
It's not that I think Latin is the best possible, most mind broadening subject that could ever possibly be learnt, or anything.
Just for me personally, taken in isolation, I think learning Latin was something that I found interesting, and that I still call upon. So upon hearing the news that it's being introduced, my view of that is not a negative one. It's something I benefitted from and that I think other kids could benefit from. Even if there are other gaps in the curriculum that should probably be filled first.Last edited by wakka; 02-08-2021, 16:14.
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Allegra Stratton cites time taken to recharge on long journeys, despite average electric vehicle now having range of over 200 miles
The Prime Minister's Climate Spokesperson Allegra Stratton says she drives a diesel engine car rather than electric because she prefers it for reasons the AA disagrees with
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Originally posted by Neon Ignition View Posthttps://www.theguardian.com/environm...e-spokesperson
The Prime Minister's Climate Spokesperson Allegra Stratton says she drives a diesel engine car rather than electric because she prefers it for reasons the AA disagrees with
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