Kids Rarely Read Whole Books Anymore. Even in English Class
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Re: Kids Rarely Read Whole Books Anymore. Even in English Class
#2Maybe I would've had something intelligent to say about this article, had I been allowed to read it.
Re: Kids Rarely Read Whole Books Anymore. Even in English Class
#3Un-paywall'd: https://archive.ph/lcAZ3
Re: Kids Rarely Read Whole Books Anymore. Even in English Class
#4I don’t know if this matters much. When I was in school it was rare to actually read a book assignment anyways, and I’m sure with LLMs now it’s less.
I’ve started to have a positive association with reading only in the last few years, I wish schools didn’t force books onto children and make them think they hate reading for their whole lives.
Re: Kids Rarely Read Whole Books Anymore. Even in English Class
#5I don’t know if this matters much. When I was in school it was rare to actually read a book assignment anyways, and I’m sure with LLMs now it’s less. I’ve started to have a positive association with reading only in the last few years, I wish schools didn’t force books onto children and make them think they hate reading for their whole lives.
It’s odd, I read ravenously as a kid/teen, as did my siblings. You need to read what you enjoy, and for it to not be forced. (For example, summer reading at the library gave out prizes kids cared about for reading books.) Plus, we didn’t have access to much digital media like TV/video games (though it was the early 2010s) because my parents were strict, so books were a solid source of entertainment.
Re: Kids Rarely Read Whole Books Anymore. Even in English Class
#6It just seems to me that the entire purpose of school is not clear. What precisely is the purpose of "English" class? What? To read and speak English? Ok, then why can't kids test out of it most of the time? Is the purpose to be knowledgeable about a canon of literature? Why can't people test against that?
The truth is that pedagogy and instruction is just a lazy way of providing childcare. So who cares what they do with their time.
Re: Kids Rarely Read Whole Books Anymore. Even in English Class
#7Maybe I would've had something intelligent to say about this article, had I been allowed to read it.
You have to have money to read it but first you need to be able to read to earn money. It is a crazy circular problem.
Re: Kids Rarely Read Whole Books Anymore. Even in English Class
#8I’ve noticed some of these kids can’t tell time on analog clocks nor read cursive handwriting.
Re: Kids Rarely Read Whole Books Anymore. Even in English Class
#9It just seems to me that the entire purpose of school is not clear. What precisely is the purpose of "English" class? What? To read and speak English? Ok, then why can't kids test out of it most of the time? Is the purpose to be knowledgeable about a canon of literature? Why can't people test against that? The truth is that pedagogy and instruction is just a lazy way of providing childcare. So who cares what they do…
The purpose of school is a mix between providing childcare, and making sure most of society have a largely overlapping common upbringing experience. We hear that we encourage diversity - but only of superficial stuff like sexual orientation or skin color. We don't want people that think too differently.
This is why I, despite my deep appreciation for the pursuit of knowledge and having spent a significant chunk of my life in the academia after graduating, want my kids to spend as little time as strictly necessary in primary or secondary schools. And the need comes from the fact that I need some of that childcare, not that I need someone else to teach my children anything.
Re: Kids Rarely Read Whole Books Anymore. Even in English Class
#10It just seems to me that the entire purpose of school is not clear. What precisely is the purpose of "English" class? What? To read and speak English? Ok, then why can't kids test out of it most of the time? Is the purpose to be knowledgeable about a canon of literature? Why can't people test against that? The truth is that pedagogy and instruction is just a lazy way of providing childcare. So who cares what they do…
It's about practicing how to read and write. Skills that you'll benefit from in every form of knowledge work that you'll ever do.
I would cut almost every other class from the curriculum before cutting English.