I hate the American School System

I am a senior in high school. I have taught myself a wide variety of topics that fall outside any course taught at my school including Mulitvariate Calculus, Topology, Quantum Mechanics, General Relativity, Computer Architecture, Japanese, etc. I have also qualified for a state-wide mathematics competition.

Yet despite the fact that I have demonstrated a great proficiency to all my mathematics and science teachers I will be held back from graduating this year. The reason? I'm failing English.

As you can probably guess, I am a Math and Science person. I derive pleasure from cold, hard, logic and rigour. I get somewhat giddy when I develop a mathematical proof or when I observe experiments in the lab going as planned. To me if it can't be quantified or described by formulas then it really isn't worth much trouble to study. That is my first problem with English.

My second problem with English lies in the fact that we're forced to read books that a certain group, or sometimes the certain individual teaching, thinks are worthy of being studied. It then turns into a cold-hearted study of the book with worksheets and deadlines and the ever present teacher holding a gun to your head telling you to understand it the way she does or you fail. You aren't free to work at your own pace and glean enjoyment out of the novel as the medium is intended to be used and this in my opnion is what causes many students to be apathetic towards it.

But the thing I hate most about the entirety of the system is the fact that advancement through the system leans so heavily on English regardless of interests or career goals. Yes, I know that a career in math or science would require a lot of formalized writing but I don't think a physicist will look back on the novels he read in high school and then say to his colleuage "Because Celie had Lesbian Sex with Shug in the Color Purple I believe that Higgs Boson to exist."

I got finished with the American public school system in seventh grade.

That's not the American school system's failing, that's YOUR failing. If you can't pass a basic high school English course, you really have no hope for a future. I'm not trying to be mean, but it's true. Even if you feel the course has nothing of any importance to teach you, you still failed at managing your time and effort.

You should have really tried to have a wider breadth of interests, at least academically. I'm big on math and science like you (I'm an aerospace engineer major in college), but when any of my friends have difficulty writing a paper, they come to me. If I had a penny for just how many times I've been told to be an English major instead, I'd be a rich man.

That's not the American school system's failing, that's YOUR failing. If you can't pass a basic high school English course, you really have no hope for a future. I'm not trying to be mean, but it's true. Even if you feel the course has nothing of any importance to teach you, you still failed at managing your time and effort.Dark__Link

I kind of agree.

I agree with you that the American school system sucks. But I think they should focus more on the arts. Maybe im biased because I consider myself somewhat of an artist and thats what my job is going to be. A graphic designer. The whole system is totally flawedmoptopskate

I'm not saying I don't enjoy humanities. I play a wide variety of instruments including violin, guitar, piano, and drums

Writing and reading skills are basic for life achievement. You WILL have to take English (Probably a literature and composition course) in College, so if you aren't ready for that stuff and learn it in High school then you certainly will have the same problem.Luminouslight

Yup, even as an engineering major, I have to take two English composition courses, and I've had to write papers for some of my engineering courses.

It's far from gone once you're out of high school.

I got finished with the American public school system in seventh grade.

A_Tarkovsky

Home schooled or private school?

[QUOTE="Luminouslight"]Writing and reading skills are basic for life achievement. You WILL have to take English (Probably a literature and composition course) in College, so if you aren't ready for that stuff and learn it in High school then you certainly will have the same problem.Dark__Link

Yup, even as an engineering major, I have to take two English composition courses, and I've had to write papers for some of my engineering courses.

It's far from gone once you're out of high school.

[QUOTE="A_Tarkovsky"]

I got finished with the American public school system in seventh grade.

The_Ish

Home schooled or private school?

[QUOTE="The_Ish"][QUOTE="A_Tarkovsky"]

I got finished with the American public school system in seventh grade.

A_Tarkovsky

Home schooled or private school?

Like a correspondence school?

Jesus Christ suck it up TC.

It is YOUR FAULT for not keeping up with the work.

There are plenty of flaws in the system but seeing as English should be our official language making people take courses on the subject is far from stupid, ESPECIALLY considering how few people even speak the damn language right.

Sorry, but your post reeks of childish whining. I sucked it up and got decent grades in my COLLEGE chem class with a terrible teacher and a curriculum I did not give a damn about. You should do the same if you really are so intelligent....

So would the school systems of other countries let you graduate high school without passing in a course of their native language? That's not a rhetorical question btw.

Yea, teenagers really need more free time then school gives them. They need time to think about things and sort out where they want their life to go. "You need to start thinking about what you want to be when you grow up... But first finish that essay... and study for that test..." The sad part is any attempt to give them that time would be wasted on kids these days who would just slack off with the time given to them.VacantPsalm

I don't really mind the studying and homework, what I hate is the schoolwide busywork every student needs to do to graduate. We have to write these stupid papers on what we learned from every class, do fifteen hours of community service a year, and do a 20-minute speech about what we've learned from high school to graduate. It's not all that much work, but it's a complete waste of time.(I guess you could say that the community service isn't but considering the kind of work that most kids do for it, it's not as helpful as you'd think)

So would the school systems of other countries let you graduate high school without passing in a course of their native language? That's not a rhetorical question btw.

topraman517

And English class is supposed to be representative of one's proficiency in said subject? I have reading comprehension skills and a good understanding of grammar. Writing skills do hold an interest for me but those things aren't what my senior year English course is about.

I'm an accounting major and I've had to take 2 composition classes that stressed reading comprehension and analysis and a writing course geared towards writing in the business environment.

When I was a biology major (my freshman year) I had to write a big research paper. A lot of colleges are putting a huge amount of emphasis on writing and reading comprehension because college students aren't learning what they were supposed to in high school. They then enter the 'real world' and their employers are having to spend money on teaching them writing and reading skills (the employers that don't just fire their asses on the spot).

[QUOTE="The_Ish"]

Home schooled or private school?

A_Tarkovsky

[QUOTE="The_Ish"][QUOTE="A_Tarkovsky"]

I got finished with the American public school system in seventh grade.

A_Tarkovsky

Home schooled or private school?

would have loved to do that...

I am a senior in high school. I have taught myself a wide variety of topics that fall outside any course taught at my school including Mulitvariate Calculus, Topology, Quantum Mechanics, General Relativity, Computer Architecture, Japanese, etc. I have also qualified for a state-wide mathematics competition.

Yet despite the fact that I have demonstrated a great proficiency to all my mathematics and science teachers I will be held back from graduating this year. The reason? I'm failing English.

As you can probably guess, I am a Math and Science person. I derive pleasure from cold, hard, logic and rigour. I get somewhat giddy when I develop a mathematical proof or when I observe experiments in the lab going as planned. To me if it can't be quantified or described by formulas then it really isn't worth much trouble to study. That is my first problem with English.

My second problem with English lies in the fact that we're forced to read books that a certain group, or sometimes the certain individual teaching, thinks are worthy of being studied. It then turns into a cold-hearted study of the book with worksheets and deadlines and the ever present teacher holding a gun to your head telling you to understand it the way she does or you fail. You aren't free to work at your own pace and glean enjoyment out of the novel as the medium is intended to be used and this in my opnion is what causes many students to be apathetic towards it.

But the thing I hate most about the entirety of the system is the fact that advancement through the system leans so heavily on English regardless of interests or career goals. Yes, I know that a career in math or science would require a lot of formalized writing but I don't think a physicist will look back on the novels he read in high school and then say to his colleuage "Because Celie had Lesbian Sex with Shug in the Color Purple I believe that Higgs Boson to exist."

Aradae2357

You're failing because you lack the effort and responsibility to apply yourself at something you dont consider important. In the real world you are going to need to do a lot of stuff that you dont want to do, only you will suffer a lot more then a failing grade.

Suck it up and do it right the next time.

You think English is bad? We've had to take three tests on table setting. Let me say that again. . .I'M BEING TAUGHT THE MOST USELESS THING I'VE EVER BEEN FORCED TO LEARN. NOT ONLY THAT, BUT I HAVE TO TAKE THREE TESTS ON IT! IT'S LIKE THE TEACHER IS TRYING TO WASTE OUR ****ING TIME!

That felt good.

Anyway, TC just suck it up. Like other people said, High school is more geared towards building a well rounded student. Personally, I enjoy English more, but I realize the importance of Math.

Eh, to hell with it. I probably will make the same mistakes time and again and am living without regret for them. I do try sometimes to force myself to do the work but it burns me inside everytime I do so. So I put down my literature book in class and take out my combinatorics book as an incredibly nerdy way to rebel.

I realize that my first post is whiny and it is my fault but I still retain my hatred over how it is standardized.

im more of a History/English person but but the only reason im failing is because i half-ass all my work my teachers say that i could make as high as an A or B (making Fs, Cs, and Ds) but i just dont like doing the work most of it i find to easy and it gets boring the only time i do try to do my work is when its something more complicated which i sometimes fail

but if you ask me i think that high school should be tailored to that persons specific career choice

im more of a History/English person but but the only reason im failing is because i half-ass all my work my teachers say that i could make as high as an A or B (making Fs, Cs, and Ds) but i just dont like doing the work most of it i find to easy and it gets boring the only time i do try to do my work is when its something more complicated which i sometimes fail

but if you ask me i think that high school should be tailored to that persons specific career choice

spawnassasin

Problem with that is most people in High School have no idea what kind of career they want. And when they do they often change it.

Hey, I just read The Color Purple, too! Anyway, try to learn how your teacher thinks and just go with that flow. I don't even agree with a lot of the themes I write about novels I read. I just know that it's what my teacher wants to hear.

Also, you seam pretty proficient in writing if your post is any indication. Apply this to the "correct" theme of your books and bingo. You've landed yourself an A.

Your being held back because you failed english? Thats HARSH, my mate almost had that happen as well.

In New Zealand, we have two exam systems you can choose. The local one where there is internal assessment as well as external assessment, or the internation CIE exams, which are a traditional one-shot exam system, no internal.

Either way you have to pass english before your second to last year of school to gain the literacy requirement for university. Its harsh and I don't really see why.

Why is understanding literature seen as a vital requirement for life? Its quite silly. It doesn't guage one's personal knowledge of the English language, or his practical writing skills. Most of the people I know who fail or failed English is because they failed to articulate their understanding of the book in a clear cut way. They understood the book perfectly but their skills at writing essays, oh that word I loathe so badly; this means they lose out on higher education because they aren't excellent essay writers.

Well thats bull****. Many courses at university do not require you to be able to do ANY form of essay writing, or even have an adequate grasp on the language of english. I do Engineering, and let me tell you, the grammar of some of my fellows and lecturers is ATROCIOUS. Its the same with the sciences.

I had a friend who only just got into fine art because his English Literature mark was not adequate in their eyes. He had to go through a long interview process with the deans and lecturers and prove his skill at painting and drawing, because he was not good at writing essays. THAT IS A CRIME. He was one of the most gifted people I have EVER known.

Its not just the American school system. Its the 'western' school system. It holds fast to the wrong traditions and lets go of the ones we SHOULD be keeping. I blame foolish older generations who hold tightly to their forms of media that are far less relevant in the modern world. Well guess what. You won't indoctrinate people into reading YOUR particular tastes by forcing them to study it. That creates the opposite effect.

I am a senior in high school. I have taught myself a wide variety of topics that fall outside any course taught at my school including Mulitvariate Calculus, Topology, Quantum Mechanics, General Relativity, Computer Architecture, Japanese, etc. I have also qualified for a state-wide mathematics competition.

Yet despite the fact that I have demonstrated a great proficiency to all my mathematics and science teachers I will be held back from graduating this year. The reason? I'm failing English.

As you can probably guess, I am a Math and Science person. I derive pleasure from cold, hard, logic and rigour. I get somewhat giddy when I develop a mathematical proof or when I observe experiments in the lab going as planned. To me if it can't be quantified or described by formulas then it really isn't worth much trouble to study. That is my first problem with English.

My second problem with English lies in the fact that we're forced to read books that a certain group, or sometimes the certain individual teaching, thinks are worthy of being studied. It then turns into a cold-hearted study of the book with worksheets and deadlines and the ever present teacher holding a gun to your head telling you to understand it the way she does or you fail. You aren't free to work at your own pace and glean enjoyment out of the novel as the medium is intended to be used and this in my opnion is what causes many students to be apathetic towards it.

But the thing I hate most about the entirety of the system is the fact that advancement through the system leans so heavily on English regardless of interests or career goals. Yes, I know that a career in math or science would require a lot of formalized writing but I don't think a physicist will look back on the novels he read in high school and then say to his colleuage "Because Celie had Lesbian Sex with Shug in the Color Purple I believe that Higgs Boson to exist."

Aradae2357

Don`t sweat that brah, there are plenty of ways you can get your highschool diploma with out being in the public school system.