A special message about the future of Teens in Tech
A special message about the future of Teens in Tech
As I was raking leaves this morning, (go New England!) I was thinking about all the crap I have to do this year. I'm going to meet with a tutor on Monday who will show me the ins and outs of the SATs so I can excel in conformity and get into a good college and get a good job and be successful bla, bla, bla.
Let's not forget that my Math grade needs to go up about ten points in the next three weeks, and if it doesn't I'm screwed for life, will not get into a good college, no job, no money, bla, bla bla.
Here's my question for Connect. Do Grades and Standardized Tests Reflect Intelligence? If you read more recent tech job postings, (I was reading OnSwipe's yesterday, for example) you'll often notice a college education isn't required.
There are tons of perks to college like networking, well-rounded educationing, and general social benefits. The biggest (and maybe only) con is the astronomical cost.
What do you think? Are you wicked smart? Do your grades/scores reflect that?
I also highly recommend you read This TechCrunch Post
Well really the thing is effort. If you study four hours a day for something and can't pass a class than we have a problem. If you choose not to study and succeed in other areas than you're just focused on other things. Now for the teen in tech and how we should approach grades are simply a matter to work with our interest. Most english teachers require journals. So write about technology or business. For biology think of the biotech industry as what it is. The next computer industry that if you learn about can produce billions. History if you focus on the money aspects of things can work. Even gym think of being physically fit as away to stay active which helps you.
I really hope grades and test scores don't reflect our intelligence....haha
I think there are definitely two kinds of intelligence: life intelligence and academic intelligence. I fall into the first category, and I'd like to think I'm doing well :)
I think you mean book smart and street smart.
Maybe...although "street smart" always makes me think about like people selling drugs and real "street" stuff that I don't agree with haha
How did you get drug dealing from street smarts.. It just means knowledge gained from means other than school.
Jeremy - I think street smarts does kind of imply at the very least being aware of your surroundings, while something like life intelligence encompasses networking and business skills. Going to try to think of a good phrase for this :)
Life intelligence implies Business and Networking skills...?
I agree with you guys that some people are "book smart" and some people are "street smart". But all it takes to do well in school and standardized tests is effort. I feel like a lot of "street smart" people out there just don't understand the importance of school sometimes and the importance of your grades, which can be disappointing. If you put in the time and effort in school you will do well. So if you are truly smart, you would care and put in the effort to do well in school.
This debate will go on forever and ever, it's mostly opinion based. But what I found here on TechCrunch, that has some basis to where I stand on it.
You can study all you want, learn how an algorithm could work. Learn the fundamentals of something. But there shouldn't be a number grade attached to this - this is only the fundamentals. You need to be able to take those things you learned and apply them. That's where the real power of knowledge is.
However, those fundamentals help make you a better student. You don't need them, but they can help you be a better student in the end - a better thinker.
NEVERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR
Okay, well... In all honesty, it depends on what type of intelligence you are asking for. Standardized feels a bit primitive but at the same time it does test on necessary information.
What would be interesting is if students were tested with case studies. At least it would make things way more fun.
I think the way we are graded needs to change and right now I really don't know what to think about school. I think it makes us all think the same way, which is not useful at all, that's way, even though I get pretty good grades, I don't give them much importance. Learning something by heart, writing it down and forgetting most of it two weeks later isn't useful...
Less scripted curriculum, and more guided open discussions/debates.
Discussion is great. Anything that involves teamwork and leadership can be very beneficial.
And as I mentioned previously, Case Studies could be a great high school educational tool as well. It is a practical application of knowledge and encourages students to think creatively and analytically.
What if, instead of a final exam, students created a portfolio for the course? Something that can be referenced back on in future years and contain personal research, analysis, etc.
It seems like it would be a better show of their knowledge and understanding of the material rather than tiny dots of ink on a piece of paper. =P
The other problem is that students aren't motivated. We think that these options are much better, but the rest of the students just want to do as less work as possible so they don't want all these changes...
We need to find a way to change the education system from down up changing society's way of thinking of education and make them see how important and interesting it can be.
I totally agree with you Alberto. The people who put the effort into school and get good grades are the ones who are motivated and see the importance of your education. The ones who slack off don't understand the importance of education and how it can help you in your life and help you go places.
There are a lot more factors to consider than just effort. Life doesn't wait for you to finish your homework. Education doesn't and shouldn't be the number one priority in anyones life. In the end, you don't get into the good school unless you stand out from the pack. AP classes, honor classes, and math tournaments are generally considered prerequisites at good schools, what they look for is the extra curricular activities that make you valuable.
No. They most certainly do not! Intelligence is so much more than success in any particular area. Grades/test scores measure academic success. But they certainly don't measure intelligence.
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