Because they do require a degree.  Whether you think that’s important or not doesn’t matter much to me – just what you said.  The quotes didn’t make it at all clear what you meant.  I thought you meant that jobs that said they required degrees didn’t; people with no college education were just as able to get hired.  And that’s very much not true.

People with history degrees don’t need them to work in a financial office setting. What you want is some proficiency with numbers and some language skills that should be the focus of schooling. I’m not one of those blithering idiots on the Internet who sneers at “useless” degrees. I sneer at the employers who are driving up degree inflation to the point that PhDs are increasingly becoming a way for people to stay competitive for jobs that didn’t require more than a bachelor’s thirty years ago- and who favor a person with a Master’s to someone with five years experience for the same position. Because… why exactly?

Same with cookery (requires maths, chemistry, physics) 

No.

That’s what I mean about being ‘glad I learnt’ something. And it has nothing to do with the grades achieved; it is back to front to say that standardised testing is misguided therefore the *content* of the tests is irrelevent.

Education isn’t (entirely) about necessity; attempting intellectually rigorous subjects are worthwhile in their own right.  Failing difficult classes and tests should be perfectly normal experiences for students..  But tests and grades dont tell us everything.

I’ve received noting less than a 2.0 in any school level math course. But after living many years and working many jobs, I returned to college and received nothing lower than a 3.8 in any math subject.

My synapses had connected through life experiences. I could look at  an entire home full of stuff that needs to be moved . I can pick out the right sized moving truck. I can also pick out the correct number of boxes, boxes that will stack without wasted room. I can pack a box so every inch is filled. I can pack in multiple dimensions and layers too. I  put stuff inside stuff, using clothing and towels as packaging.  I can think in multiple steps with one goal in mind; touch an item only once. It doesn’t stop there. I pack the moving truck so the last items in are the first unloaded and  moved into the farthest room in the new location, that’s a safety issue. I move the items into the most space saving spots the floor-plan has to offer.  MATHEMATICS TEACHES SPATIAL AWARENESS. 

No one has to remember mathematical equations to be really good at Cargo Bridge. http://www.physicsgames.net/game/Cargo_Bridge.html 

It’s called know-how, and sometimes we don’t remember how we came to know something or the path we took to get there. 

So I disagree Cory. Math needs to be tested differently. If physics games and the like were allowed, many students would pass. But right now, it’s GAME OVER for many intelligent students while the “smart” ones move on.

http://nationsreportcard.gov/testyourself.asp

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Ok! I took the science, math, reading, econ, and geography tests for as the highest available grades. There were only 4 or so questions in each section and I got them all right. And I was kind of appalled at how easy they were. Determining which of several bikes is “in between” two houses on a diagram? Completing a sequence that goes +5 -2 +5 -2…? I’m not a parent. But if any non-developmentally handicapped child of mine found these tests even remotely difficult they wouldn’t leave the house for anything other than school until they turned 30.

I didn’t grow up in the US but gave the civics and US history sections a try. 0 for 8 on those ones. So clearly the questions are testing some things which, variously, I either learned or didn’t learn. But they assume so little about the kids taking them, and they’re so appallingly remedial … and every state struggles to keep weighted averages in the 60s.

It kind of terrifies me that people actually complain about teachers’ salaries. I say we bust up every teachers’ union in the country, triple every teachers’ salary and throw in healthy bonuses for real accomplishments. And burn these goddamn tests. Jesus. I need a drink.

Hint: ad hominem is a fallacy, sir.

Why do you think he made the comment? Have you read the rest of the thread?

Calc and Trig are not needed. They can still be offered as electives, of course.

My father was an Engineer and he never used most of the stuff the math they teach. Granted he is also smart and able to read a math book and understand it quickly on his own. A skill I lack. That shit may as well be written in another language.

That said, I also suck at math. And I firmly believe that standardized tests are an inherently flawed way to measure either the quality of education, or the progress of individual students.

This guy just sounds like a good student.  A large part of being a good student is being a hard worker.  Show up on time, display your effort and conviction in your writing, show the instructor that you are trying your best.  None of which has anything to do with the fundamental understanding of the course material.

I slept through high school.  Coasted on a solid D-, a straight-up late 80′s slacker.  I got a 1380 on my SAT and an invite to the White House (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Presidential_Scholars_Program).  Should I be outraged my school for giving me crappy grades when I was obviously a genius? 

I’ve had this conversation with other people regarding standardized testing, that being a good student does not mean you’re “intelligent” or will do well on a test (and visa/versa). I find that people who are good students consistently feel more upset and more cheated when they do poorly on tests.