Wither High School?
Phillip Greenspun wonders if High School is a thing of the past:
I've often wondered about the value of traditional Junior High (grades 6 - 8 or 7 -9), but haven't given much thought to the high school question. My mother attended a one-room school house as a young child. She found the mixing of the grades very helpful - she would usually sit and listen in on the lessons intended for the upper grades.
Suppose that you had a 16-year-old named Johnnie and the $14,000 per year that the local school district will spend to keep him occupied for a year. If there were no Boeing 747s, cheap telephones, or Internet you might want to send him to a nearby school. But for less than $2000 we can send that kid anywhere in the world and bring him back for Christmas and Spring Break. For a few cents per minute we can pick up the phone and talk to our kid regardless of where he happens to be.
Hmm... maybe we can send Johnnie to China for one year. He will go to an elite private boarding school and learn Mandarin, probably the most useful language for business, aside from English, for the foreseeable future. With the money left over from the $14,000 after subtracting for airfare and school fees we can send Johnnie on a backpacking tour around Australia during his summer break.
I've often wondered about the value of traditional Junior High (grades 6 - 8 or 7 -9), but haven't given much thought to the high school question. My mother attended a one-room school house as a young child. She found the mixing of the grades very helpful - she would usually sit and listen in on the lessons intended for the upper grades.
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