|
Post by Gooman on Dec 1, 2011 21:43:10 GMT -6
There was so much wrong in that I'm not going to bother. And I don't really want to question what makes you happy, Jafar. But still... reading stuff like that makes me wince.
|
|
|
Post by Jafar on Dec 1, 2011 23:19:47 GMT -6
There was nothing wrong in what I said, Goomane. Honestly, if you had Islam explained to you as it actually is I'm sure you'd be comfortable with me talking about it. Ignorance is what makes people uneasy about each other, and feel uncomfortable about each other. It's not at all my intention to make you wince. I'm merely arguing that if the world was governed by an effective moral code, it'd be better off...
|
|
|
Post by Cabi.net on Dec 2, 2011 9:05:14 GMT -6
Can we please not turn this into a religious argument?
|
|
|
Post by SeriousJupiter on Dec 2, 2011 9:09:14 GMT -6
I don't want to start a flame war or anything, but... Why do you even come here anymore, Venomfrog? All you ever do is talk about your religion. We get it, you're happy and believe in everything you've been taught, but the rest of us don't feel the same way about Islam, and even if we accept it as a religion, we have no desire to argue with you about what is true faith and what is not. Please, just let it go already. Can we please not turn this into a religious argument? Yes, what he said.
|
|
|
Post by Jafar on Dec 2, 2011 11:37:46 GMT -6
Why do I even come here? Because I regard most of the members here as friends. However, if people are going to wince at me arguing for my religion as being beneficial, then I don't feel comfortable being on here. I didn't want to turn this thread into a religious argument, I was merely making a suggestion to improve the problems of Canada and the world in general. If a thread is going to be made about problems in a country then certainly the thread is open to suggestions for improvement, and Islam being a way of life, it is a valid suggestion.
Not everyone on a forum is going to feel the same way about some things, obviously, but that doesn't mean I shouldn't be allowed to talk about what's important to me. So please, SeriousJupiter and Goomane, do not make posts criticizing me because I'm Muslim and not afraid to admit that.
That's all I have to say. We can move on now.
|
|
dravarian26
Moderate Trainer
AKA D_Master_Funk (Squid)
Posts: 265
|
Post by dravarian26 on Dec 3, 2011 16:40:46 GMT -6
I am interested in the education systems of all of your countries. Do you like them? Do you know ways they could improve? Anyone going to colleges or boarding schools would be awesome to hear about.
I know my personal school is pretty decent we have lots of extra curricular activities that really provide many of different ways of learning, and I know some schools around me only have the basic 4 social studies, math, science, english, with maybe art and music thrown in, which I would think must be awful.
Actually now that I think about it, because of color guard, chess, juggling club, and about 6-8 other clubs I'm in, I've spent more time at school than out of it this past month, and I'm kind of okay with that
|
|
|
Post by daveshn on Dec 3, 2011 22:23:56 GMT -6
Boring history that takes up 1/3 of a podcast to talk about each week. And needs more potatoes Fix'd Oil prices. I seriously feel that 99% of the economic (and, thus, many other) problems would be taken care of in ~1 year if gas prices were lowered back to $1.45-1.75 a gallon. Don't know what that translates to in other currencies. Transportation of everything would be cheaper. People, goods, products, services, etc. Thus, employers wouldn't have to charge as much to make a profit or may so much so their employees can make a profit. Thus, they'll lower their prices and thus people will buy more things. You want to stimulate an economy? Lower prices. All this package and tax plan stuff is a load of crap. As for the pedophilia, xenophobia, and stream of radically different political beliefs, most of those will go away when people are living comfortably and wealthy. Money and possessions actually do make the world a better place.
|
|
|
Post by chaoman45 on Dec 4, 2011 21:34:47 GMT -6
I am interested in the education systems of all of your countries. Do you like them? Do you know ways they could improve? Anyone going to colleges or boarding schools would be awesome to hear about. We have the best colleges and the worst secondaries. College is becoming too overpriced. If I didn't know any better, the bookstore has a book racket going on when they charge $120 for a book and either give you 10% of that to nothing during exchanges. Some of the classes are more interesting, though.
|
|
|
Post by Cabi.net on Dec 5, 2011 15:07:22 GMT -6
I am interested in the education systems of all of your countries. Do you like them? Do you know ways they could improve? Anyone going to colleges or boarding schools would be awesome to hear about. Our school system is split into two school types. You go into Primary School when you are five. You spend eight years there learning the basics. English, Irish and Math. You also learn a little Geography, History, Art, Science and maybe the basics of a European language too. You also have P.E. once a week. The extra-curricular activities were mostly orientated around sport and art. There was also a quiz team in my school. You then go into Secondary School when you are around twelve. You spend between five to six years here. You take on around ten subjects. The main three, English, Irish and Math. Then you had to take a European language. German or French are the most common, Spanish and Italian are available but aren't as common. Then you have CSPE (Basic politics), PE and Religion. These are all mandatory. Then you take three other subjects. These can include Metalwork, Woodwork, Technology, Home Economics, Business Studies, Art, Music and Geography. After three years you are tested on all of these subjects bar PE. This is the Junior Cert. It's made up to be a pretty big exam but all it really is is preparation for the Leaving Cert. After the Junior Cert you have a choice (maybe). You can either do a Transition Year(Fourth year) or go straight into fifth year. It makes no difference. All Transition Year is is trips and project work. It's a break year. In Fifth year CSPE is dropped and replaced with LCVP.It's more or less the same thing except a large chunk of the subject is project work. Religion is also dropped as an exam subject. You continue with the rest of your subjects until the Leaving Cert. I went into the whole Leaving Cert thing on the podcast, I won't do it again now. It's confusing as all hell. That's the Irish education system, more or less.
|
|
|
Post by Jafar on Dec 5, 2011 15:30:09 GMT -6
Canadian education differs by province, particularly with Quebec being French-primary and the rest of the country being English-primary. There are public schools and private schools which if certified give students the same "credentials" as public schools.
In the Vancouver area, elementary schools start at kindergarten, some offering pre-KG classes, and end at either Grade 5 or 7. At Grade 6, students have the option of either going to a Grade 6-8 middle school or staying at the elementary school for Grades 6 and 7 (if the school offers those) before entering high school at Grade 8. Those who choose middle school take Grade 8 either there or at high school, and all in the public school system Grade 9-12 at high school.
The big universities are overpriced, but there are many vocational schools and colleges that offer two-year programs which studies have shown are more effective for finding work than the four-year university programs. The Greater Vancouver job market is tough for anyone though, which is one of the area's main issues... A lack of jobs. So many of the people are educated, but a lot of those educated people find themselves mired in debts due to lack of available work.
One area that doesn't seem to get stale is healthcare. Education is another, but teachers seem to be getting less and less qualified. I don't concern myself too much with Canadian politics, since I have personal peace of mind and know what makes myself and those I care about happy, but I feel the effects politics have on the population in general, namely that I can't find a job that pays in money. Thankfully though, I am training to teach at a private school, and hopefully I can do one of those aforementioned two-year vocational programs to get paying work while I work toward the more important position, religious educator.
Of the courses taught in Canadian public schools, English, Mathematics, Science and Social Studies receive the main focus. French and Physical Education are mandatory at different grades. Education standards differ by province and so British Columbian teachers, for example, have a hard time adjusting if they move to Alberta and want to teach there.
|
|
|
Post by daveshn on Dec 5, 2011 16:18:33 GMT -6
One area that doesn't seem to get stale is healthcare. Education is another, but teachers seem to be getting less and less qualified. I don't concern myself too much with Canadian politics, since I have personal peace of mind and know what makes myself and those I care about happy, but I feel the effects politics have on the population in general, namely that I can't find a job that pays in money. Thankfully though, I am training to teach at a private school, and hopefully I can do one of those aforementioned two-year vocational programs to get paying work while I work toward the more important position, religious educator. Darn, I had just found a great job for you here in the States, but it pays in sheep. So are you going to teach religion or be an educator for a religious institution (or both, I suppose)?
|
|
|
Post by Zombie Clown on Dec 5, 2011 18:36:43 GMT -6
Well I will explain how the Australian's deal with education.
You go into kindergarden or Pre-School, at the age of 4-5. Pre-School is exactly how it sounds, preparations for primary school. Minus all those wonderful nap times. Primary school in Australia is going through a massive overhaul in the next few years( one that i don't agree with) Primary school at the moment runs from grade 1 through to 7. You learn the basics, Science, Maths, English, Art and Music. As well as PE and RE once a week each. in grade 3, 5, and 7 you participate in a nationwide exam period known as Naplan. It is essentially done to show the government the level of deterioration in Australian intelligence (I'll explain later) how smart the students are in those respective grades. Once you've finished primary in grade 7 you go into what we call High School. There's more diversity here. There's a lot of schools that are either State or Private. State schools are government funded, Private schools have their fees paid for by the students. I go to the latter but i have been through the former for 1 year. High school in Australia runs from grade 8 to 12 but in the next few years all public and private schools will incorporate grade 7. (my school does already) In grade 8 your not given any choice on electives, You do Maths, English, Science, Christian Studies, PE, SOSE and then through the year you will do things like Visual Art, Music, Performing Arts, Drama. That sort of thing. Grade 9 You get to choose i think it is 2-3 electives. depending on what your school can offer. you do those for a year till grade 10. Grade 10 You drop SOSE and you can now choose from things like: Maths A, B, You must do one of these, then there is English Christian Studies and PE thats the extent of our cumpolsary while our electives consist of. Maths C, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Music, Drama, Visual Art, Industrial Tech, Dance, Graphics, and one or two more i can't think of.
Things essentially stay the same till grade 12 where you sit one massive exam if you want an OP, otherwise you just need to complete grade 12 to say you've got grade 12 certifications. if you want an OP you sit the QCS Exam and at the end of it your given an OP between i believe it to be 20 to 1. 1 being the highest allowing you to do just about any job you can think of. while 20 sort of leaves you with MacDonald's Fry Cook. These last you about 3-4 years by which point you will have started University, essentially making it pointless.
Now on to my problems with Grade 7's starting High School early. Problem 1: They are extremely childish and stupid. Problem 2: They are simply not mature enough to start high school. (albeit some of the are) now why is this a problem? Well it drives the older grades insane, because they lack all respect for anyone older than them. so when it comes to exam time we're competing with silence because a teacher can't control their class. (there's a lot of stupid things they're not allowed to do in our education system) so it leaves a class trying to study quietly the problem of hearing a class going wild. but eh. I'm bored now so I'm going to go play Terraria, If you has any questions ask and I shall answer.
|
|
|
Post by Jafar on Dec 5, 2011 21:34:58 GMT -6
Darn, I had just found a great job for you here in the States, but it pays in sheep. If I learn how to harvest wool and lamb, I'll consider it. So are you going to teach religion or be an educator for a religious institution (or both, I suppose)? Learn enough about Islam to be able to teach both non-Muslims and Muslims about it. The association whose centre I frequently attend has several knowledgeable shaykhs (people qualified to teach Islam), but several of them are aging, so it would work for both myself and the association if I started preparing to succeed some of them. I have the option of going to Lebanon for five years for a full education. It's a stretch, since I never have left Canada in my life, but an option for sure. I want to get married fairly young, since I am very family-oriented, and so that's another factor. Ideally I'd like to marry one of the many Lebanese women I know now in 3-5 years, then move with her to Lebanon to study and work... And hopefully avoid getting shot or bombed in the process, seeing as it is the Middle East. Bringing my point back to the topic, Canada receives many immigrants, while few leave Canada. This makes for a lot of ethnic diversity. In my observances I've found immigrants have trouble adjusting initially to Canada, but the majority seem happy once settled. However, with the global economy struggling, it could become increasingly more difficult for immigrants to find stable work once they move.
|
|
dravarian26
Moderate Trainer
AKA D_Master_Funk (Squid)
Posts: 265
|
Post by dravarian26 on Dec 5, 2011 21:50:33 GMT -6
I was just hoping you guys could explain your acronyms/ initialisms. i have no clue what RE and OP and SOSE i understood PE though.
I can give as concise as possible explanation for USA.
Elementary school: Kindergarten-5th grade (sometimes 6th) Same as everyone else, 4 basic classes taught by one teacher, with the occasional art and music and language thrown in
Middle School(or Intermediate): 6th(sometimes 7th)-8th grade Seperate Teachers for each main subject along with more in depth elective corses in Cooking and art and msusic along with minor clubs and after school activities
High School: 9th-12th much more freedom to choose classes, you need a certain amount of each subject to graduate but apart from that do whatever the hell you want, this year I have spanish IV, Television production, Computer Graphics, Art II, World Lit, and Computer Programming. Along with the dozens of clubs and sports available, Chorus, Jazz Band, Orchestra, etc
I personally don't find many faults with my school, but I know that the education system itself is not doing as well as it could be. Then college or Vocational or whatever which depends vastly on what your trying to do.
I understand the shifting of grades bogie. My year of students were the first to start Middle School in 6th grade as opposed to how normally you move to to next branch of schools in 7th, it wasn't that big a problem since we were all immature idiots anywawy, but it was a big change in curriculum especially being the test class and all.
|
|
|
Post by Gooman on Dec 7, 2011 16:17:57 GMT -6
Oh, I just remembered the giant glaring problem in New York's school system. Not sure if it applies to other states.
There are three main tiers of classes: Regents, Honors, and Advanced Placement. According to legislation passed a long time ago, schools have been trying to improve their passing rates by lowering standards- and as Regents classes are literally there just to prepare the dumb and/or unmotivated kids for NY's standardized tests (the Regents), they have extremely low standards.
You know what that means? I'm surrounded by idiots and no one fails enough to drop out. 4000 people in my High School, at least half of them bumbling idiots who make me want to set something on fire.
There are also classes with no honors or AP option (foreign languages, and to some extent, Physics) hell. Not only did the class go slow as frick, but when I finally got to my Junior year and could take honors Spanish, I was completely unprepared and had to drop to save my GPA.
The biggest problem overall is the "one-size-fits-all" system we have. My math teacher (who is the head of the math department, and a genuine math enthusiast) says he's working on expanding the courses more than Regents and Honors so that the smart kids aren't held back and the moderately smart kids aren't out of their league or held back by the complete idiots. But the rest of the classes, most notably the History classes, desperately need that change and aren't going to get it.
Also everyone got into AP English 11. I mean EVERYONE. They have like 4 different AP English teachers, and they all teach at different levels. Are they so desperate to make their kids look smarter that the school rebranded some of their regents classes as APs so the grades would be weighted?
|
|