Why don't we teach kids the system of society at school?
 

Ever wondered why we don't teach kids the system of our society at school?
We teach kids Shakespeare/McBeth/Hamlet but not how the society works. I know that these things fall into social studies, but I don't believe school teach anything practical.
I wonder if there are any other countries that teach more practical things at school. Maybe even in Canada, they might already be teaching depending on what kind of school they are, but I don't know.

Here are some subjects that I think should be added. I'm sure I have missed a few, but I think they should add Gr.13 if they can't somehow squeeze these topics within Gr.1-Gr.12 system we have.

Government System - I am not saying kids should be politicians, but school should teach basic political system.
Municipal, Provincial, Federal. How they work and how are they different. How to vote, the difference between Conservative, Liberal, etc.

Law - What's illegal and what's legal. Wiretap law, copyright, the consequence of DUI, shoplifting, dealing drugs, what are your options, what to do when you're arrested under suspicion of something, what if you're convicted, etc. How to file a lawsuit or appeal. Who is Justice of Peace, etc. What does the Crown mean? How they proceed court cases, when can you talk to your lawyer, etc.

Accounting - How to prepare income tax, what are T4, T5, etc. forums, what is CPP contributions, etc. What's tax deductible and what's not. etc. Childcare benefits, etc.

Medical System - BC Care Card, WorkSafe BC, etc. What kind of medical assistants are available, what's covered and what's not, etc.

Insurance/Contract - Auto insurance, real estate insurance. What are comprehensive coverage? What is lien check? How to check history of property, what to look for? Who/where to get your purchase inspected, etc. How to read contract for rent or purchase, etc.

Banking - TSFA, Chequing, Saving, CIG, TSX, NASDAQ, etc. How to save/budget for your living. How to plan for credit cards, what are the basic rules for saving money.etc. How to apply for student loans, etc.

Job - What if you get laid off? How to apply for E.I. How to look for a job? Job interview preparations, basic manners and languages you should be using for interviewers. Difference between union work and non-union work. Auxiliary and permanent employment, employees and contractors, etc.

Emergency - First Aid, CPR, how to prepare for earthquake, basic securities, how to use fire extinguisher, self defense, etc.

DIY/Misc - basic knowledge of how to fix your home, cars, etc.

*Edit - Other things like how to issue your passport, SIN number, get childcare assistance if you're eligible, difference between marriage and common law, etc.

...okay, I'll bite.

- Government System is mostly covered in Grade 10~11 Social Studies. You will take it in a few years, don't worry.
- Law is available in some high schools, as an elective.
- Accounting is also available in some high schools, as an elective.
- Medical System information is widely available at Ministry of Health - Province of British Columbia
- Insurance is a scam. But also most kids aren't able to afford anything that would need insurance at the age range you're describing.
- Banking, is widely tied to accounting, and should be up to the parents to teach, not the schools.
- Job. Wtf, seriously? The school has to teach you how to get a job? That sounds like some communist type shit there.
- Emergency procedures you described are all taught in schools under various classes.
- DIY: :facepalm:

I will agree you with that a lot of teenagers aren't ready for adulthood, including many of the areas above.
But that's because of pussy parents who aren't willing to take the time to teach their kids shit.

For any self-motivated person (child or adult), a vast amount of information is widely available readily. You don't need to be spoon-fed information, just go out and get it on your own. It's not something the public education system needs to offer; and if it is, then they're already being taught. You either didn't pay attention, went to a realllly shitty school, or aren't old enough to have gone through it yet.

I only read your first example and determined you don't know what the fuck you are talking about, because I got taught literally all of those things in school.

As for the "How to vote", the process is literally explained on the mail that you get, as well they re-explain it to you when you actually go to vote. It's as simple as checking a box. I have no clue why people make it such a big deal about "being explained how to vote". If you can't figure it out after reading it yourself and being explained it by a person, literally just kill yourself, cause life is WAYY harder than that.

Sounds To me like what a good parent would teach their child when having conversations around the dinner table.

Oh wait. Families don't talk. Or eat dinner together. Better rely on our shitty school system to do even more parenting for us

Schools already teach most of that stuff ... At least they did 15 years ago

I agree with timpo :drunk: and in fact; almost everything you mentioned is actually taught in the public school system. However, you have to select these courses as electives as there really isnt enough time to squeeze everything together. The emergency stuff that you mention is taught in the planning courses/PE courses that I was in. For the other banking/accounting things, I took a few business courses in high school that I found were actually some of the most useful courses since it teaches you about contracts/money planning/taxes/resumes etc. Social studies teaches enough about the government system as well. Honestly, most of that stuff should be mandatory but its not

I joined revscene in a high school class where the teacher made everyone make a fake stock house account. Much more useful than a haiku or learning iambic pentameter IMO but not part of the curriculum. My username was a bunch of random letters for stock house and nsmb and auto populated for the revscene login and sdubfid was born.

Man, I really wished they taught me how to use and operate my BC Care Card in high school!

Really though, secondary education and post-secondary education has a world full of practical skills that apply to our day to day societal operations; it's up to you as the student to take out of it what you will.

You can sit there all day reading Hamlet and Shakespear and come onto a forum 10 years later and say "what good did that do for me?" Or you could have spent time and effort into understanding the underlying workings of the language, history and characters in these books and applied them to your personal life.

The stuff you're describing seem like they would be better suited for an immigration workshop. I'm sure they're open to everyone to attend in case you need help with understanding how to get a passport or a SIN #.

I learned some of the financial planning stuff in grade 7
govt stuff in 8th grade (forgot it all)
career planning in planning 10
job and interview...tons of free work shop in college/uni

the law stuff I never learned...I agree with you on that one which shouldn't be an elective but part of a socials studies curriculum

what about those who grew up in an immigrant family? good parenting skills isn't the be-all in this...some of the parents simply don't have this knowledge if they were not raised here.

The thing is although they teach some of that stuff (not most and certainly not all) the average teacher is told to teach for the majority. That means the othe 49% that learn differently grow up being told they are stupid. The school system will fail many until it has the capacity to understand and adapt to different kids learning styles. As long as there are 30+ students and only 1 overworked teacher, consider those that don't fit the mold basically fucked.

The real question here is what high school did Timpo attend? You don't seriously believe that most the stuff on your list isn't taught already do you? Maybe things have changed since I attended school but almost every one of those bullet points were offered in one form or another.

I learnt how to make boxers for meself :derp: :ahwow:

In HS my friends and I made a World's Scariest Police Chases (John Bunnell style)/Cops video presentation on how to how to file income taxes. This was back in 98 so life lessons were being taught back then.

this has be Timpo's all time low or what? a lot of those you've listed is the parents' and individual's own responsibilities. do you actually think a 15 or 16 years old can't figure out how to file a income tax or distinguish the different political parties? give me a break. please go spend a day in high school AP classes and see some of the magic those kids can do.

also, if you have actually read timeless novels like Brave New World, 1984, Fahrenheit 451 you would gain a lot more knowledge about how government and society really work. That fact you stressed "practicality" at the high school level shows how asinine you are. practicality kills creativity. last i checked mozart didn't write symphony 40 because it was a "practical" thing to do or einsten discovering mass possesses energy because is was "practical".

Why? because our system thrives on debt slaves.

ok after reading some of your comments, maybe the current school system does teach some of the stuff, but I don't think emphasized enough.

I don't remember learning any of that stuff compare to Calculus, Physics, English, Chemistry, History, Geography, etc...

I think your asian parents (and everyone else's asian parents) didn't emphasize that stuff as important in high school because they thought you'd be able to figure it out yourself one day.

The ability to fix up your car and home is a great skill to have, and I certainly would not consider those trivial skills at all; however, those skills can be acquired on one's own time. To me, one of the most important goals of an educational system is to shape someone's character so they act honestly and truthfully in tricky situations. Moral value is much harder to attain than solving a physics question where there is always a right answer at the end.

a fair point for sure, and i dont really have a response to it. but it does remind me of something in my highschool days

grade 10 social studies, we were talking about politics, and more specifically local ridings. teacher asks the class who would we vote for if we were of age, and about 90% of the class said Raymond Chan. when the teacher asked why, 100% of that 90% said "well, he is Chinese, and we expect one of our own to take care of us". for what its worth i went to Richmond High.

has no point, and doesn't contribute to this conversation. just a memory that surfaced with all this highschool socials talk

they teach the majority of whats in your list... except for accounting/banking/financing (same thing really), and they really should teach that at school, maybe not all the financial formulas etc, but an understanding of looking after ones own finances, the credit system, etc

Basic finance & accounting with maybe an intro to investment should definitely be part of the high school curriculum.

The problem with saying that it's the "parents' responsibility" to teach that stuff, is that so many parents are so shitty at it or know so little about it themselves that they should not be teaching anyone.

A set curriculum would at least give most kids a good starting point.

sure with that mentality you will be. ResidentSleeper

IMO investment has to be learned first hand. You cannot simulate the roller coaster ride of losing half your net worth in a bad day with monopoly money. I still remember when we did this for a class, kids just picked penny stocks and it's go big or go home. You can't teach children to think long term when that investment session ends in a week. It was a big waste of time.

Hey Timpo, you cannot put the onus on the school to teach all those things about society. It is the parent's responsibility, and also on the kid as they grow up in life, to teach and learn these important things.

I think this thread, if anything, highlights a gap in the things that some parents do not teach their children.

For example, I see parents give an iPad Air, not the older models to their kids because it's too heavy for them to hold, to their three year old kids so that they can learn how to use computers. Those kids just play their games on that tablet non stop when I see them at restaurants. That kid has a big chance of wearing glasses by the time he is a teen. :lawl:

Are parents teaching their kids the wrong things at the wrong time like this iPad example? :considered:

People learn about society by being part of it.

Also, if you have to be taught how to live in a certain society, that society is probably under full control by whoever is doing the teaching.