I will say this, the example of basic math given by the OP is spot on. As for the more advanced math offerings, I think it's harder and more in depth than ever and I say that subjectively from school district to school district.

My daughter who will enter college this fall as a pre med student has taken AP level classes all through HS. The work load that she brings home daily is staggering but it is preparing her for the next level.

The thing that ticks me off about her HS education is the lack of history that she's learned over the years. They tend to skim over the things that were once considered important.

 

Here's some new math for ya'.
I am a 27 year public school teacher and although I understand and absolutely approve the idea of mixing math with history to help demonstrate relevance to other material learned in school, surely there must be a less inflammatory way of doing so.

http://ww2.ajcmobile.com/autojuice/?...l-1296640.html

 

I heard about that a few days. I can't even imagine what the people who made that were thiking

 

I guess Rutgers isn't the school I thought it was if you are asking a question like this.

I am a Civil Engineer and I get paid very well to use the education I received - including algebra, geometry, calculus and even the English classes I hated way back when. Even those "useless" history classes come in handy now and then. And I would say that not a day goes by that I don't have to call on something from my educational past and apply it to what I am working on.

As for "every day" skills like winterizing a lawnmower or signing a lease? Well, I make enough money that I can hire a minimum wage high school dropout who didn't want to learn algebra to winterize my lawnmower and have a lawyer on retainer to review a lease before I sign it.

 

I think that was the point the OP was trying to make. Most of my 400-level classes could be passed by a 10th-grader.

Obviously, I believe that eventually I'll be paid more because of my college education, but I don't necessarily believe that what I learned will be useful. I'm studying Environmental Planning, which while not an Engineering degree is certainly much closer to it than an English degree in terms of usefulness. That said, two of the part-time jobs I have right now I only have because I'm a college student, but that's not to say that I use what I've learned at school. College is required for a lot of jobs not because of the technical knowledge that may come with it, but because it means you have the skills to get through 4 years of thought exercises.

Again, I would drop out of school if I didn't think I'd be paid for it eventually. But two things are important to consider here: 1) The job market sucks at the moment, and 2) what's taught in schools is not as relevant or useful as it once was.

My greater point is that school should maximize the productivity of all students. You can hire somoeone to do your work, good for you. Absolutely nothing wrong with that. However, too large a proportion of our society does not have marketable skills they learned in school, despite near-universal school attendance. The guy you hire to winterize your lawnmower no doubt did attend school at some point, and for that ~10k a year cost to society he should have learned a marketable skill.

 

The thing is that many people believe that the college (or high school) education they received/paid for prepares them for a precise career. The reality is that every job worth having requires that the employee have an a) general education that gives you a base of knowledge that makes you a trainable (for tasks that you have never even dreamed of) employee and b) a specific skill set that permits you to jump ahead of others for a particular profession/occupation and c) a general knowledge of the world and it's history and workings that allow you to communicate and integrate with other similarly educated individuals in your workplace.
For these simply explained reasons, education is critical. Too many people think that just by getting through high school or a 2 or 4 year trade school or a 4 year college degree that they are automatically job worthy.
The fact is they are ready to apply for a job, but then they must apply themselves and all the knowledge they bring to the table to the job they have obtained.

 

That makes sense, ckal. I can agree with that.