Tuesday, December 8, 2009

I need your input...

I'm giving my final presentation next Monday, Dec. 14 on "What is Worth Knowing?" I selected this topic for my term paper in my Foundations of Education class because I could relate to it...I can't count the times that I have been sitting in a desk, gazing at the teacher, wondering, "Why on earth am I learning this?" And, I need your help Blogland...

While I give my presentation, I would like to build a powerpoint presentation with real data to be playing in the background of my presentation. I need your input to add to the answers I have already collected.

It's easy:

When you think back to your experience as a student, what was worth learning? What do you use in your everyday life? What do you wish you had spent more class time studying? (For example, some of my current responses include: grammar, spelling, typing, basic math skills, etc.)

Also, what was NOT worth knowing? What have you never used? It can even be something you hated, as long as you haven't found this information to be relevant. (Some of the current answers I have received include: periodic table, memorizing state capital/birds/flowers, algebra, etc.)

Try to be creative and specific. I received (what I thought was) a funny answer: My friend said she has never, even until this day, had the need to dissect a frog or grow fruit flies in a jar... Maybe we were the only students who had to do that--we are from NC, but it's SO true! So, why on earth did we learn that?

Thank you so much for your help!

2 comments:

The Lynchs said...

That sounds like a great topic! I think at one point or another we've all thought "why did I need that?!"

So for what I needed/use everyday: typing, basic math functions (especially percentages!), psychology (I think as an adult everyone uses this one to a degree), the proper layout of a speech, and grammar, grammar, grammar!


Things I have never, ever needed: periodic table, long division, the name of those not-so-important battles in WWII, knowing what is in an owl pellet (we dissected one!).

Amanda said...

Grammar and spelling are truly the only things I use now. I wish I'd paid more attention as far as grammar goes. I may still not need to know how to diagram a sentence, but knowing how to would help me write better ones.

Things I never should have been subjected to...dissecting a worm or anything else. I truly believe that could have waited until college and then only if I'd been pursuing a degree in the medical field. I'm from NC, too. We didn't grow fruit flies, but we did mess with some type of little grub worm that I can't think of right now. Bleh!