Has Anyone Questioned the Fact that.. (1 Viewer)

[flyin']

But you don't really need to know what's in Mathematics for most uni subjects, even if they have that as a prereq.

 

[spin spin sugar]

i believe english should be compulsory simply because we live in australia, we speak english, and we use it every single day at a higher level. the same cannot be said of maths. if you dont want to do english, then go live in babylon and obsess over your pythagorean theorems there.

 

[AsyLum]

or in the maths utopia that is hell

 

[hatty]

Originally posted by spin spin sugar
i believe english should be compulsory simply because we live in australia, we speak english, and we use it every single day at a higher level. the same cannot be said of maths. if you dont want to do english, then go live in babylon and obsess over your pythagorean theorems there.

yes we speak english every single day and i agree with you in that we all must be able to speak the language, that is why they should only make it compulsory during the years 1 to 10.
that is enough for people to have a firm grasp of the language

the english we learn in years 11/12 is absolutely stupid and has no relevance to the real world
as if we are going to need to analyse poems and write feature articles every day, its just stupid.

math on the other hand is a universal language that everyone can understand, there may be language barriers but mathematics breaks that.

in summary
* maths = good
* english in yr 11/12 = bad.

 

[Xayma]

A firm grasp of the language is gained by yr 10, an analysis of texts is not required in to function in society (although it does help with advanced texts), however a firm grasp in mathematics can also help people function in society by understanding how many things work in society (like cars, satellites etc) in much the same way that being able to analyse a text will help.

 

[Classic]

*Sigh* I think it's hopeless.
They made english compulsory for a reason ... it must be a damn good one cause it's been compulsory for so long ... if i can't convince you, ask the BOS. Maybe they can make a good argument on behalf of the English course. Not to mention the fact that most universities require English as a prerequisite ... there must be a reason for that also ... I tried ... sigh!!! It's over now ... it's done ... and although everyone is complaining about it, im sure you all gained valuable knowledge and a greater understanding of texts and the world in general from the English course ... maybe you just don't know it yet ??

 

[mazza_728]

If maths was kept compulsory all u would be complaining about it.. just let us have our winge!

 

[Xayma]

Originally posted by Classic
Not to mention the fact that most universities require English as a prerequisite ... there must be a reason for that also ... I tried ... sigh!!!

Most unis require English as a prerequisite... Dont you mean all since it is a compulsory part of your UAI and HSC.

 

[+Po1ntDeXt3r+]

Originally posted by Xayma
Most unis require English as a prerequisite... Dont you mean all since it is a compulsory part of your UAI and HSC.

Nah, I reckon its so u can communicate with other ppl in Aust Universities..
i reckon we should be able to spell and add.. thats it!
no more Hamlet Oedipal tendencies or imaginary numbers

mabbe a foreign language should be compulsory too .. cos everyone else in the world bothered to learn english.. many nations its mandatory with math and the national language.. why dont we?

 

[AsyLum]

Originally posted by Xayma
A firm grasp of the language is gained by yr 10, an analysis of texts is not required in to function in society (although it does help with advanced texts), however a firm grasp in mathematics can also help people function in society by understanding how many things work in society (like cars, satellites etc) in much the same way that being able to analyse a text will help.

bwhahhaha oh come off it.... maths helps us understand yadda yadda....thats as pointless as saying...english helps us see past the lies and deceptions within politics to ultimately elect a 'rightful' member....

come on you got to do better than that

 

[Gregor Samsa]

Originally posted by hatty
yes we speak english every single day and i agree with you in that we all must be able to speak the language, that is why they should only make it compulsory during the years 1 to 10.
that is enough for people to have a firm grasp of the language

the english we learn in years 11/12 is absolutely stupid and has no relevance to the real world
as if we are going to need to analyse poems and write feature articles every day, its just stupid.

math on the other hand is a universal language that everyone can understand, there may be language barriers but mathematics breaks that.

in summary
* maths = good
* english in yr 11/12 = bad.

As has been said earlier, its not the specific texts in Senior English that is key, it is the skills acquired through analysis.

We are all in contact with texts, and indeed, they permate society. Isn't it vital to at least have the knowledge to at least comprehend? As such, English is entirely relevant to the 'real world', and probably moreso than mathematical principles, which are possible to ignore, at least somewhat.

The extent of maths used by the majority of adults is basically what we learn up to Year 10. Short of going into a profession specifically requiring them, its unlikely that Trigonometry or Algorithms are going to be used regularly, unlike the base skills involved in Senior English.

 

[holl]

Well these are my thoughts on the english v maths debate...
English should be compulsory as it teaches you important life skills. The life skills you learn in enlgish are not relating to existentialist approaches in Hamlet etc but are the skills required the generate sophisticated responses and analyse/justify your response. I think that in english what you say is just as important as how you say it. This skill is also important in other subjects where you have to write extended responses, such as sciences and this move to more english based sciences is impotant in giving students an understanding of not only concepts in science but also their historical development which is vital to the understanding of the actaul concept. I think if maths were to be compulsory, then bos needs to introduce a lower level maths for the less mathematical students. Our school has a boad developed course called applied maths where students learn basic life skills in maths and is taken by the lower abilty students. So many students would struggle if maths was compulsory as even general maths can be challenging for some. If there was to be another compulsory subject i would say it should be this course from the old hsc. I think it was called general studies or something along those lines and was only one unit. The students learned important about issues and current affairs such as medicare, and goverment policy, so when they left school they had an understanding of issues involving/ affecting themselves and their community.

 

[mazza_728]

I agree with the opinion that general studies would be beneficial to all and i also support another opinion which was mentioned earlier, that of maknig another language compulsory i think it is important to learn another language especially living in such a "multicultural" nation.

I disagree with the opinion that a shift to a more English based science is beneficial! science has become less science like and more and more like a clone of english! we write too much nonesense, sciences - especially physics has lost all guts and in my opinion i think this truly unfortunate! Science is not science anymore.

 

[abdooooo!!!]

Originally posted by holl
...such as sciences and this move to more english based sciences is impotant in giving students an understanding of not only concepts in science but also their historical development which is vital to the understanding of the actaul concept. I think if maths were to be compulsory, then bos needs to introduce a lower level maths for the less mathematical students...

what the... no way. math is already easy enough. compared to the other countries Australia's math is like umm... one them really really stupid version. thats why all asian's are good at math because they come from an Asian countries' educational system.

i don't disagree with giving students the knowledge of historical developments in science to understand a concept, but teaching history lessons about how World Wars was affected by science is just so wrong. and the environmental impacts... my blade runner and BNW essay just a copy of the science syllabus.

 

[braindrainedAsh]

Environmental impacts are really really important.... you can't underestimate the importance of environmental conservation...

 

[holl]

abdooo, consider a country town where there is so much unemployment that people go to school because they have nothing better to do. These people shouldnt really be doing the senior school years but what else can they do? If maths was to be compulsory could you image the type of results such schools would receive in maths? By introducing a basic maths course for lower ability students it could help them in their everyday life without the school getting really bad averages for no other reason than the area in which the school is located. A lot of the time the performance of the school is effected by the area, and this shouldn't be the case. No wonder city schools do better than country schools when a large group of the country students are simply passing the time at school.

 

[Classic]

People, Maths isn't compulsory for a REASON .... it isn't absolutely necassary!!
For some it is, yes - but for most, no.
English, on the other hand is necassary - and not just for the elemantary reason: 'We need to know how to read, write and speak in English caus that's the language most used in Australia' - that's pretty obvious! English is necassary as it provides us with ADVANCED skills in understanding ALL texts, and in expressing ourselves.
The BOS aren't idiots- they made it compulsory for a reason ... (ok, well let's hope they aren't idiots. )

 

[Classic]

p.s. HAMLET rocked - who couldn't enjoy it? Coupled with R+G it was even better!

 

[freaking_out]

Originally posted by Gregor Samsa
As has been said earlier, its not the specific texts in Senior English that is key, it is the skills acquired through analysis...

LoL, what skills? the only skill me and MANY of the kids who got band 6 aquired, was how to memorise and reguirgitate essays!

 

[ND]

Originally posted by holl
abdooo, consider a country town where there is so much unemployment that people go to school because they have nothing better to do. These people shouldnt really be doing the senior school years but what else can they do? If maths was to be compulsory could you image the type of results such schools would receive in maths? By introducing a basic maths course for lower ability students it could help them in their everyday life without the school getting really bad averages for no other reason than the area in which the school is located. A lot of the time the performance of the school is effected by the area, and this shouldn't be the case. No wonder city schools do better than country schools when a large group of the country students are simply passing the time at school.

Why would a country school, where people go to school cos they have nothing better to do, be bad at maths in particular? If they're going to school for the sake of it, and without study, then they wouldn't be good at anything, and deserve a bad mark. I don't see what location has to do with anything...