Somehow I ended up with a really high end education system, and went to public school my last few years. As I get on in age, I realize that school systems vary so wildly it is shocking.
I thought that English was taught in a specific way letters -> phonics -> words -> sentences, but it appears that was abandoned for "Whole Language" approach which upon reading sounds insane to me!
Some of my younger friends (young millennial, early Z) have real issues "sounding out words", and I guess that is the effect of no phonics.
As much as it is socioeconomic divide, a nice part of DoDD schools is that the corporal's kids and the general's kids all go to the same school. To be fair, they are usually well funded and have career teachers, along with what is shaped like a national curriculum. The reason for this is if you move, and you will in the military, you can continue grades easily without having to interrupt your path.
Ex: in DoDD school, 9th grade had "world history", which didn't coincide with my 10th grade move to public school which required "American history" in 9th grade, so I was held back(!) in history to take American with 9th graders when I was in 10th grade.
Education, for the basics, in my mind should not deviate too hard from what we have learned over the years. It is fun and exciting to experiment with "new methods" but pretty much everyone I know that had common core or new math or xyz new 21st century teaching method is abysmally behind both in speed and skill from people that were taught in more traditional methods.
It's very bad in the ~20yo segment from HS no college. My mom works at a deli shop and people don't understand fractions. Let alone fraction<->decimal conversions on the scales. She is in complete disbelief this is real. (She is 68, retired, and still works because she wants to be useful!)
As another DoDDS graduate, I'd add that (a) the military makes parents responsible for their children; (b) the worst kids gets deported back to the US; (c) the military can compel parental behavior (like family therapy); (d) DoDDS teachers are a self-selection for people with curiosity and an interest to travel and live abroad; (e) unit rotations mean a 1/3rd or more of the school population changes year to year - naturally breaking cliques.
Somehow I ended up with a really high end education system, and went to public school my last few years. As I get on in age, I realize that school systems vary so wildly it is shocking.
I thought that English was taught in a specific way letters -> phonics -> words -> sentences, but it appears that was abandoned for "Whole Language" approach which upon reading sounds insane to me!
Some of my younger friends (young millennial, early Z) have real issues "sounding out words", and I guess that is the effect of no phonics.
As much as it is socioeconomic divide, a nice part of DoDD schools is that the corporal's kids and the general's kids all go to the same school. To be fair, they are usually well funded and have career teachers, along with what is shaped like a national curriculum. The reason for this is if you move, and you will in the military, you can continue grades easily without having to interrupt your path.
Ex: in DoDD school, 9th grade had "world history", which didn't coincide with my 10th grade move to public school which required "American history" in 9th grade, so I was held back(!) in history to take American with 9th graders when I was in 10th grade.
Education, for the basics, in my mind should not deviate too hard from what we have learned over the years. It is fun and exciting to experiment with "new methods" but pretty much everyone I know that had common core or new math or xyz new 21st century teaching method is abysmally behind both in speed and skill from people that were taught in more traditional methods.
It's very bad in the ~20yo segment from HS no college. My mom works at a deli shop and people don't understand fractions. Let alone fraction<->decimal conversions on the scales. She is in complete disbelief this is real. (She is 68, retired, and still works because she wants to be useful!)