MillyHas education deteriorated in Australia?
October 4th 2006 01:21
Did any of you read yesterday's front page story of the Courier Mail entitled "Brilliant Minds, if only they could write"? For those of you who didn't, it was about these scientists from one of Australia's best science research institutes who had enrolled in English classes because of their poor ability in the area. These were PhD students. I stated to think about education and whether it has deteriorated in this country.
My first thought was should these science students be proficient in English? At school, I remember there was always a clear division between the gifted students. They were either nerdy mathematicians/ science students or they were eccentric humanities lovers, and rarely was a kid exceptional in both areas. Perhaps this relates to the left and right hemispheres of the brain? I wouldn't know, I was always a humanities kid. So, with this in mind, should these science students be condemned for their poor spelling and grammar?
I think that this relates to the bigger problem of deteriorating education in Australia. I have many friends from overseas of the same age, and if you compare their general knowledge to mine, there is a shocking difference. And I actually read the newspaper everyday and didn't do poorly at school. When asked about Australia, two of my French friends said the place was beautiful, the people were friendly, but in general they were uneducated and superficial. Perhaps this is just because of the people they have encountered, but they are not alone in their views.
The education system of Australia is not completely to blame for the poor education of Aussies. I think it also relates to Australians' overriding apathy towards a lot of things. We don't care about politics, can't be bothered with learning about how the modern world was born. Why read a book to improve your English skills when you can kick a ball around the yard and use as little brain power as possible.
These are my questions for you all: Has education deteriorated in Australia? Why has this occurred? Should someone who is good at science be proficient in English? What can be done to fix the problem?
My first thought was should these science students be proficient in English? At school, I remember there was always a clear division between the gifted students. They were either nerdy mathematicians/ science students or they were eccentric humanities lovers, and rarely was a kid exceptional in both areas. Perhaps this relates to the left and right hemispheres of the brain? I wouldn't know, I was always a humanities kid. So, with this in mind, should these science students be condemned for their poor spelling and grammar?
I think that this relates to the bigger problem of deteriorating education in Australia. I have many friends from overseas of the same age, and if you compare their general knowledge to mine, there is a shocking difference. And I actually read the newspaper everyday and didn't do poorly at school. When asked about Australia, two of my French friends said the place was beautiful, the people were friendly, but in general they were uneducated and superficial. Perhaps this is just because of the people they have encountered, but they are not alone in their views.
The education system of Australia is not completely to blame for the poor education of Aussies. I think it also relates to Australians' overriding apathy towards a lot of things. We don't care about politics, can't be bothered with learning about how the modern world was born. Why read a book to improve your English skills when you can kick a ball around the yard and use as little brain power as possible.
These are my questions for you all: Has education deteriorated in Australia? Why has this occurred? Should someone who is good at science be proficient in English? What can be done to fix the problem?
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Comment by Adrian
Philosophy Blog
Could you give an example or two of when you thought your overseas friends' knowledge far surpassed your own?