W. K. Lis
Superstar
In what year did Ontario require Grade 10 education, or even require some secondary school education? In what year did Ontario require Grade 12 education?
Compared with the 1950's and 1960's, students have more material and subjects to cover. As each year passes, there is more history to learn.
Even mathematics changed, and more than simple addition and subtraction. For income tax for example. Compare the income tax forms from the 1960's with the forms for 2018.
Instead of increasing the years needed for high school education, Mike Harris dropped grade 13. Which meant there is less time for the new subjects and material we need these days.
The sciences in the 1950's didn't include the astronomy we now know, and continuing to learn today.
Everyone should be learning "keyboarding" or "computer skills", with our handheld computers (smartphones or tablets), which we didn't need to learn in the 1950's or 1960's. I remember when typing was not taught for academic or technical students, only for business students.
These days there is little time (even just for a semester or two) for music, arts, and physical education, in the four years we now have for secondary education. If we had five years, we could have time set aside for them.
Maybe a semester of cursive writing.![]()
Sorry students, we have no time this year to learn about Ultima Thule in Science class. (If there is a Science class.) You're on your own.
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From link.
Now, what I notice with basically every subject is they cram everything into 1 or 2 periods in a day. However, I realize that they don't have a lot of time. Maybe shave 2 PA days, and 1 day off March Break?
Or add an extra year (8 different semesters or subjects).
Don't you think a Grade 13 would be a little excessive for the students ? Think about us students for a second, I think maybe a half-year of Gr.13 with 4 semesters/subjects instead ( beginning around August 31st, ending around January 20th, with 1-2 week break in December ).
Maybe allow some students to improve grades to get the needed credits, as needed. No age 18 limit, but must complete the required credits.
As the father of children in grade school, the length of the school day and the summer break make no sense to me. A lot of people work 9-5, so dismissing kids from school at 3:30 forces people to arrange child care at unaffordable costs. And those two months off in summer are torture for similar reasons, not to mention that their knowledge regresses during that time and they don't have daily structure and mental engagement on the same level for a long time. I don't understand why our society does this.
As the father of children in grade school, the length of the school day and the summer break make no sense to me. A lot of people work 9-5, so dismissing kids from school at 3:30 forces people to arrange child care at unaffordable costs. And those two months off in summer are torture for similar reasons, not to mention that their knowledge regresses during that time and they don't have daily structure and mental engagement on the same level for a long time. I don't understand why our society does this.
While the 3:30 dismissal is unlikely to change, every parent I have talk to as a student has said to me it is a challenge getting daycare for two months, for parents like you who work 9-5 jobs.