Posts by jp1692

I’m sorry for your loss. Your aunt was a very positive and helpful person. I really appreciated her thoughtful and encouraging posts when I first came to this forum after leaving the cult a decade ago.

89

Do You Think “Higher Education “Is All That??

by minimus in

jw
friends

as jehovah’s witnesses, we were regularly told how awful a college education is.

i’m no longer associated with the religion but i am not so pro university.

it’s not because i think you are better off without a degree.

jp1692

Reading through the comments on this thread has been quite "educational."

As a professional educator*, I have a few questions for those of you that have a skeptical and/or negative view of higher education:

What do you think a good, basic, foundational education should include?
What specific subjects, skills and content knowledge should be included? In other words, what exactly should young people know and be able to do upon completion of their basic education?
Should this basic education be compulsory?
At what age should students finish or be able to opt-out?

Thanks in advance.

jp

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* Full Disclosure: I have been an educator in the United States for over 20 years. During that time I have taught every grade 1st - 12th, both primary and secondary levels. Over the years, I have taught many different subjects. My specialty now is teaching the sciences at the secondary level (aka "High School" in the US): Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Earth Sciences, and Astronomy.

95

Greta Thunberg...what’s your view of her?

by minimus in

jw
friends

she certainly is passionate about climate change.

🤔.

jp1692

Simon: I think you're repeating what you've been told.

You think wrong.

95

Greta Thunberg...what’s your view of her?

by minimus in

jw
friends

she certainly is passionate about climate change.

🤔.

jp1692

Cofty: She is as certain of her cause as I was about the imminent end of the world when I was 16.

Interesting comparison. The difference being the world didn't end as JW's predicted, and climate change and other environmental issues are real concerns.

Activism can lead to real, tangible change whereas handing out WT and Awake! magazines rarely, if ever, led to real improvements in anyone's life and generally wreaked havoc on most people's personal lives.

95

Greta Thunberg...what’s your view of her?

by minimus in

jw
friends

she certainly is passionate about climate change.

🤔.

jp1692

Well, she sure knows how to throw some major shade at Donald Trump!

That's what he gets for picking on a 16-year old girl with Asperger's!

#BeBest

27

Scowled At By A JW

by pale.emperor in

yesterday i got home from work and decided to buy a case of beer because, why not?

it’s monday.

the shop is conveniently round the corner from my place.

jp1692

Cofty: I love watching reactions to a big friendly 'hello', especially when they respond before they realise who you are.

Living well is truly the best revenge!

89

Do You Think “Higher Education “Is All That??

by minimus in

jw
friends

as jehovah’s witnesses, we were regularly told how awful a college education is.

i’m no longer associated with the religion but i am not so pro university.

it’s not because i think you are better off without a degree.

jp1692

S&R: Higher education isn't for everyone, but from my experience it is the most life changing activity I have participated in.

I completely and totally agree with this statement!

89

Do You Think “Higher Education “Is All That??

by minimus in

jw
friends

as jehovah’s witnesses, we were regularly told how awful a college education is.

i’m no longer associated with the religion but i am not so pro university.

it’s not because i think you are better off without a degree.

jp1692

As a high school teacher with multiple degrees, including a Masters of Education, I'm clearly biased in favor of higher education, but only because I have both personally enjoyed the many benefits that can come from it as well as seen them in many other people—family, friends, former students and even strangers.

College isn't for everyone, but the fact is that for most people and most disciplines it will increase a person's employability, earning power and general life satisfaction as a result of their education.

There are many reasons why everyone should seriously consider the merits of a college education:

For example, a 2013 study based on Labor Department statistics showed that Americans holding a four-year college degree made 98% more per hour on average than those without a degree. - (CNN Money)

More recently, according to 2015 data compiled by the Economic Policy Institute, "college graduates, on average, earned 56% more" than those who only have a high-school diploma (USA Today).

Some will respond by pointing out the millionaire they know that never went to college or the barista with a PhD working at Starbucks. Those exceptions certainly exist, but only prove the point. College isn't for everyone, and anyone considering it should carefully choose their subject matter. A degree in medieval art history is not going to get anyone the kind of job offers that an MBA or an engineering degree will provide.

Also, the critical and diverse thinking skills that higher education provides is worth much that cannot easily be evaluated in monetary terms.

Learning to think critically and independently is invaluable in and of itself. The fact that cults (such as Jehovah's Witnesses) actively discourage higher education is evidence that they realize educated people are not so easily mislead or indoctrinated. So there's that!

While we are at it, let's take some time to consider that finding a career or vocation is more than just work, but is actually meaningful and rewarding in more ways than just monetary:

7 lessons about finding the work you were meant to do - Kate Torgovnick May discusses Dave Isay’s new book, Callings: The Purpose and Passion of Work