President Outlines $4 Billion “Computer Science For All” Education Plan

Megalith

Megalith

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The president is seeking billions from Congress to ensure that students are competitive in a job market that rewards technological know-how.

The president had mentioned the need for broader access to computer science classes in his State of the Union address earlier this month, but had not provided much in the way of details until Saturday’s announcement. If Congress approves the president’s budget request, the $4 billion would be doled out over a period of three years to any state that applies for the funds and has a well-designed plan to expand access to computer science courses, especially for girls and minorities.
 
Stiletto said:
...because some animals are more equal than others.
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Word choice?

I think there needs to be a much bigger emphasis on giving people REAL skills when they get out of high school. Computer programing is fun, but unless you involve yourself in a very specific hobby or line of work, it's really useless day to day.

Instead we should bring back vocational schools so that kids can learn how to build stuff or repair stuff. instead of this general philosophy we have where we expose them to everything, knowing that the majority of adults will never need stuff like calculus and chemistry. I know the knee-jerk reaction will be there.
 
I support this idea the basic programming will play in nicely with math and this will teach the children that their mobile device is not the only computing device that ever existed
 
This is a great idea. The sooner you teach kids this stuff, the more they'll advance the field.
 
Despotes said:
Who has reps in the field? Our talents, skills and work ethic are our best reps.
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Yeah, you go with that. I've been in this field for decades, and there are plenty of Wally's in the field that keep their jobs. i can't recall a single woman that was like that.
 
This is really good, we have been looking to hire some developers in my office. 90% of our applicants are HB1(Indian and Asain) applicants. I am all for hiring any qualified candidate but I've just been so surprised how few citizens have applied for open positions. I know that US born STEM graduates have been dropping significantly over the years. Hopefully this sparks new life into the STEM programs.
 
Smashing Young Man said:
Maybe men are better suited to the work.
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While I agree that there are certain jobs that are better suited for a particular gender, I don't think computer programming is one of them. Where I work at the moment, there are many female who does development task. My department which involve in production application and it's backend system is about 50:50 when it comes to gender. Data center department, yes most of the are guys.
 
Congress won't approve the request. Still, it's pretty sad that 22 states have to be bribed to consider computer science a valid field for high school students to study.
 
westrock2000 said:
Word choice?

I think there needs to be a much bigger emphasis on giving people REAL skills when they get out of high school. Computer programing is fun, but unless you involve yourself in a very specific hobby or line of work, it's really useless day to day.

Instead we should bring back vocational schools so that kids can learn how to build stuff or repair stuff. instead of this general philosophy we have where we expose them to everything, knowing that the majority of adults will never need stuff like calculus and chemistry. I know the knee-jerk reaction will be there.
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Programming skills are never useless.
Real world scenario: Can't find the right software for what you want to do today, create it yourself. I do this all the time and I do not have a job as a programmer but still use the skills all the time and never once regretted learning it.
 
cyclone3d said:
More appropriately - more redistribution of wealth - a.k.a money stolen from those who actually work.
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It's not stealing! It's the government, and the government never breaks the law. They can't! It's against the law! Also circular logic is not a real thing!
 
Stiletto said:
And government money will solve that problem. Just like it solves everything else.
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So I assume you went to private school and if you went to college it was a private college and you didn't accept any subsidized loans or grants.
 
nilepez said:
So I assume you went to private school and if you went to college it was a private college and you didn't accept any subsidized loans or grants.
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So subsidized college debt combined with the skyrocketing costs of state-run universities resulting in a vicious cycle of corrupt administrators turning college education into economic slavery is something that you think has been a benefit to the American public?
 
Stiletto said:
So subsidized college debt combined with the skyrocketing costs of state-run universities resulting in a vicious cycle of corrupt administrators turning college education into economic slavery is something that you think has been a benefit to the American public?
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Yes.
 
well that just is great that means my low paying job might become even lower.
 
Stiletto said:
So subsidized college debt combined with the skyrocketing costs of state-run universities resulting in a vicious cycle of corrupt administrators turning college education into economic slavery is something that you think has been a benefit to the American public?
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Nice how you didn't answer the question.
 
nilepez said:
Nice how you didn't answer the question.
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It hasn't been detrimental. Take a look at the graduation rates. You're safe until you leave/graduate. The drop rate after funds are released in the beginning of semesters is insane.
 
The USA is 18 trillion in debt and doesn't have 2 nickels to rub together, never mind 4 billion.
 
TheBuzzer said:
well that just is great that means my low paying job might become even lower.
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Teaching programming in school isn't going to turn everyone into a programmer. Just like how teaching physics and calculus in school isn't going to turn everyone into a scientist or mathematicians.

These subjects are taught to improve a person's ability in logical thinking, making logical deduction, and problem solving.
 
I teach programming in local community college. Plenty of minorities. Women not so much.
 
westrock2000 said:
Word choice?

I think there needs to be a much bigger emphasis on giving people REAL skills when they get out of high school. Computer programing is fun, but unless you involve yourself in a very specific hobby or line of work, it's really useless day to day.

Instead we should bring back vocational schools so that kids can learn how to build stuff or repair stuff. instead of this general philosophy we have where we expose them to everything, knowing that the majority of adults will never need stuff like calculus and chemistry. I know the knee-jerk reaction will be there.
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Calculus is useful.
 
From Mike Rowe

"Off The Wall

Bernie Sanders tweets, “At the end of the day, providing a path to go to college is a helluva lot cheaper than putting people on a path to jail.”

I wonder sometimes, if the best way to question the increasingly dangerous idea that a college education is the best path for the most people, is to stop fighting the sentiment directly, and simply shine a light on the knuckleheads who continue to perpetuate this nonsense. This latest tweet from Bernie Sanders is a prime example. In less than 140 characters, he’s managed to imply that a path to prison is the most likely alternative to a path to college. Pardon my acronym, but...WTF!?

Historically, universities have promoted themselves at the expense of many other forms of “alternative education.” The implicit suggestion, reinforced daily by a generation of well-intended guidance counselors and misguided parents, is always the same - get yourself a four-year degree, or accept one of the many “vocational consolation prizes” that result from all other forms of “lesser knowledge.”

It’s a cautionary tale as predictable as it is false. But now, as people are slowly starting to understand the obscenity of 1.3 trillion dollars in student loans, along with the abundance of opportunity for those with the proper training, it seems the proponents of “college for all” need something even more frightening than the prospect of a career in the trades to frighten the next class into signing on the dotted line. According to Senator Sanders, that “something,” is a path to jail.

I try not to be political on this page, because the truth is, arrogance and elitism are alive and well in every corner of every party - especially with respect to this topic. But I have to admit, this is the first time I’ve seen an elected official support the hyper-inflated cost of a diploma by juxtaposing it with the hyper-inflated cost of incarceration. Honestly, I’m not sure what to make of it.

Is it possible that Senator Sanders doesn’t realize the number of college graduates with criminal records? Is he unaware of the millions of successful tradespeople and entrepreneurs who didn’t pay for a sheepskin, but somehow managed to stay of the clink? Does he not recognize that comments like his will encourage more kids who are better suited for an alternative path to borrow vast sums of money they’ll never be able to pay back in order to pay for a degree that won’t get them a job?

Maybe not. Maybe the 140 character limit has doomed him to be misunderstood or taken out of context. Certainly, it’s happened to me. But regardless, the damage is in the headline, and Twitter is nothing but headlines. The truth, in my opinion, is this: There is no alternative for an education, and no hope for a person who doesn’t want to learn something useful and apply it. But there are many, many alternatives to college. And none of them come with a prison sentence.

Anyway, I’m in no position to judge. After all, I’m going LIVE on Facebook at 5pm PT to raise money for Work Ethic Scholarships by singing The Grinch and selling a collectible Bobblehead. http://offer.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewBids&item=262187528284&showauto=true

So really, what do I know? "
 
Here's the problem, as society continues to push college (bachelors) as the new high school diploma, the masters becomes the new bachelors and so on. Assuming someone goes full time, they are now getting out of school with no job experience, no life experience and nothing but an "educators" view of the world. They are 25 /26 still living at home, have a masters degree and think that the real world actually works the same way their liberal, progressive professors told them it does. They bring in new fancy terms, scrum, six sigma, lean, etc and convince management that they can change the world. They work for lower salary's because they don't know any better, do nothing to actually benefit the company; just generate reports on how inefficient eveyone else is. They then convince management that all the problems can be fixed by reorganizing, they become directors, division heads, etc.. This continues and they hire their college cronies, by making the job posting / requirements Masters, buzz word of the day. The do this for a couple of years causing the people who actually work to become disillusioned and frustrated because they can't move up, because they are not qualified. Cycle repeats into perpetuality.
Most of this could be solved by developing a testing methodology similar to the asvab, or armed services vocational aptitude battery test. That test shows where someone has an actual skill set. Once that is determined, then that person can be directed into an area where they actually provide benefit to society. We(society) can then use those determinations to return jobs to America, continue to develop better technologies, etc. We can then be once again the dominate country on earth and dictate how the rest of the world needs to come up to our standards. Or we can simply get out of other countries affairs and let them with and die off or innovate and survive, just with out the American tit to suckle at.
 
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