Education: Ideas for an Ideal Classroom

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Having a fair memory of my formal educational experiences, and having both read about and heard from kids about what kids face in schools today compared to my somewhat more peaceful educational times in the late 1950's and early 1960's, before the big social revolution of the "hippies" * came along I've been thinking about what the ideal classroom might be like.

Such a classrom idea would require a radical turn around in our national thinking about what's most important to spend the larger part our national dollars on.

One idea I've been toying around with, is having 4 teachers per class of 30 students, and I'd want the following qualifications in addition to their teaching specialty/specialties:

One should be a scholarly type.

Two should have experience as an employer.

Three should have experience working for an employer.

Four should have military and/or civilian police experience.

There should be two males and two females in the class, with preference for the ladies to be Moms themselves. Likewise, preference for Fathers for the guys.

I feel that in an ideal world, that's how I'd run a school. Such a classroom would be a far cry from the harassed and underpaid world that so many teachers face today, and we can't, in my opinion, continue on the road we're on in altogether too many of our American school systems.

If anyone has what they feel are better ideas, share them with us and let's debate about them.

Naturally, an ideal system of any kind will take time to maifest, but gathering ideas and sifting them out now ... well, forewarned is forearmed.

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(*) I was a "late" hippie, didn't drop out until 1972, 5 years after the late former Eagle Scout and later SF digger Ron Thelin, founder of the Haight Ashbury Psychedelic Shop, had with his fellow diggers and hippies celebrated "the death of hippie."

Sorry.
Got the wrong number.

What's the reasoning behind this one? Classroom control?

I know this is outdated etc... but I think it would be worthwhile having an ethical influence. eg: not necessarily a priest or nun, but someone who has good values. I'm also of the opinion that to achieve proper balance there should be a single or divorced person - that might help them to understand situations that the kids may be in.

Ideas for an ideal classroom:

Have none.

Here's an idea, put less emphasis on sports teams and such things, and instead of working to condition children to be robots, teach them individuality and allow them to actually develope their own intellect. The current structure of the education system is too anti-individual and too anti-intellectual.
I think ethics should be taught in school too, particularly secular ethics, critical thinking, these are, after all, the things that make us human....... Sadly, these things are silently scorned in today's society, in favor of negative values such as group think and group identity, ignorance, selfishness, ego, elitism, apathy, stupidity, etc. which are actually silently or sub-consciously VALUED now... Our system of ethnics in this nation is ass backwards, and counter-productive to the survival and well being of the whole. It's called indoctrination.
You can fill a kid's head with all the book smarts in the world, even if they pass their tests it doesn't mean they understand what they were being tested on, it means they can read a text book enough to find an answer. I think we should start smaller, teaching human basics, before extending into fields such as science, math, history, etc. Basically, the entire education system needs to be reformed in a major way.

I also think it's important to teach life skills. You can call it old-fashioned as much as you like, but it's so important to know how to cook healthy food and decent meals, how to work out your finances and make money, how to clean, how to mend clothes, etc.

So many health problems would be solved if kids knew how to cook a proper, healthy meal for themselves. Most I know were never taught at school, they weren't taught by their parents, so they just eat takeaways as they literally don't know how to cook food. Then they wonder why they get sick. One of my friends recently asked me "How do you make a salad?" - how bad is that?! (I'm 21 by the way).

ideas for the classroom? dissolve it.

the modern educational system isn't designed to educate. it's designed to prepare children for menial jobs through routine, repetition, and lack of serious stimulation. they tell you to sit down, be quiet, and don't be disruptive. you have to ask permission to use the bathroom.

if the classroom wants any hope of actually educating, it actually has to offer some input and stimulation from the students. this is of course depends just as much from the students as it does from the teachers. and how can you make kids interested in a place they don't want to be in to begin with.

Here's some thoughts that have been evolving, and I see in your replies some of the roots for these evolutions.

The big problem of getting the purpose of education back on track is half the issue; this is only the other half. Both halves of the issue have to be dealt with for the whole system to work properly.

This plan might help with the evolvution the first half of the issue, too.

This could work, it wouldn't have to be an employment, i.e., this could start initially without any additional public expenditure. This could begin as a volunteer system.

Retired personnel represented a large, un-tapped pool.

We would not need a preference for married; the point of single & divorced for the overall variety is well taken.

We could start with the fact that we have a teacher. We send in, on a rotating basis, 3 volunteers from each of the four "social groups."

They doesn't have to be a "policeman" in the class every day, for example, see below. But, rotating exposure of 4 groupings of "teacher's assistants" would help create a stable and more family-like environment in the classroom.

It would also give children exposure to people with real world experience in the various fields of employment. This would be another positive. as they get only an occasional visit from the real world in the current everyday classroom.

There are many retired folk who could volunteer; the fact that no one person shoulders all the classroom pressure under this system is a positive.

The Firefighter, Soldier, Sailor, Airman and Police, and general Employers; these services can provide active personnel on "sabatical."

Tax credits could be given to encourage active personnel, services and businesses. The rewards for the business world would be large.

Many teachers need additional education, so co-operation between "University" and the primary and secondary school system needs to develop. A teacher should be able to get sabatical to attend "free" educational "upgrade" classes.

Making all this an actuality would depend on getting strong, well educated personalities into the PTA. This organization is currenly ineffective overall, but the one my parents world had was very effective, and saw to it that the school was very well run on a general educational basis.

The parents are the clue to the whole thing, they would be the first group to convince; being as they are also voters, after that the politicians shouldn't be too much trouble.

Details would have to be worked out, how long each volunteer spends, one week, a month, we would want to be flexible on scheduling.

This could be a win-win situation.

How do you feel about it?

I think a Multiple Intelligence classroom, a la Thomas Armstrong, would be ideal for aspies.

If I could set up an elem school, I would have different classes for different subjects grouped by abilities, so all the kids who are good in math, for instance, can go to say a division or algebra class and work at more or less their own level regardless of their age. The kids who are still on addition or number concepts can work at their level and get the basics that they need in order to go on to the next.

Students could move up or down depending on their progress.

This would hold true for p.e. as well, where kids who can already throw and catch can work on batting, hitting targets, or whatever, while the kids who are still trying to throw the ball can get the basics that they are lacking, regardless of age.

Plus I would add a social skills (interpersonal skills) component, and intrapersonal skills (knowing yourself) component, etc. etc. to cover all the different Intelligences that really aren't explicitly taught, but need to be, in our current educational system.

I completely agree.
There is too much emphasis on grades and hardly enough on life skills.
If people learn't how to cook food in a healthy and hygenic way, a lot of illnesses would be prevented and hospitals would be less full of people with food poisoning. Obesity rates would be decreased also as people would know the importance of nutrition.

As far as managing money goes, I think that high schools should teach this. There would be less people on welfare as they would know how to manage their money.
Also, classrooms should be smaller and more attention paid to the students. That way, if any extra help is needed, it is noticed and not passed by. Also, if children are gifted it will be noticed and they can be moved into a higher level of learning.

I disagree. Those are things the parents should do, the schools can't spread themselves that thin.

Indeed. Most schools already can't make people competent at academic subjects without adding that to the mix.