C_l_e_0..Q_c Posted January 23, 2013 Share Posted January 23, 2013 I'm thinking ahead to next year, or possibly the year after that. DS is now in grade 10, so time is running out! We're letting him specialize in technology computers/programming/electronics and downgrading his history/Lit/language arts classes. I'm worried he will have some holes, but I don't know how to fill them, cause I don't even know what holes I should be looking for. All I can think about is economics. But what else should I worry about? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted January 23, 2013 Share Posted January 23, 2013 history and government? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C_l_e_0..Q_c Posted January 23, 2013 Author Share Posted January 23, 2013 Funny thing, I looked at what France does (as we are French speakers). And in their social studies class for grade 12, they look at.... SOCIALISATION - how are children properly socialised? LOL... I'll pass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Punks in Ontario Posted January 23, 2013 Share Posted January 23, 2013 Are you sure it's not a typo? Socialism. That might seems more French. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C_l_e_0..Q_c Posted January 23, 2013 Author Share Posted January 23, 2013 Are you sure it's not a typo? Socialism. That might seems more French. Nope. It's definitely children socialisation through family and school. If you read French: Il paraît évident que l’établissement scolaire jouera un rôle essentiel dans la socialisation de l’enfant. Au-delà du savoir scolaire, l’école est productrice d’un lien social et régulatrice d’un certain nombre d’échanges. Par son importance et la place qu’elle occupe actuellement dans notre société, l’école est le principal espace extra-familial de mise en place des conditions externes de « fabrication » de l’être social. Pour cela, elle va **** retirer l’enfant **** à la fois de la vie sociale et du monde des adultes. Le retrait de l’enfant de l’espace privé et la transmission d’un certain nombre de connaissances particulières vont empêcher toute sorte d’identification singulière (l’identification ethnique par exemple) ainsi que la constitution de petits groupes fragmentés et sans lien entre eux. At least they're honest. They do say that school takes children OUT of the real world, and the adult world, in order to avoid the child identifying with his/her own ethnicity. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MBM Posted January 23, 2013 Share Posted January 23, 2013 We are planning my son's schedule for next year so I happen to have his course catalog handy. Fwiw, he goes to a U.S. public high school. Anyway, the following fall under Social Studies: World History Modern World History World Geography US History Political Science Topics in International Relations Popular Culture Psychology Topics of Psychology and Sociology Philosophy Economics Law and Justice Modern America Integrated Studies: History and Science Current Issues History of Art Some of them are required for graduation. A few are AP courses and some have different tracks from remedial to honors. Quite a few to choose from. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C_l_e_0..Q_c Posted January 23, 2013 Author Share Posted January 23, 2013 Is there a homeschool curriculum that would cover something like: Political Science Topics in International Relations Popular Culture Psychology Topics of Psychology and Sociology Philosophy Economics Law and Justice Current Issues That would be a great course for him! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MBM Posted January 23, 2013 Share Posted January 23, 2013 Is there a homeschool curriculum that would cover something like: Political Science Topics in International Relations Popular Culture Psychology Topics of Psychology and Sociology Philosophy Economics Law and Justice Current Issues That would be a great course for him! My son's English class. LOL! Seriously. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Candid Posted January 23, 2013 Share Posted January 23, 2013 I know nothing of the French system but in the US it is history and government for the most part. Econ would mostly be taken by a student who liked history, etc, so probably not your son. The key question is what colleges does he hope to attend, and what do they expect? You'll need that at a minimum. As an illustration, only, I went and looked at what MIT expects: One year of high school physics One year of high school chemistry One year of high school biology Math, through calculus Two years of a foreign language Four years of English Two years of history and/or social sciences In my view they are pretty open ended about the social science part. Harvard proves to be very verbose in what they require just for history: You will find that the study of history is fundamental to a liberal education, and provides you with an essential framework for much of the humanities and the social sciences. American History rightly occupies a special place in an American secondary school. It is particularly relevant to the experiences and aspirations of most American students, including those who recently arrived on our shores, since it helps to explain the character and achievements of our society. We urge you to study the age of discoveries, pre-Revolutionary North America, and the rise of the United States.American History may be the only history required of you for graduation, but it is far from enough. You need a longer and broader perspective on the modern world than is possible by studying the United States alone if you are to appreciate both the legacy of the past and what is distinctive about our own time. We strongly recommend the study of European History. Why Europe? Because Europe was the source of major ideas and institutions that have shaped the world in which we live. To function effectively in our heterogeneous society, all of us need to understand the assumptions underlying our political, social, and economic institutions. Through the study of Europe you will learn about ideas and institutions as diverse as freedom and slavery, colonialism and sovereignty, representative democracy and totalitarianism, the corporation and government regulation, and an array of ideologies including nationalism, capitalism, and socialism. By studying these ideas and institutions historically (that is, in context and through time), you learn to think about these matters analytically; to understand not only what happened by how and why. If possible, take a third year of history – perhaps a year of ancient history, or the history of an area such as Latin America, Asia, Africa, or the Middle East. An additional year of American or European History can be especially valuable. The more history you study, the more you will appreciate the complexity of human affairs, and the better you will understand other cultures – an understanding that is fundamental to citizenship in a multicultural world. Dates and places, names and events, are not trivial facts. They are the very stuff of history. "Concepts" are useless without information to back them up. If you do not know when the invention of gunpowder affected warfare, you will not fully understand the rise of nations from city states. If you are ignorant about when Commodore Perry arrived in Japan, you will not grasp the impetus for modernization in East Asia. If you are unfamiliar with the invention of the cotton gin, you will not comprehend the expansion of slavery westward in the United States. The rigorous study of history is broader and provides a more basic preparation for college work than do courses on economics, comparative government, psychology, sociology and anthropology. Most of these subjects are better deferred until college. My point, is check it out with those you must please. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C_l_e_0..Q_c Posted January 23, 2013 Author Share Posted January 23, 2013 we've covered our bases already, but it seems to me that he will be missing on important information. Not with regards to colleges, but with regards to life. In France, they study a LOT of economics for example. Locally in schools some of it would be covered too, but not to the extent that France does. I must admit that the paragraph from Harvard makes a compelling point for history.. Maybe I'll have my son read that. My question is more related to classical education, than it is to college requirements. What basic knowledge should he get, in how societies work, before I turn him loose with college? What tenets of information is necessary to make a knowledgeable thinking man, one that can follow politics, one that can understand the world he lives in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nan in Mass Posted January 23, 2013 Share Posted January 23, 2013 we've covered our bases already, but it seems to me that he will be missing on important information. Not with regards to colleges, but with regards to life. In France, they study a LOT of economics for example. Locally in schools some of it would be covered too, but not to the extent that France does. I must admit that the paragraph from Harvard makes a compelling point for history.. Maybe I'll have my son read that. My question is more related to classical education, than it is to college requirements. What basic knowledge should he get, in how societies work, before I turn him loose with college? What tenets of information is necessary to make a knowledgeable thinking man, one that can follow politics, one that can understand the world he lives in. I know what you mean. I had a list of things I wanted to teach under this heading and I stuck them in where ever they seemed to fit best. It was a funny mix of philosophy, religion, government, mediation skills, anthropology, family skills, geography, a bit of economics, advertisment-proofing, addiction-proofing, current events, nutrition, health, civics, politics, mediation skills, practical skills like how to use a subway and how to vote and how to train a dog (or anyone else) and how to figure out how much US money is worth in some other system, and... all the things I thought my particular children would need to be the sort of adult that I wanted them to be. Some things I lumped together and gave a course name and others got stuck into other, semi-related courses, but some stayed orphaned, just as something I taught but didn't give credit for. And some, of course, I didn't get to and will have to be covered later, after high school. Fortunately, my older ones are still talking to me and I (we) still have a chance to explain things. Politics, particularly, seems to fall into this catagory. Social Studies, in my old high school, consisted of history, government, sociology, psychology, anthropology, a course called "You and your rights" which seemed to also include responisibilities and would have been called civics in my mother's high school, and geography. Some other courses that I would consider to be social studies would be philosophy (this was an English elective in my high school), international relations, ethics, politics, religion, economics, and "studies" - things like women studies. Nan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nan in Mass Posted January 23, 2013 Share Posted January 23, 2013 Nope. It's definitely children socialisation through family and school. If you read French: [/size][/font][/color] At least they're honest. They do say that school takes children OUT of the real world, and the adult world, in order to avoid the child identifying with his/her own ethnicity. Hmmm... It won't let me quote the French, interestingly enough. Yes, at least they're honest. BLUNTLY honest lol. The US says similar things in a more vague way. Nobody mentions ethnicity but they definately mention socializing when school people (at least around here) talk about the function of school. "Community" is mentioned often. So I have a question for you -France won't let Muslim girls wear a veil in public school - freedom of religion apparently means freedom from religion? And it sounds like ethnicity is also being considered here? Well, what about Catholic schools? Here, when I was growing up, Catholic schools seemed to be another form of public school, at least the k-8 ones, not in the same class as private day or prep schools. I'm not sure whether this is still true. Do they have the same rules about veils? Would Muslims go to Catholic schools? Here, it is fairly common for non-Catholic parents to send their children to the local Catholic school now. Just curious, Nan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CyndiLJ Posted January 24, 2013 Share Posted January 24, 2013 I found the CTT courses to be a good option I have on my list for future social studies courses. I've really enjoyed how his Greece course ties what happened in the past to what's happening in the present. They also include a little bit of everything; philosophy, religion, current events, art, and architecture. You could try: CTT - All-Purpose Civics Course Or any of the Current Events Topics CTT - Emerging Third World Countries CTT - World Problems - Current Wars CTT - World Problems - Terrorism CTT - World Probems - Energy Concerns CTT - World Problems - Religious Intolerance CTT - World Problems - Racism CTT - World Problems - Human Rights Abuses CTT - World Problems - Global Poverty and Hunger CTT - World Problems - Environmental Concerns CTT - World Problems - Endangered Species Connect the Thoughts courses are fabulous!!! I highly recommend them to all. Very thought provoking, generally unbiased and at least makes an effort to show multiple sides of issues. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C_l_e_0..Q_c Posted January 24, 2013 Author Share Posted January 24, 2013 CTT is perfect!!! That's pretty much exactly what I was looking for! Secular, not too American centric (we're Canadians) and covers a lot of ground... Wooohooo!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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