Adjusting the High School Curriculum

One last post to round out the set in response to Stop Stealing Dreams, Godin’s latest book, and then back to the regularly scheduled programing here.

There were a few ideas for alternate classes in his book. The full list was adding classes on:

1. Computer Programming
2. Fine art
3. Selling
4. Presenting ideas
5. Creative writing
6. Product development
7. Law
8. Product management
9. Leadership
10. How Old is the Earth?
11. What’s the right price to pay for this car?
12. Improv
13. How to do something no one has ever done before
14. Design and build a small house
15. Advanced software interface design

in addition to knowing the following skills:

1. Giving a presentation
2. Handling a negotiation
3. Writing marketing copy
4. Shaking hands
5. Dressing for a meeting
6. Making love
7. Analyzing statistics
8. Hiring people
9. Dealing with authority figures
10. Verbal self defense
11. Handling emotionally difficult situations

by the time you graduate.

It seemed like a large list, and I wondered if it was possible to do this in addition to the standard High School course load.

Here’s a standard course load:

Here’s the classes most people remember five years after High School:

Here’s the classes Seth Godin is proposing adding to the system:

Here’s all of those classes combined:

Here’s a feasible combination of a traditional course load, and the classes Seth Godin is suggesting:

Which would mean losing out on the following classes:

As discussed in a previous post, the real problem isn’t reshaping the curriculum, but it’s interesting to see what one potential modern curriculum might look like.

 

About Jeremy Shuback

Entertaining by way of writing, improvising, painting, teaching, and Shabbos dinners. But mostly writing. View all posts by Jeremy Shuback →

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