Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I actually agree. What is the point of learning about Art history in school if you can go to the Louvre?
IMO, except for law school and med school, college is for connections. The Rich already have connections, so why pay for it? I'd much rather finance a trip around the whole where my child could actually have amazing life experiences vs getting wasted at a frat party every weekend.

What is the point of learning about biology and ecology in school if you can go walk in a forest?

Because you can't derive everything yourself from first principles. Clearly you are not a scientist. Stand on the shoulders of giants. But to do this you must know who the giants are.

All of this also applies to art history.

Look up unCollege.

Anonymous wrote:I agree with the OP and the "old money" people he talks to. I am highly educated (PhD) and wealthy and I think the smartest people in society do well to skip college as much as possible. It holds smart people back mostly because of the professors embedded in universities. When you consider the amount of money of costs, the education your kids are REALLY getting from grad students and washed-up elitist profs, it really isn't worth it a lot of the time. Also, advancement moves faster than the educational system can keep up with up. Only industry can keep up with it - in many case (oil, tech, business, etc.) English major? Poly Sci? fine go to college, but many other tracks? figure something else out.

Completely agree. When I reflect back on certain classes, and I received A's in those classes, but they were worthless as to true education, and worthless too with regard to mentoring, connection etc. it is unfortunate I paid for it, and kept paying for it afterward with loans. It was trendy faddish theory stuff, pushed in a propaganda style that allowed for no evaluation that might deviate from the profs preordained conclusions. Not worth the time or money spent.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I actually agree. What is the point of learning about Art history in school if you can go to the Louvre?
IMO, except for law school and med school, college is for connections. The Rich already have connections, so why pay for it? I'd much rather finance a trip around the whole where my child could actually have amazing life experiences vs getting wasted at a frat party every weekend.

What is the point of learning about biology and ecology in school if you can go walk in a forest?

Because you can't derive everything yourself from first principles. Clearly you are not a scientist. Stand on the shoulders of giants. But to do this you must know who the giants are.

What the hell...word salad?

Insert pricinple of logic. Add insult. Add cliche. Add bromide. Rinse repeat.

You just summed up pretty much everything OP has posted in the thread thus far.

I agree with the OP and the "old money" people he talks to. I am highly educated (PhD) and wealthy and I think the smartest people in society do well to skip college as much as possible. It holds smart people back mostly because of the professors embedded in universities. When you consider the amount of money of costs, the education your kids are REALLY getting from grad students and washed-up elitist profs, it really isn't worth it a lot of the time. Also, advancement moves faster than the educational system can keep up with up. Only industry can keep up with it - in many case (oil, tech, business, etc.) English major? Poly Sci? fine go to college, but many other tracks? figure something else out.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why do they despise college as an institution?

Typical Silcon Valley BS. They despise all of the instituions (education, government, religion, whatever) and are sure that they can do it better because they are really smart. It doesn't occur to them that there are really smart people outside of Silcon Valley, too.

And they seem to also miss the fact that most of the smart people there went to college. I think what they want are those super-coders who don't need college to code well and come up with the next great idea. The problem with that is a great idea doesn't make money if you can't execute the great idea, have a business plan, good internal ops, sales people, etc. And the rest of these people probably do need to go to college to run a solid business and be profitable. Very rarely you will find successful business people that don't have a degree these days.

It's dunning kreuger. Most people aren't that smart, period. In the valley, on Wall Street, on Main Street, in academia....most people aren't smart.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I actually agree. What is the point of learning about Art history in school if you can go to the Louvre?
IMO, except for law school and med school, college is for connections. The Rich already have connections, so why pay for it? I'd much rather finance a trip around the whole where my child could actually have amazing life experiences vs getting wasted at a frat party every weekend.

What is the point of learning about biology and ecology in school if you can go walk in a forest?

Because you can't derive everything yourself from first principles. Clearly you are not a scientist. Stand on the shoulders of giants. But to do this you must know who the giants are.

What the hell...word salad?

Insert pricinple of logic. Add insult. Add cliche. Add bromide. Rinse repeat.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Teach your kid a skill that can't be outsourced to places like China or Mexico. There will always be a need for plumbers, electricians, brick masons, and auto mechanics. The electrician next door is probably better off than his lawyer neighbor.

I don't see much of the work that symbolic analysts do--which is what people who go to elite colleges are learning how to do--being outsourced to China or Mexico. Strategy, analysis, management... You can easily outsource data crunching, assembly, and repetitive tasks, but you can't run an organization (I don't mean staff an organization, I mean run it) without people who know how to think and to lead and who can set a direction and make decisions. Those are skills, just as plumbing and masonry are skills.

And you can easily insource trades. Bridge building and civil engineering from China, electrical working, plumbing, and carpentry from Mexico, welding from the Philippines, etc etc etc

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why do they despise college as an institution?

Typical Silcon Valley BS. They despise all of the instituions (education, government, religion, whatever) and are sure that they can do it better because they are really smart. It doesn't occur to them that there are really smart people outside of Silcon Valley, too.

And they seem to also miss the fact that most of the smart people there went to college. I think what they want are those super-coders who don't need college to code well and come up with the next great idea. The problem with that is a great idea doesn't make money if you can't execute the great idea, have a business plan, good internal ops, sales people, etc. And the rest of these people probably do need to go to college to run a solid business and be profitable. Very rarely you will find successful business people that don't have a degree these days.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I actually agree. What is the point of learning about Art history in school if you can go to the Louvre?
IMO, except for law school and med school, college is for connections. The Rich already have connections, so why pay for it? I'd much rather finance a trip around the whole where my child could actually have amazing life experiences vs getting wasted at a frat party every weekend.

What is the point of learning about biology and ecology in school if you can go walk in a forest?

Because you can't derive everything yourself from first principles. Clearly you are not a scientist. Stand on the shoulders of giants. But to do this you must know who the giants are.

Anonymous wrote:I actually agree. What is the point of learning about Art history in school if you can go to the Louvre?
IMO, except for law school and med school, college is for connections. The Rich already have connections, so why pay for it? I'd much rather finance a trip around the whole where my child could actually have amazing life experiences vs getting wasted at a frat party every weekend.

What is the point of learning about biology and ecology in school if you can go walk in a forest?

Sure, OP. I can definitely see that the gods of Silicon Valley are so beyond college:

http://www.npr.org/2015/05/10/405694832/in-palo-altos-high-pressure-schools-suicides-lead-to-soul-searching

That's why these kids are literally killing themselves to get into a good school, right?

OP must be shilling for a MOOC startup.

I actually agree. What is the point of learning about Art history in school if you can go to the Louvre?
IMO, except for law school and med school, college is for connections. The Rich already have connections, so why pay for it? I'd much rather finance a trip around the whole where my child could actually have amazing life experiences vs getting wasted at a frat party every weekend.

Anonymous wrote:OP, are any families in your circle doing Montessori? Seems like the best current education model to develop those unconventional thinking skills.

I did Montessori with my kids. It's very over-sold.