#what's wrong with the education system

[flutterbloom]

This is a rant read it if you'd like.

Yesterday I had to take a speaking test which will make up 20% of my final exam. It is the first year that this new testing system has been implemented where there's an extra test or two for every subject that a student has chosen and most of them will make up 40% of the subjests final exam (besides math and the native language which have two tests and each makes up 20%).

While I understand the intention of these tests that we as students should take studying seriously but this new testing system was beyond rushed. I will mostly focus my thoughts on the speaking one but I will give a quick overview of the overall negative aspects first.

Firstly with the new tests came new programs. Teachers were not given the proper tools to prepare us. There were no new textbooks. They barely even started creating them when the new programs were implemented! Hovewer the teachers are doing a wonderful job trying to educate us in this havoc but I have definitely noticed how the quality of teaching in certain subjects has dropped since everything's been mixed up and we need to work from our older textbooks (which are perfectly fine and very clear in my oppinion).

Secondly the new tests were rushed. Currently I'm talking about the math one. Mistakes were found in the questions, they were made too difficult based on what we were studying, there wasn't enough time... And as a result we will be getting a better score? A few extra points? Sure this sounds great but do we realise how wrong this is? There shouldn't have been any mistakes in the first place for this to happen! And how will this even work? Will we all just get a +1 or +2 or will they have to check what we wrote in certain questions? It's all such a mess and such a joke.

This whole situation makes me worried about what to expect from the upcoming tests and our future. Because what does this say to us? That because of other peoples mistakes we have to blame ourselves for not doing better? Needless to say that these people are supposed to be responcible for upbringing a well educated youth out into the world!

Now that I'm done spewing my thoughts about the overall situation I will talk about the speaking test. Before I do I want to say that I think I did ok on the speaking part so that this whole thing doesn't sound like "I did bad so all of this is bad".

Basically we had 20min to read the text and prepare a 5min speech based on it. The text was displayed on the computer but we had the ability to print it out. This is where the problems start like the printer not working or other technical difficulties. That didn't happen to me fortunately but it still could've happened to someone else. This would've greatly affected the students ability to prepare and in such a short notice. Secondly the teachers didn't even know the testing criteria until there was very little time left until the test. Preparations were also difficult since how can you help each individual to perfect their speaking from a class of 30+ students? Again this was a mess.

The main thing I don't get about this specific test is what does it even test? Sure it's your ability to quickly make a high quality speech but if you really think about it this sounds like they're testing the students ability to do their homework that they didn't do during a 20min break. And we had exactly that much time to prepare. Besides how can you judge a student based on their rushed speech? We had to prepare a speech last year and you could see that the students worked really hard on perfecting it in order to get the highest mark and I was one of them. I started working on it quite early, I went to talk with the teacher about what I could improve, I researched and re-read books because I wanted to do the best I can. Now compare all of that time and preparation to 20 minutes. Again how can you judge a student and their potential based on this? Ofcourse there will be mistakes and some things left out or unmentioned even if you had made notes because it's stressfull and in a way unfair! Unfair in the sence that some students know they won't be able to do well in such a short notice. This doesn't mean they're dumb or not responcible if they are fully capable and willing on doing something well with enough time given. I'm sure that this whole thing left many worried, dissatisfied with themselves and brought a lot of unnecessary stress.

To conclude this whole thing is a mess. We are the only ones who will have the ability to retake all of the tests exept for the speaking one since it's the first year they've been implemented. I wish the best of luck for the next year students who will have to deal with this. Or maybe by some miracle they won't have to.

[stygiansauce]

hi hihihihi

i just learned that an athlete i started following a couple of years ago is dating her teammate (who the internet shipped her with at the time i started following). They did a photoshoot/interview for pride month in white suit/dress like a wedding (sort of discussing the need for marriage equality in their country)

it made me think of how crazy the rpf-ers would go for ranchers coming out…

images are generating in my head of ranchers doing stuff for pride

-🥫

HI soup!!!!

That's amazing! I'm so glad more athletes are coming out and finding comfort in their sports and communities to be able to do that. I know Bidoof has been doing a lot of research about Gay men that are out in their various sports, and its a SAD number compared to the women.

I don't know enough yet to try and educate you guys about it. but PLEASE look into the statistics in your free time. The ratios say a lot about how sports communities view gay men compared to gay women. Who do they take more seriously and why? that kind of thing. Happy Pride month! let's try and use Sports au summer to bring awareness and support to LGBTQIA+ in Sports <3

For sticks? yeah the Rpfers go freaking insane. its a mega "I told you so!" moment and Jimmy laughs the whole time.

[c1trvswurld]

Personally like to think when hanzo just joined overwatch he was very standoffish and whenever he'd join the conversation he'd say the most incredibly rude and out of pocket shit ever on of the basis of being blunt and true and get suprised when everyone gets silent and stares at him

[literallylovelynosolaire]

Just found out singlets are acting fucking freaked out about Antinous alters, gonna go fucking kms !

It's 1am I cannot rn guys what the FREAK

[garlandgerard]

i'm thinking about what gi-hun and in-ho's homestuck god tier titles would be. for those who aren't insufferable like me, a brief explanation:

god tiers in homestuck are like ultimate challenges a person has to overcome. in order to reach god tier, you must learn to master the problem that a god tier title (represented by a class, like knight or bard, and an aspect, like time or life) represents

the two parts of one title work in tandem: the class affects how the aspect manifests, and the aspect affects how the player behaves as their class

for example, a knight of blood is going to act radically different from a knight of rage despite both being knights—while the knight always overcompensates for a perceived lack of their aspect by greatly exaggerating the aspect within themselves, for a blood player that means desperately insisting on leading their group (blood is symbolic of interpersonal relationships) despite feeling inadequate to actually perform the task. for a rage player that would mean lashing out to protect their vulnerabilities (as rage is symbolic for, well, negative emotions like anger), despite not naturally being an angry person

and although a prince of mind and a sylph of mind both share the aspect of mind (symbolising rational thought, mental proficiency and logic), they treat their aspect very differently—princes destroy their aspect within others, or destroy things with their aspect, meaning a prince of mind is a cunning individual who can manipulate others into acting irrationally, or literally breaking someone's mind using their own intellect and rhetorical prowess. a sylph, on the other hand, heals their aspect in others, and heals others using their aspect, meaning they are more like a therapist or an older mentor figure that gives wise advice (although a sylph's undoing is their inability to let go of their aspect, meaning a lot of their help is unsollicited or unwanted)

for in-ho, i would instinctively assign him the aspect of heart. heart is about identity and one's own emotions. possessing the heart aspect means that your main personal problem revolves around your identity and where you stand in relation to others. many of the heart players in the homestuck canon have a fragmented sense of self for this reason. this would make sense for in-ho, who buries his true self under figurative and literal masks and alter egos—to the point where he is probably unsure of whom he is anymore. not sure about his class yet, although bard sounds logical for him, since bards cause destruction with their aspect, or cause the destruction of their aspect proper—like princes, but passively

for gi-hun, my first thought was blood, but i honestly don't think that fits, because his relationships with others and his ability to create unity is not actually a problem for him; it's one of his defining characteristics, i'd say. given the developments of season two, i'm tempted to give him the doom aspect instead, as doom symbolises the choices we make, and the uncertaintly surrounding those choices and their outcomes, and goddamn if that isn't gi-hun's nemesis currently. i'd have to properly sit down to think about it (when it isn't nearly 3am)

so, ahem. i am normal again

[comas-are-for-sleeping]

comms class teaching me more about intersex ppl than i have in any class my whole entire life

[can-of-w0rmz]

I have a really vivid memory of being like around 7 and having to do some kind of “mental health/social studies” class thing, I think mostly “how to manage your emotions” or “how does your body react to X emotion?” and stuff like that, and I remember it was mostly just questions like, “what do you do when you’re angry to manage it?” or “how does your body feel when you’re anxious?” or “who do you ask for help from when you need it?”

And I can’t remember exactly what answers I put but I just remember almost every time, the teacher coming round, looking at what I wrote and going “ummm no I don’t think that’s right 🥰” and NEVER elaborating and just moving on to everyone else’s and going “yes, that’s right!”

I have one memory of stopping the teacher and going “but why” and she just said “It just isn’t!” and then when 7 year old me went “but why” again, she just walked away

?????? I would LOVE to know what I wrote because I am 100% certain childhood me was completely and utterly truthful but also, what was the point in that mandatory class if you’re not going to explain to the kids you’re teaching why how they’re processing their emotions or interacting with the world is wrong

Anyway Alexa play Willard! by Will Wood

[meteortrails]

my epidemiology class ends tomorrow, and my MCAT is on august 4th, and we all know what that means!! time to study for LITERALLY TEN HOURS A DAY. FOR THE NEXT MONTH AND A HALF. I’m gonna die but also I’m fine but also it’s SO over. I’ll be ok there’s no way I’m getting below a 515 if I’m studying even a little every day but I WANT a 520. I need it in my soul. if I get a 520 on this one I think I might be able to pull out a 525 by next summer, which would be honestly kinda gamechanging!! and also I want it so fucking bad!!!!!

[areyoudoingthis]

I really don't wanna go to this class today the weather's lovely I'm in a good mood there's even a nice huge tree I could go write under after lunch

[keepinventory]

im so. im so. im so mad

[statusquoergo]

“Come on.”

“Uh?”

Diane looks up as Naomi stands and holds out her hand as if this isn't a ridiculously careless thing she's asking her to do, as if neither of them has the good sense to mention that neither one of them has any idea what they're getting themselves into. As if neither of them might be walking straight into a trap of their own making, or nothing much will change at all and they'll forget about each other in a month, or a few days. As if it's a risk worth taking to find out which.

As if there's anything else to do today.

“I'm not going to the hospital.”

“I know.” Naomi reaches a little closer. “I have a first aid kit at home.”

Enough to get them through, that's all. Enough for now.

“You know how to wrap it?” Diane asks as she takes Naomi's hand to pull herself up, as though the answer might change her mind somehow. Naomi smiles a little, as though she knows it just as well that it won't.

“Yeah.” She sets Diane's hand down on her shoulder. “It's not far, come on. I'll carry you down the stairs.”

“You'll drop me.”

“I will not.” Naomi urges her forward, along the concrete path out of the park. “I mean I'm just offering, I don't have to.”

It's a nice gesture, though, isn't it? It was a nice thought.

They walk slowly down the street, stepping more or less in sync past the general store with the baking supplies just past the doorway, turning at the corner to walk toward the coin laundry that's open even at three in the morning and also on holidays. A hand-drawn poster in the window of the discount shoe store across the street loudly advertises VACUUMS REFURBISHED while a Times New Roman printout on the telephone cubicle in the middle of the block offers “suitable compensation” in exchange for willing test subjects, No Questions Please; a few steps farther along stands an apartment building that somehow looks like it's missing a couple of stories, and Diane shifts her weight to her good leg as Naomi steps away to fumble with the lock on the front door.

“It's the door on the left,” Naomi says, the door sticking only slightly as she shoves it open. “When you get to the basement.”

She opens the first door on the right, a stairwell that only leads down.

“Upstairs is that door over there, but I don't know any of the neighbors, so. I'm not gonna introduce you to anyone.”

That's fine. Diane doesn't want to know any of them, either.

Naomi walks down the stairs first and doesn't try to carry her.

“Bathroom's at the end of the hall,” she says. “The taps aren't broken, the water's just cold when it's cold outside and warm when it isn't, but if you let it run for a little while, it'll...fix itself. And make sure you don't touch the water heater, it's metal and it gets really hot sometimes.”

Diane clutches the wooden banister nailed to the wall as she limps her way down and wonders how much of all this she's supposed to remember. All of it, probably. It isn't very complicated.

Naomi unlocks the door on the left and holds it open.

“You can sit on the bed.”

It's good of her to offer. It isn't much of a bed, really, more of a mattress pushed into the corner, but that isn't exactly a surprise, and it's good of her to offer all the same.

“Thanks,” Diane says, a little too late to seem quite natural. Naomi hums a disinterested acknowledgment and doesn't seem to mind.

“Take off your shoes.”

Diane promptly unties her sneakers, placing them on the floor beside the bed as Naomi kneels in front of her with a roll of ACE bandage in her hand and her eyes focused on Diane's ankle like she's the only attending physician in the entire complex who doesn't have better things to do with her time than tend to something as trivial as all this. Diane should count herself lucky the timing worked out the way that it did.

Lucky, was it? It's about time.

The single bulb in the overhead light flickers a little as if a public execution has just disrupted the power grid, or someone's turned on too many air conditioners at once and blown a fuse a few floors up.

“Don't worry about it,” Naomi says. Diane doesn't bother to assure her that she wasn't.

[almaprincess66]

Maybe it's me being queer or me being in a system that does not care for it's citisens but I cannot understand why would anybody choose to be politically uninformed.

LIKE THAT IS YOUR LIFE. THOSE ARE YOUR RIGHT!

[anarchy-and-dragons]

Keep seeing people trying to rebutt "it's not that deep, the curtains were just blue" type arguments with "yes it is, you just weren't paying attention in english class", but I feel like it's more of an issue that english class, in my experience, fundamentally does not at any point teach how to recognise or understand subtext, yet expects students to do so for their exams. Some students will figure it out and do fine, and others will figure out how to make up something that looks sufficiently like subtext and make do, and in the process internalise the idea that all analysis of subtext must be people bullshitting, since that's their only experience with it.

[hihoooomiloooo]

we all know generative ai is bad blah blah blah but I never really considered the impact it's had on kids

today i was helping in a 7th grade classroom and a page on their packet was like those MadLibs things like "my (noun) ate my (noun)" and anyway some of the kids said "I don't know what a verb is" "Milo what's an adjective?" And (5 minutes after I explained what a verb was) "what's a verb again?"

Like... These kids are in 7th grade and they don't know their parts of speech?? I had to constantly tell a kid that "me" was a pronoun and not a noun, and therefore he could not use it

And I looked over at the girl next to me to see how she was doing cause she hadn't asked me any questions and she was in chatgpt asking it for examples of verbs, adjectives, and nouns! What!! How are the kids actually learning or retaining anything?? Maybe the legal age for tiktok and shorts should be 16 what has happened to these poor children's minds

[doomdoomofdoom]

Hi there hello it's me back to be annoying because I quite like this topic and unfortunately I am a smartass.

First things first, yes! This procedure can (and has been) used to replace a uterus that was previously removed due to injury or disease. Uterine disease is even named specifically as a potential reason to justify a transplant. However, a recent cancer diagnosis may prohibit a transplant, like with other organs.

That being said, the uterus does not have much function outside of conception and pregnancy.

It's a relatively small and mobile organ, which relies much more on the surrounding structure to be held in place than vice versa. Most of your internal organs, including the reproductive system, are more or less held in place by something called the Peritoneum. The presence of the uterus makes no difference.

It also doesn't regulate hormonal balance. This is instead done by the ovaries, who also produce the egg cells. A hysterectomy usually does not include removal of ovaries, although it can be necessary, and ovaries cannot be transplanted between humans. (Mostly for ethical reasons. We can freeze ovarian tissue and implant it back into the same person later, like after an aggressive cancer treatment.)

If someone has their ovaries (or testicles, for that matter) removed, they need to substitute that hormone production through medication, since estrogens and androgens are vital to keeping our body in its cycles. They also affect bone health, which is why menopause can be a gateway to osteoporosis. Whether the uterus is still in its place has no effect on hormone production.

It's actually because the uterus doesn't serve any other purpose that we can transplant it! Uterus transplants are only performed with living donors, meaning they'll go the rest of their life without a uterus. And, since it's not a vital organ, the transplanted uterus is actually removed again from the recipient after 1-2 pregnancies! That way, they don't have to deal with the constant strain of a foreign organ in their body. (Anyone else who receives an organ transplant likely needs their donor to pass away and is required to take immunosuppressants for the rest of their life to avoid their body attacking it.)

So to recap; uterus transplants don't improve any other bodily function, but they do bring a great improvement to women who want to get pregnant but don't have a functional uterus. That's actually phenomenal!

A fucking womb transplant, what an incredible thing. Fair play to all involved. A positive news story amidst all the dire shite.

[justsaying4041]

What's wrong in public school education and how can we fix it

Public school education is often criticized for failing to adequately prepare students for the demands of modern life. These criticisms stem from systemic issues, ranging from funding inequalities to outdated curricula and insufficient teacher support. While much is being done to address these challenges, significant improvements are still necessary to ensure an equitable and effective education…