Automation as substitute for training

Much attention is spent on the job-loss implications of introduction of automation to improve productivity.   Meanwhile, automation is also used for job-preservation of older workers in outdated yet still essential practices, and this too has some unfortunate implications for the future.   Eventually the simulation of an earlier age will fail catastrophically in the fact that that age no longer exists.   Alternatively, eventually we will run out of older workers who can work in that simulation.

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Testing the young-man’s hypothesis of self

My discussion here is why I criticize my 17 year old self for not being more confident about my self-assessment.   I don’t criticize my 13 year self who pretty much understood the same thing.   It is reasonable to the 13 year old to treat the assessment as a hypothesis to be tested.   The various tests attempted were all appropriate, if not not sufficient. 

Presumption of incompetence: man vs machine

Behind this messy argument is a deeper concern I have that we are doing a disservice to young people by presuming that they really do need more than a decade to learn advanced skills. We can subject young people to more intense education than we are now, and that they could have college-graduate level skills before they become 18 years old. Yet, we think that such an expectation is unwise as if it risks losing something more valuable. Perhaps we fear the young person’s loss to easy access to the presumption of innocence.

Cosmic teachers

Just like the fact that I can’t interest an advanced piano teacher doesn’t diminish the fact that such teachers exist, the fact that science can’t engage the immaterial teacher says nothing about the existence of such a teacher. The teacher is simply uninterested in engaging, and have every good reason to not engage.

Agile model for higher education, learning in sprints instead of semesters

The agile approach would subject an eligible worker to a couple weeks of intense training and testing to meet the requirements so that the worker can be available to work in a short period of time. The resulting contract will be between the client and the corporation that will take a cut of the hourly rate and then pass the remainder to the worker. The worker would be paid uniformly for the education and the assigned task.

Dedomenocratic response to free community college: Reform compulsory high school education

I agree that the current school system is not doing a good job preparing high school graduates who are well equipped to enter the job market. However, instead of extending high school for two more years through publicly funded community college, a better approach may be to end the compulsory education period at the 8th grade and then allow the educational benefits of voluntary continued studies to apply to high school years instead of waiting for the community college years. Our once more excellent high-school education was damaged by making high school universal (making it compulsory). We can restore that quality education by returning it to voluntary and provide alternative paths for those who decide they are not interested in the academic/college-prep track.