High School Academics
Table of Contents
Today’s Classes Can’t Be Like “THE GOOD OLD DAYS!”
I often hear older people say that high school academics isn’t what it used to be and we should go back to teaching the basics. They say that students don’t learn much these days. As a retired high school teacher, mother of three kids and grandparent of two who graduated from the same high school I graduated from, I have to disagree. While it is true that it’s not what it used to be, it covers a wide range of academic needs and is much harder.
I cannot help but laugh at the subjects I took as a high school student from 1969-1973. I planned to go to college so I was enrolled in the “college prep” classes. The only two classes that taught me much that would still be relevant for high school students going to college today were Typing and Senior English. The content of my other classes is now often taught in junior high.
My children’s classes were much harder than mine. My math classes were Algebra 1 & 2. My science classes were Biology 1 & 2. Their classes included Geometry, Calculus, Physics, Chemistry and Advanced Biology. Think of all the scientific discoveries that needed to be taught since I graduated in 1973.
Their American History classes covered so much more than mine just because of the sheer amount of historical events that happened after I was out of school.
They learned to navigate various computer software programs that didn’t exist when I was in school.
My oldest had the opportunity to actually take classes at a local college as a high school student. By doing that, combined with taking Advanced Placement classes and passing their end-of-year exams, she graduated from high school with 21 college credits!
Grades – 1969-1973
My grade cards help me remember what I took. You will notice that I did not excel in most classes. The grading scale was:
- E=A
- S=B
- M=C
- I=D
- F=F
- P=Passed
These report cards are from my freshman year. My favorite class was Typing. It was super easy for me. My teacher thought maybe it was because I played the piano.
The comment from my Spanish teacher makes me laugh now. “Leslie is a good student. However, on some days she appears to have a slightly negative attitude.” I doubt my parents found the comment amusing!
Obviously I was not much of an athlete as seen by my PE grades. I’m hoping that I’m a better driver than my Driver’s Ed grades indicate. Driver’s Ed was not offered when my children were in school.
I worked really hard to be able to write Shorthand at 120 words per minute. Modern technology has rendered that class obsolete. Bookkeeping served me well so I made all three of my children to take accounting.
After taking two years of Spanish, about all I remember is el aqua and la leche!
Business Classes I Taught – 1995-2013
I started teaching business classes in 1995. I began near the end of the second semester filling in for a teacher on maternity leave. Speed Writing was one of the classes. Thankfully it was near the end of the semester as I did not know Speed Writing. It was taught to replace outdated shorthand. The following semester Speed Writing was dropped. With modern recording devices, it was no longer relevant. Today’s kids use “speed writing” when texting.
Typing was quickly replaced by Keyboarding and then by Computer Applications. There was less focus on accuracy because of spellcheck and the ease of deleting a mistake. I knew nothing about computer software when I started teaching. I quickly taught myself many programs in order to remain teaching business classes.
Software was constantly changing and improving. I taught Microsoft Works replaced by Microsoft Word and Adobe PageMaker replaced by InDesign. I also taught Photoshop and Illustrator.
By 2013, when I retired, the focus was more on creativity than standardization. Rules changed. I remember when I had to start teaching students to only hit the space bar once after a period instead of the previously taught two spaces. Many adults don’t understand that spacing between letters is different on a computer versus a typewriter.
Much of my time in my last years of teaching was spent verifying that students hadn’t just copied and pasted material found online.
I also started incorporating the student’s personal knowledge into my teaching strategy. I often said, “If you know a better way of doing this, or a faster way, please share with me and the class.” I also quickly learned that they would better retain information about software if they figured it out on their own versus being told how to do things.
Budgeting was taught using computer spreadsheets with all the automated calculation options.
With every new technological advancement, I needed to learn new programs and new ways to teach. I retired when that just became too overwhelming for me in addition to all the other things a teacher must do.
Today’s Classes are Tougher Than “THE GOOD OLD DAYS!”
I firmly believe this. In addition to all the new information that needs to be taught, students in our local school are required to pass American Government and Personal Finance (something many adults think isn’t taught anymore).
It’s true that some high school students don’t gain enough knowledge to graduate. I believe that’s often a motivational problem that started at home long before they reached high school. It is not because of a lack of emphasis on “the basics”.
Historical Events Since I Was in High School
To put some perspective on how events necessitate changes to curriculum, I looked up the Top 100 Historical Events That Changed the World. 🏹 Top 100 Historical Events That Changed the World (Chronological Order) – NeoCitizen There are probably other sites that would contain a slightly different list, but you get the idea.
| Oil Crisis | 1973 | Global economic disruption |
| Iranian Revolution | 1979 | Shift in Middle East power |
| Fall of Berlin Wall | 1989 | Symbolic end of the Cold War |
| Dissolution of Soviet Union | 1991 | End of bipolar world order |
| End of Apartheid in South Africa | 1994 | Mandela elected president |
| Rwandan Genocide | 1994 | Global failure to intervene |
| Dot-com Bubble Burst | 2000 | Tech market collapse |
| 9/11 Attacks | 2001 | War on Terror begins |
| U.S. Invasion of Iraq | 2003 | Overthrow of Saddam Hussein |
| Facebook Launch | 2004 | Social media revolution begins |
| Hurricane Katrina | 2005 | Exposed inequalities in disaster response |
| Global Financial Crisis | 2007–2008 | Worldwide recession |
| Election of Barack Obama | 2008 | First African-American U.S. President |
| Arab Spring | 2010–2012 | Democratic uprisings in Middle East |
| Fukushima Nuclear Disaster | 2011 | Global energy rethinking |
| Rise of ISIS | 2013–2019 | Redefined terrorism globally |
| U.N. Adopts SDGs | 2015 | Global goals for sustainable development |
| The NeoCitizen Accords | 2016 | International coalition of global citizens |
| Brexit Referendum | 2016 | UK leaves the European Union |
| Trump Elected U.S. President | 2016 | Populism surge globally |
| #MeToo Movement | 2017 | Global conversation on sexual misconduct |
| Notre-Dame Fire | 2019 | Global cultural loss |
| COVID-19 Pandemic Begins | 2019 | Global health and economic crisis |
| TikTok’s Rise | 2020s | Redefined youth culture and media |
| George Floyd Protests | 2020 | Sparked worldwide anti-racism protests |
| Black Lives Matter Goes Global | 2020 | Social justice movement expansion |
| Discovery of mRNA Vaccines | 2020 | Revolutionized vaccine science |
| U.S. Capitol Riot | 2021 | Attack on democratic institutions |
| Taliban Reclaim Afghanistan | 2021 | End of U.S. war in Afghanistan |
| James Webb Telescope Launch | 2021 | New era in space exploration |
| Africa Continental Free Trade Area | 2021 | Economic unification effort |
| Russia Invades Ukraine | 2022 | Major European war; global consequences |
| Roe v. Wade Overturned | 2022 | U.S. reproductive rights rollback |
| Queen Elizabeth II Dies | 2022 | End of a 70-year reign |
| ChatGPT Release | 2022 | Mainstreaming AI interaction |
| COP28 Climate Pact | 2023 | Major climate agreement |
| Israel-Hamas Conflict Escalates | 2023 | Middle East tension spike |
| U.S. – China Tensions Over Taiwan | Ongoing | Global security flashpoint |
| Global Climate Strikes | Ongoing | Youth-led environmental advocacy |
| Global Refugee Crisis | Ongoing | Displacement at record levels |
| Rise of Authoritarianism | Ongoing | Democratic backsliding globally |
| Crypto Boom & Bust | 2017–2022 | Rise of decentralized finance |
| AI Advances in Medicine | 2020s | Transformation of healthcare diagnostics |
| Global Heat Records Broken | 2023 | Climate change urgency rises |
| India Becomes Most Populous Country | 2023 | Major demographic shift |
| U.S. – Global De-escalation | Ongoing | Peace Through Strength Policy |
I don’t envy any high school teacher or high school student of today. Much is expected of them academically. Education is a complicated business and many of our youth are failing. But please stop using the argument that we need to go back to teaching the basics or the curriculum of “the good old days.” I believe there are far more pressing issues that need to be addressed in order for education to improve.
As always, I welcome your comments. Please subscribe to LOL with Leslie – Lessons on Life and share my blog with friends.
I invite you to check out my other posts about school memories. Unforgettable School Days – Part 1, Unforgettable School Days – Part 2, 12 Years on the Big Yellow School Bus
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My mother really wanted me to take shorthand as a senior just in case “that teaching thing didn’t work out”! I didn’t take it and I retired after 31 years in the classroom. Guess it worked out!