David MatchettJul 10, 2023
Ethan J. A. Schoonover

Classes I'd like to teach to high schoolers:

CHAOS MITIGATION: Stay organized, fight digital & physical entropy (replaces home-ec 101)

THE BOX YOU LIVE IN: Wire outlets, unclog drains, fixit stuff (replaces woodshop)

SPREADSHEETS: Before code learn this (replaces any intro class teaching Java)

Jul 9, 2023 at 8:25pmWeb
Show threadCount_ZeroOrJul 9, 2023
@ethanschoonover I might tweak Chaos Mitigation to have something cooking-related (menu planning, recognizing freshness/ripeness of fruits & vegetables in there) - provided your school has facilities for cooking courses (my high school in the early '00s didn't, but the high school I helped set up the tech for last year did, so progress!)
Show threadErin ConroyJul 9, 2023

@ethanschoonover

As a girl who fought for the right to take shop instead of home ec in the 80s, when those two classes were forced onto or denied to us based on our gender, this hit me hard for some reason.

I love this plan! Particularly chaos mitigation.

Show threadMycotropicJul 9, 2023
@ethanschoonover I teach people who are getting degrees in public health and our program usually generated students who work at the state level within the country. I used to work at Tulane though and we advocated (and unsuccessfully) for course work in electrical repair, HVAC and carpentry because the most expensive failures we had from students were being told to deliver refrigerated vaccine (LP gas fridge) via motorcycle 30 miles across a desert . 23 YO MPH who learned to ride at the location.
Show threadalexmccoJul 9, 2023
@ethanschoonover the strongest possible agree to the third one.
Show threadMac JusticeJul 9, 2023
@ethanschoonover my HS had a “MS Apps” course in the early 00s that was basically #3
Show threadCraig FroehleJul 10, 2023
@ethanschoonover As much as I was intrigued by the "personal finance" aspect of Home Ec class in high school, I avoided it like the plague solely because it included a mock wedding and each couple had to then pretend to parent a baby doll for two weeks. The misery on those kids' faces during that period told me it was not the class for me. I'm also now wondering if the students who had that experience have a statistically significant reduction as adults in their average number of offspring. 🤔
Show threadshyduroffJul 10, 2023
@ethanschoonover @daedalus … add comprehensive first aide, and by h.s., first responder & emt (basic & advanced) …
Show threadshyduroffJul 10, 2023
@ethanschoonover @daedalus … plus, of course, amateur radio …
Show threadÁngela Stella MatutinaJul 10, 2023

@ethanschoonover

I was almost going to criticize teaching spreadsheets (they tend to replace software appropriate to the task because they're always available, and become unmanageable), but if "programming" is Java, that's excusable. (Not even Python, or modern Javascript..?)

Show threadSTEMcoding ProjectJul 10, 2023
@ethanschoonover We're building a year long high school "data science" course that heavily emphasizes spreadsheet skills. For some reason the other high school data science initiatives aren't doing this. Here are some of our activities so far
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLISRe8GegO8TQcav_0egBYB0eS1dXJOrP
Data Science activities

YouTube
Show threadarclightJul 10, 2023

@ethanschoonover #3 must include a section on How Do I Know This Is Right?, techniques for explaining and verifying spreadsheet results. This is the same expectation we have for both manual calculations and traditional computer languages and it absolutely must be extended to spreadsheets.

The biggest problem I see is not with spreadsheets in general but with Excel in particular. Excel makes error detection, documentation, and verification virtually impossible while adding in the risks of unintentional type conversion and silent precision loss. I could probably spend a month on all the ways Excel is impossible to trust for anything you consider important.

When cooking for others, you have a responsibility to use clean cookware and keep food at a safe temperature. You have similar responsibilities when calculating for others regardless of the tools you use.

Show threadarclightJul 10, 2023

@ethanschoonover Backstory: my current job is qualifying nuclear safety analysis software for use. Excel is an attractive hazard in this environment but there is nothing, absolutely nothing you can do to stop degreed engineers who should know better from using Excel for things they shouldn't.

I can show multiple instances where badly-coded Excel has indirectly killed people. All I can do to mitigate this risk is to help people recognize the risks and show them ways to use the tool safely and responsibly. At least give them some way to realize when Excel in particular poses an unacceptable risk.

Excel is easily the most popular functional language in current use, possibly the most popular computer language in general. MS won't fix its dangerous flaws without coercion so the best we can do is help people not hurt themselves or others with it.

Show threadᴡᴀʟᴋɪɴɢ ᴅʀᴀɢʟɪɴᴇJul 10, 2023
@ethanschoonover @arclight i’m just going to tuck these into the folder. i’m slowly (more than i like) putting together a spreadsheets-as-actionable-programming class for manufacturing engineering undergrads.
Show threadJimTheWhyGuy ❌👑Jul 10, 2023

@ethanschoonover Suggested addition:

DUDE, I'M SHORT OF CASH: Basic budgeting skills, focusing on "If your outgo exceeds your income, your upkeep becomes your downfall"

Show threadSteven G. HarmsJul 10, 2023
@ethanschoonover excel is the most widely used immutable functional programming language