Completely agreed. I forget the exact quote or whatever, but there's some theory along the lines of, if you want to be something, pretend to be it until you are it. You'll fail and suck at the start and probably embarrass yourself among experts a few times, then eventually you'll get better until one day you are what you wanted to be. You don't need certifications and job titles to develop a skill. Just go do it.
Agree, people who want to subscribe can easily find the subscribe form on the page (if it's no hidden).
It's really annoying to see how now days people make statistic's based decisions (like using aggressive pop-ups, because they convert more users).
I always wonder how those statistics match reality.
What we want to know is the integral of U(t) for t in [0, inf), the rate of users joining at time t integrated across all time.
But U(t) = H(t) + E(t), where H is hard to measure (feedback, effects over time, etc) and E(t) is some "simple" to measure function.
What people actually measure is E(t) over a short time window, say t in [0,1], because H(t) more or less contributes a constant in such a small window. This is then used as a proxy for U(t), to adjust their strategy.
The problem comes in that H(t) might dominate E(t) over the "lifetime" integral of U(t), while seeming irrelevant in the short term you can measure. (Think users from establishing a reputation.)
If your optimizations from your measurements increase E(t) at the cost of H(t) (as they often do -- knowingly), then it's possible you've actually decreased the "lifetime" integral of U(t) while making all "positive" adjustments.
It's the stats equivalent of leaving the trail up a mountain that passes through foothill valleys -- just going "up" without a plan is unlikely to climb a mountain, you need some broader vision.
I had no clue that there are schools—primary and secondary—that create programs, programs that mimic "real work". For example, the author mentions that the group "9s" take on adult responsibilities: managing inventory, tracking and ordering products, and keeping a record of sales and expenses.
My colleagues and I often discuss how we would've found it helpful if during our childhood we were taught pragmatic skills such as budgeting and resolving interpersonal conflicts—skills that we require on a day to day basis.
It's such an amazing program. I've never been so inspired in a school setting. After witnessing the students in this program, I'm confident they'll all go on to be rockstars in their future endeavors.
I feel like all schools should be preparing students in this way.
In my 6th grade math class we practiced making change by emulating a toll booth. Of course, Asian countries were probably teaching calculus at this age :)
> My colleagues and I often discuss how we would've found it helpful if during our childhood we were taught pragmatic skills such as budgeting and resolving interpersonal conflicts—skills that we require on a day to day basis.
This is where many people undervalue the experience of having even a menial job at school age. I'm sure this school is amazing and this kind of experience at a younger age sounds great, but the best "real work" experience is "real work". That where you interact with strangers, adults often from different backgrounds than you, who aren't present because they're paid to watch for your interest, where you get a paycheck, and where you can be fired. I don't think that's an experience for which a school can provide an adequate substitute.
Based on my experience and from what others have told me, one of the best jobs if you want to learn how to interact and deal with people is to be a server at a restaurant.
It takes a lot to do the serving job well, you have to learn how to:
1) Communicate well, both listening and speaking
2) Keep track of many different tasks at a single time (put in orders, take out orders from the kitchen, get someone extra sauce, etc)
3) How to make people happy, especially when they're upset
Those are just a few things you'll get better at by being a server. I had five jobs before I started my career in tech, and serving in my opinion was the hardest, and I didn't do it for as long as the other jobs I had. But I'd be lying if I said it didn't teach me the most about human to human interaction.
A side bonus to serving is that you'll have much more respect for the people in that industry. It's not easy, and it's not the best paying, but being able to understand the waiters and waitresses serving you will help you make their lives easier, thus resulting in better service for you and those with you.
My friends' daughter was encountering bullying and cliques and all that fun middle school stuff to a very concerning extent. So, they pulled her out of public school and put her into a private program whose name I can't currently remember.
There are classes, sure. They also manage a garden, and their own cafeteria. There is a week or two class trip every year -- a trip they are partly responsible for and that actually works well rather than being a horror show.
And there is emphasis on social skills. Not some simplistic "zero tolerance" punishment policy, but, well, I guess, real understanding. Anyway, my friends say it is night and day compared to what their daughter was encountering, before.
This is in the Twin Cities area of Minnesota -- say, a nearby town. My friends are in construction and health care. They do ok, but are not rolling in cash. But, they made this work for their daughter.
I can only think, if I'd had the chance, I would have jumped at it. My school system was far from "bad", in the demographic sense. But their daughter's experience is night and day, compared to mine.
Kids should be learning how the real world works. Something families and home circumstances don't always provide. And I see no reason for schools to be prisons of boredom and the lowest common denominator. They should be able to harbor diversity, including but not only academic diversity, just like the real world does.
I come from a small town, less than 2000 people. My high school class was 20 people, and we had one section for each class. There were no AP classes or gifted programs, just teachers from the same home town, who graduated from a nearby community college, doling out worksheets and having the class read aloud from text books to fill up class time.
We skipped evolution in biology because the teacher "didn't believe in it." Our home-economics teacher parroted lies about the effectiveness of birth control and suggested it was sinful. Most of the people in my class did not attend college.
I graduated high school with an 8th grade education. When I told my high school guidance counselor I was going to school for Computer Science, he suggested that maybe I should do something like nursing at the local community college, because "CS is for smart people."
When I got to college, it was absolutely brutal. I consistently barely passed "easy" classes with a C / D average. I felt dumb and demoralized.
The one place I did excel in college was my CS classes. Most of my free time pre-college was spent making mods for various video games. I was not happy with any of the modern consoles I had until I rooted them and had SNES emulators playing on them. I worked my way through a C++ book with a wizard on the front of it, and dabbled with python. I talked wistfully with my older brother about growing up and making video games together in our own little studio. I learned programming by doing things I loved, and today I have a very successful programming / IT career.
I graduated with a CS degree, and I keep current by pursing opportunities that are challenging and push my skills forward. My dream since I was a kid was to be a video game programmer, but dreams have a funny way of falling to the wayside when you grow up poor and struggling and you have the option between a $30,000 paycheck and a $60,000 paycheck.
But I am STILL BEHIND MY PEERS. I still feel unqualified to work at a major IT company ( Google, Microsoft, Apple ) because my math skills are so poor, and honestly, I didn't really learn much in college since I had to support myself with a 40 hour a week job, which left basically no time to do anything besides rush to get an assignment done, cram for tests, and occasionally cheat to get a passing grade.
My point?
Education is profoundly broken. I have a term I use: "Child jail." Most schools exist to keep the little hellions from running riot in the streets.
I believe education like the OP posted is absolutely vital, and where education needs to go in the future. This school sounds amazing. It empowers students, and shows them that they can solve real problems if they put their head down and work at it. It allows them to explore what they enjoy doing on a day to day basis. It teaches them practical skills.
But, this is still a private school that is probably absurdly expensive ( IMO, totally worth it ). Quality of education is absurdly uneven.
My bad experiences with education have lead me to work at a little education startup, and our motto is "learn by doing". I like to think that there is a kid like me out there enjoying the software I've written.
Real estate in NYC is expensive. I visited only one private school in NYC where the tuition was about 20k and I compared it with the public school my son goes to. The private school has only indoor space, maybe about 4000 sq ft. No schoolyard, cafeteria, gym, labs. All of if would fit in my son's school's gym or auditorium, with room to spare.
25 comments
[ 3.3 ms ] story [ 63.9 ms ] threadWhat we want to know is the integral of U(t) for t in [0, inf), the rate of users joining at time t integrated across all time.
But U(t) = H(t) + E(t), where H is hard to measure (feedback, effects over time, etc) and E(t) is some "simple" to measure function.
What people actually measure is E(t) over a short time window, say t in [0,1], because H(t) more or less contributes a constant in such a small window. This is then used as a proxy for U(t), to adjust their strategy.
The problem comes in that H(t) might dominate E(t) over the "lifetime" integral of U(t), while seeming irrelevant in the short term you can measure. (Think users from establishing a reputation.)
If your optimizations from your measurements increase E(t) at the cost of H(t) (as they often do -- knowingly), then it's possible you've actually decreased the "lifetime" integral of U(t) while making all "positive" adjustments.
It's the stats equivalent of leaving the trail up a mountain that passes through foothill valleys -- just going "up" without a plan is unlikely to climb a mountain, you need some broader vision.
My colleagues and I often discuss how we would've found it helpful if during our childhood we were taught pragmatic skills such as budgeting and resolving interpersonal conflicts—skills that we require on a day to day basis.
I feel like all schools should be preparing students in this way.
This is where many people undervalue the experience of having even a menial job at school age. I'm sure this school is amazing and this kind of experience at a younger age sounds great, but the best "real work" experience is "real work". That where you interact with strangers, adults often from different backgrounds than you, who aren't present because they're paid to watch for your interest, where you get a paycheck, and where you can be fired. I don't think that's an experience for which a school can provide an adequate substitute.
It takes a lot to do the serving job well, you have to learn how to:
1) Communicate well, both listening and speaking
2) Keep track of many different tasks at a single time (put in orders, take out orders from the kitchen, get someone extra sauce, etc)
3) How to make people happy, especially when they're upset
Those are just a few things you'll get better at by being a server. I had five jobs before I started my career in tech, and serving in my opinion was the hardest, and I didn't do it for as long as the other jobs I had. But I'd be lying if I said it didn't teach me the most about human to human interaction.
A side bonus to serving is that you'll have much more respect for the people in that industry. It's not easy, and it's not the best paying, but being able to understand the waiters and waitresses serving you will help you make their lives easier, thus resulting in better service for you and those with you.
There are classes, sure. They also manage a garden, and their own cafeteria. There is a week or two class trip every year -- a trip they are partly responsible for and that actually works well rather than being a horror show.
And there is emphasis on social skills. Not some simplistic "zero tolerance" punishment policy, but, well, I guess, real understanding. Anyway, my friends say it is night and day compared to what their daughter was encountering, before.
This is in the Twin Cities area of Minnesota -- say, a nearby town. My friends are in construction and health care. They do ok, but are not rolling in cash. But, they made this work for their daughter.
I can only think, if I'd had the chance, I would have jumped at it. My school system was far from "bad", in the demographic sense. But their daughter's experience is night and day, compared to mine.
Kids should be learning how the real world works. Something families and home circumstances don't always provide. And I see no reason for schools to be prisons of boredom and the lowest common denominator. They should be able to harbor diversity, including but not only academic diversity, just like the real world does.
Learning by doing, indeed.
We skipped evolution in biology because the teacher "didn't believe in it." Our home-economics teacher parroted lies about the effectiveness of birth control and suggested it was sinful. Most of the people in my class did not attend college.
I graduated high school with an 8th grade education. When I told my high school guidance counselor I was going to school for Computer Science, he suggested that maybe I should do something like nursing at the local community college, because "CS is for smart people."
When I got to college, it was absolutely brutal. I consistently barely passed "easy" classes with a C / D average. I felt dumb and demoralized.
The one place I did excel in college was my CS classes. Most of my free time pre-college was spent making mods for various video games. I was not happy with any of the modern consoles I had until I rooted them and had SNES emulators playing on them. I worked my way through a C++ book with a wizard on the front of it, and dabbled with python. I talked wistfully with my older brother about growing up and making video games together in our own little studio. I learned programming by doing things I loved, and today I have a very successful programming / IT career.
I graduated with a CS degree, and I keep current by pursing opportunities that are challenging and push my skills forward. My dream since I was a kid was to be a video game programmer, but dreams have a funny way of falling to the wayside when you grow up poor and struggling and you have the option between a $30,000 paycheck and a $60,000 paycheck.
But I am STILL BEHIND MY PEERS. I still feel unqualified to work at a major IT company ( Google, Microsoft, Apple ) because my math skills are so poor, and honestly, I didn't really learn much in college since I had to support myself with a 40 hour a week job, which left basically no time to do anything besides rush to get an assignment done, cram for tests, and occasionally cheat to get a passing grade.
My point?
Education is profoundly broken. I have a term I use: "Child jail." Most schools exist to keep the little hellions from running riot in the streets.
I believe education like the OP posted is absolutely vital, and where education needs to go in the future. This school sounds amazing. It empowers students, and shows them that they can solve real problems if they put their head down and work at it. It allows them to explore what they enjoy doing on a day to day basis. It teaches them practical skills.
But, this is still a private school that is probably absurdly expensive ( IMO, totally worth it ). Quality of education is absurdly uneven.
My bad experiences with education have lead me to work at a little education startup, and our motto is "learn by doing". I like to think that there is a kid like me out there enjoying the software I've written.
8s, 9s, 10s, 11s, 12s : USD $44,300/yr for 2017/2017 https://www.cityandcountry.org/page/admissions/tuition