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When my dad was growing up, getting into Harvard was considered a nice thing, but it wasn't expected that everyone halfway smart would vie for the Ivy League. M
by pw0ncakes 17y ago
When my dad was growing up, getting into Harvard was considered a nice thing, but it wasn't expected that everyone halfway smart would vie for the Ivy League. Most people applied to two or three schools-- usually good colleges close by, such as the state flagships.
Now there's an obsession with elite schools, and it has trickled down even to the pre-school level, at ridiculous costs in both time and money. It's not about education; it's about social climbing.
I believe this is because society is beginning to unravel, even as technology and the economy improve. When society contracts, social connections become important because of the dwindling resources and hoarding.
- kaveri 17y agoI'm not sure about the causes, but it seems in the UK for example that social mobility has decreased in the past few decades compared to the 1960s. A big part of that has been the disaster of comprehensive education - the old grammar school system, which selected children from poorer families, gave at least some a chance of climbing the social ladder. Comprehensive schools are more of a lottery than a meritocracy, and the wealthy as always have the option of fee-paying "public" schools.
- rms 17y agoToo pessimistic, society isn't really unraveling. On average, spending the extra money on education results in better education, even when taken to ridiculous levels.