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> Truck driving? Retail? Cashiers? Secretaries? None of those are skills (except maybe truck driving). And none of them require a CC degree. Those are all thin

> Truck driving? Retail? Cashiers? Secretaries? None of those are skills (except maybe truck driving). And none of them require a CC degree. Those are all things you do with a GED or less. I'm thinking of the sorts of things people go to CC for. Dental Hygiene, Paramedics, EMTs, Morgue work, Respiratory therapists et al, various medical diagnostic technicians, vet techs, nursing, CNC, Engineering technicians, etc. Visit your local CC website and look through their programs of study. > Managers Depends. Engineering? Construction? Absolutely. Again, we're not talk about groups and rings. We're talking about stuff like knowing the difference between x and x^2. > sales reps ... customer service Outside of cities there are a lot fewer sales jobs... and a lot of them require BA/BS just because they can. > school teachers STEM teachers need a LOT more than just CC algebra. At least Calculus. The algebra taught in CC's was once taught in high school, but is now often taught in middle school. Middle school science curricula have kept pace. So, yes, any STEM teacher -- even at the elementary level these days -- needs to know basic algebra. > janitors, waiters, cooks Not skills and/or don't require CC, and so irrelevant to this conversation. > freight laborers, stock clerks, maids, receptionists, construction laborers, child care workers, grounds maintenance? Again, not skills, and for the most part don't require CC.

sillysaurus3 9y ago
I think we're both throwing a bit at the wall to see what sticks. :) It's sobering to see all of the job types listed out like that though, isn't it? Our combined lists represent most peoples' options. Kind of strange to think about. I think we'll have to agree to disagree that morgue keepers or dental hygienicists benefit from even a little bit of algebra, though.
- throwawayjava 9y ago
  > Our combined lists represent most peoples' options. Kind of strange to think about. To re-iterate, most of the jobs you listed do not require a Community College degree! Whether a truck driver or store clerk needs algebra is utterly irrelevant. People doing those jobs are not required to have -- and usually do not have -- community college degrees. Their needs are irrelevant in a discussion about community college curricula. Regarding my examples, I'm not "seeing what sticks". I'm literally just listing what are pretty much uniformly the most popular programs at most community colleges. Again, look up enrollment and funding statistics for some of your local CC's. > dental hygienicists Again, I think you're over-estimating the difficulty of the material that students need to master in order to pass community college algebra. As I said in my original post: >>> The article is probably correct -- we could stand to have alternatives to the standard CC algebra course. But an effectively similar level of quantitative skill is required for most trades. I think that's spot on for dental hygenists. They absolutely have to understand ratios, for example, and that's one major stumbling block for CC Algebra students. So do they need CC Algebra? Maybe, maybe not. But IMO a course covering only the portions they do absolutely need is going to be just as much a stumbling block for these students.

sillysaurus3 9y ago

I think we're both throwing a bit at the wall to see what sticks. :) It's sobering to see all of the job types listed out like that though, isn't it? Our combined lists represent most peoples' options. Kind of strange to think about. I think we'll have to agree to disagree that morgue keepers or dental hygienicists benefit from even a little bit of algebra, though.

throwawayjava 9y ago
> Our combined lists represent most peoples' options. Kind of strange to think about. To re-iterate, most of the jobs you listed do not require a Community College degree! Whether a truck driver or store clerk needs algebra is utterly irrelevant. People doing those jobs are not required to have -- and usually do not have -- community college degrees. Their needs are irrelevant in a discussion about community college curricula. Regarding my examples, I'm not "seeing what sticks". I'm literally just listing what are pretty much uniformly the most popular programs at most community colleges. Again, look up enrollment and funding statistics for some of your local CC's. > dental hygienicists Again, I think you're over-estimating the difficulty of the material that students need to master in order to pass community college algebra. As I said in my original post: >>> The article is probably correct -- we could stand to have alternatives to the standard CC algebra course. But an effectively similar level of quantitative skill is required for most trades. I think that's spot on for dental hygenists. They absolutely have to understand ratios, for example, and that's one major stumbling block for CC Algebra students. So do they need CC Algebra? Maybe, maybe not. But IMO a course covering only the portions they do absolutely need is going to be just as much a stumbling block for these students.