Stories
Slash Boxes
Comments

SoylentNews is people

posted by martyb on Monday January 12 2015, @10:43AM   Printer-friendly
from the Ask-John-Wayne dept.

Anna North writes in the NYT that self-control, curiosity, and “grit” may seem more personal than academic, but at some schools, they’re now part of the regular curriculum. Some researchers say personality could be even more important than intelligence when it comes to students’ success in school. “We probably need to start rethinking our emphasis on intelligence,” says Arthur E. Poropat citing research that shows that both conscientiousness and openness are more highly correlated with student performance than intelligence. “This isn’t to say that we should throw intelligence out, but we need to pull back on thinking that this is the only game in town.” The KIPP network of charter schools emphasizes grit along with six other “character strengths,” including self-control and curiosity. “We talk a lot about them as being skills or strengths, not necessarily traits, because it’s not innate," says Leyla Bravo-Willey. “If a child happens to be very gritty but has trouble participating in class, we still want them to develop that part of themselves.”

But the focus on character has encountered criticism. “To begin with, not everything is worth doing, let alone doing for extended periods, and not everyone who works hard is pursuing something worthwhile” says Alfie Kohn. "On closer inspection, the concept of grit turns out to be dubious, as does the evidence cited to support it. Persistence can actually backfire and distract from more important goals." There’s other evidence that grit isn’t always desirable. Gritty people sometimes exhibit what psychologists call “nonproductive persistence”: They try, try again, says Dean MacFarlin though the result may be either unremitting failure or “a costly or inefficient success that could have been easily surpassed by alternative courses of action,”

 
This discussion has been archived. No new comments can be posted.
Display Options Threshold/Breakthrough Mark All as Read Mark All as Unread
The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way.
  • (Score: 2) by kaszz on Tuesday January 13 2015, @06:48AM

    by kaszz (4211) on Tuesday January 13 2015, @06:48AM (#134301) Journal

    So what's the problem with the stay in Europe besides the move itself? schools in Europe differ also on nation basis.

    Starting Score:    1  point
    Karma-Bonus Modifier   +1  

    Total Score:   2  
  • (Score: 2) by Common Joe on Tuesday January 13 2015, @09:53AM

    by Common Joe (33) <{common.joe.0101} {at} {gmail.com}> on Tuesday January 13 2015, @09:53AM (#134330) Journal

    So what's the problem with the stay in Europe besides the move itself? schools in Europe differ also on nation basis.

    I don't have the time to properly addresses both of your questions, but I'll try to give a broad answer.

    Your original answer to school problems was "change country", but that opens up a whole host of other problems -- so this answer is more than just about schools. Germany (where I am) is pretty open minded toward foreigners -- especially the city I live in. With that said, most Americans will never be able to get a job unless you speak the German language fluently. Very fluently. It has been a struggle for me and many others I met to learn the language to proper fluency (which takes years). In my case, my computer skills grew old as I learned the language. Who wants to hire a person who can barely speak German and has outdated computer skills? Cultural job hiring practices are complicating matters. That is the problem I am currently facing.

    Sure, with the right connections or if you're lighting-strike lucky, you can get an English only job and go that route, but most English speaking jobs require that you live in America (or Britain) initially and come here for only a year or two. Then you go back. I came here for family reasons. I have no good connections and I'm not a linguist person.

    Going to the doctor for a small problems or even just for a dental / eye checkup has been frustrating. There are language barriers and I-don't-care attitudes. I've been yelled at by ice cream vendors because I was having problems with the language despite my wife who was interpreting.

    It's lonely... even for an introvert such as myself. Native Germans (your best source for learning the German language) don't want to associate with you too much especially during the day. If you're young and don't have family, then going out at night to meet people is an option that can open up doors. Having a family makes that much, much more difficult. One of my classmates (from my language course) had his marriage fall apart because he never saw his wife.

    English speaking foreigners will eagerly become your friends as they have the same problems you do, but going out with foreigners will not help you learn the local language. So... either go out with a bunch of foreigners so you can have friends or face years of loneliness as you try to become friends with Germans so you can learn the language. Fluency requires four hard earned skills: reading, writing, listening, and speaking. Learning to read and write does not necessarily help you communicate verbally.

    The problems I face apply to every country in the world including America. Once you have language fluency, a decent job, a way to easily get around, friends you can hang with and keep you sane, and your everyday affairs aren't demanding all of your attention, then things become much easier.

    The most important things? A fantastic network and fluency in the local language.

    But to simply say "change countries" means years of work and hundreds of thousands of dollars. It's not so simple.