Maturation and Choice
Sep.05.2011 21:19 Filed in: Maturation | Decision
Since we only give to our children those things that we perceive to be good for them, then it follows that we see choice as a good thing. As we (well, maybe not you specifically but, “We” collectively, as the group called “Parents” ) are now-a-days giving children the power of choice in ever widening contexts and at earlier ages.
Of course, “too much of a good thing is – not good” (I leave to you the exercise of listing your own examples for buy-in on this popularly accepted paradox). Perhaps “too much” is asking children whether or not they want to work hard on mathematics and science, or any other skill development for that matter. Even older, well seasoned people generally need external support when it comes to deciding what knowledge and skills to develop, and how much work is required input.
Decision Training
Nevertheless, having opportunities to make choices can help train a person in a vital life-skill -- decision-making. For this reason, some types of formal decision training are utilized in industry, the military, and professional sports.
Controlled
Often, such training is provided under highly controlled conditions. The decision training utilizes hypothetical and simulated situations, with expert feedback and review included after the simulations. Such methodology mitigates the high consequences of bad decisions during the extreme-novice-period of the pupil. The student maturates while the organization’s investment is conserved.
Trail-By-Fire
Allowing relative novices to make decisions in real-time, where the consequences of bad decisions are potentially long-lasting is often referred to as Trial-by-Fire. Such approach can also be a vital part of a pupil’s training program and for many real situations the adequate maturation of skills requires that the student “give it a shot”, even while the potential for disaster is still relatively high. The hope is, of course, that all turns out OK.
You Are the Trainer
Thusly, when we give our children the power of decision, our decision goes beyond simply a) “to give the power” or b) “to not give the power”.
We also, deliberately or implicitly, choose the training style that these novices are experiencing: 1) Controlled, or 2) Trail-by-Fire, or 3) a Hybridization of these two extremes.
Some mundane choice examples:
To go to bed at a certain hour; or to not go to bed at a certain hour.
To do your homework or; to not do your homework.
To dress to a certain code or; to not dress to a certain code.
To speak respectfully; or to not speak respectfully.
To pierce; or not to pierce.
…
My experience, has led me to believe that in the decisions directly effecting knowledge and skill development that less is more, i.e. generally favoring options (b) and (a.1) above.
Happy training!
Of course, “too much of a good thing is – not good” (I leave to you the exercise of listing your own examples for buy-in on this popularly accepted paradox). Perhaps “too much” is asking children whether or not they want to work hard on mathematics and science, or any other skill development for that matter. Even older, well seasoned people generally need external support when it comes to deciding what knowledge and skills to develop, and how much work is required input.
Decision Training
Nevertheless, having opportunities to make choices can help train a person in a vital life-skill -- decision-making. For this reason, some types of formal decision training are utilized in industry, the military, and professional sports.
Controlled
Often, such training is provided under highly controlled conditions. The decision training utilizes hypothetical and simulated situations, with expert feedback and review included after the simulations. Such methodology mitigates the high consequences of bad decisions during the extreme-novice-period of the pupil. The student maturates while the organization’s investment is conserved.
Trail-By-Fire
Allowing relative novices to make decisions in real-time, where the consequences of bad decisions are potentially long-lasting is often referred to as Trial-by-Fire. Such approach can also be a vital part of a pupil’s training program and for many real situations the adequate maturation of skills requires that the student “give it a shot”, even while the potential for disaster is still relatively high. The hope is, of course, that all turns out OK.
You Are the Trainer
Thusly, when we give our children the power of decision, our decision goes beyond simply a) “to give the power” or b) “to not give the power”.
We also, deliberately or implicitly, choose the training style that these novices are experiencing: 1) Controlled, or 2) Trail-by-Fire, or 3) a Hybridization of these two extremes.
Some mundane choice examples:
To go to bed at a certain hour; or to not go to bed at a certain hour.
To do your homework or; to not do your homework.
To dress to a certain code or; to not dress to a certain code.
To speak respectfully; or to not speak respectfully.
To pierce; or not to pierce.
…
My experience, has led me to believe that in the decisions directly effecting knowledge and skill development that less is more, i.e. generally favoring options (b) and (a.1) above.
Happy training!
College For Free
You can go to college for free. No, you do not have to play a sport. But you do need to score.
It’s really a simple equation: outscore 99% of the students in the nation in mathematics and reading and you will have full scholarship offers from many prestigious and competitive universities. Even outscoring 95% of the students in the nation is a pretty good lock on a high number of full scholarship offers, including agreements to fund your education straight through medical school.
The measures most widely utilized by universities to estimate relative national academic competitiveness are SAT and ACT scores. Whereas, the SAT and ACT may not be considered in many college admission decisions, such test scores are still the most convenient and widely utilized measures for awarding competitive academic scholarships.
But, do not think of the SAT or ACT as new subjects to learn. Many people essentially think this way. The tests would be of no good value if they were not reasonably good estimators of the quality of your overall academic preparation to date.
Therefore, if you want a full ride to college, then compete! Your goal: learn (do your homework) and make A’s. Compete in the classroom everyday, every year.
Of course, you could always try for a basketball scholarship. But, you should strive to be better than 99% of the other basketball players in the nation.
Baseball
UIL participants
41,726
National participants
478,029
Number of college scholarships
2,956.1
Pct. earning scholarships
.6%
Boys basketball
UIL participants
75,248
National participants
552,935
Number of college scholarships
4,046.7
Pct. earning scholarships
.7%
Girls basketball
UIL participants
71,218
National participants
449,450
Number of college scholarships
4,329
Pct. earning scholarships
.9%
Boys cross country/track and field
UIL participants
29,112
National participants
548,821
Number of college scholarships
2,481.7
Pct. earning scholarships
.5%
Girls cross country/track and field
UIL participants
29,096
National participants
447,520
Number of college scholarships
4,030
Pct. earning scholarships
.9%
Football
UIL participants
160,893
National participants
1,108,286
Number of college scholarships
15,997.2
Pct. earning scholarships
1.4%
Boys Golf
UIL participants
12,386
National participants
159,958
Number of college scholarships
999.1
Pct. earning scholarships
.6%
Girls Golf
UIL participants
7,643
National participants
69,243
Number of college scholarships
1,076.4
Pct. earning scholarships
1.6%
Boys Soccer
UIL participants
27,439
National participants
383,561
Number of college scholarships
1,683
Pct. earning scholarships
.4%
Girls Soccer
UIL participants
22,106
National participants
346,545
Number of college scholarships
3,591.9
Pct. earning scholarships
1%
Softball
UIL participants
31,077
National participants
371,293
Number of college scholarships
2,774.4
Pct. earning scholarships
.7%
Boys swimming and diving
UIL participants
6,805
National participants
111,896
College scholarships
891
Pct. earning scholarships
.8
Girls swimming and diving
UIL participants
6,679
National participants
147,197
Number of college scholarships
1,766.4
Pct. earning scholarships
1.2%
Boys tennis
UIL participants
19,217
National participants
156,285
Number of college scholarships
925.6
Pct. earning scholarships
.6%
Girls tennis
UIL participants
18,873
National participants
172,455
Number of college scholarships
1,848
Pct. earning scholarships
1.1%
Volleyball
UIL participants
38,367
National participants
397,968
Number of college scholarships
3,318
Pct. earning scholarships
.8%
Boys wrestling
UIL participants
7,783
National participants
259,688
Number of college scholarships
696
Pct. earning scholarships
.3%
Academics or sports, either way you will need to be committed to being very good. So parents, there is no easy way! Play to your strengths.
It’s really a simple equation: outscore 99% of the students in the nation in mathematics and reading and you will have full scholarship offers from many prestigious and competitive universities. Even outscoring 95% of the students in the nation is a pretty good lock on a high number of full scholarship offers, including agreements to fund your education straight through medical school.
The measures most widely utilized by universities to estimate relative national academic competitiveness are SAT and ACT scores. Whereas, the SAT and ACT may not be considered in many college admission decisions, such test scores are still the most convenient and widely utilized measures for awarding competitive academic scholarships.
But, do not think of the SAT or ACT as new subjects to learn. Many people essentially think this way. The tests would be of no good value if they were not reasonably good estimators of the quality of your overall academic preparation to date.
Therefore, if you want a full ride to college, then compete! Your goal: learn (do your homework) and make A’s. Compete in the classroom everyday, every year.
Of course, you could always try for a basketball scholarship. But, you should strive to be better than 99% of the other basketball players in the nation.
Baseball
UIL participants
41,726
National participants
478,029
Number of college scholarships
2,956.1
Pct. earning scholarships
.6%
Boys basketball
UIL participants
75,248
National participants
552,935
Number of college scholarships
4,046.7
Pct. earning scholarships
.7%
Girls basketball
UIL participants
71,218
National participants
449,450
Number of college scholarships
4,329
Pct. earning scholarships
.9%
Boys cross country/track and field
UIL participants
29,112
National participants
548,821
Number of college scholarships
2,481.7
Pct. earning scholarships
.5%
Girls cross country/track and field
UIL participants
29,096
National participants
447,520
Number of college scholarships
4,030
Pct. earning scholarships
.9%
Football
UIL participants
160,893
National participants
1,108,286
Number of college scholarships
15,997.2
Pct. earning scholarships
1.4%
Boys Golf
UIL participants
12,386
National participants
159,958
Number of college scholarships
999.1
Pct. earning scholarships
.6%
Girls Golf
UIL participants
7,643
National participants
69,243
Number of college scholarships
1,076.4
Pct. earning scholarships
1.6%
Boys Soccer
UIL participants
27,439
National participants
383,561
Number of college scholarships
1,683
Pct. earning scholarships
.4%
Girls Soccer
UIL participants
22,106
National participants
346,545
Number of college scholarships
3,591.9
Pct. earning scholarships
1%
Softball
UIL participants
31,077
National participants
371,293
Number of college scholarships
2,774.4
Pct. earning scholarships
.7%
Boys swimming and diving
UIL participants
6,805
National participants
111,896
College scholarships
891
Pct. earning scholarships
.8
Girls swimming and diving
UIL participants
6,679
National participants
147,197
Number of college scholarships
1,766.4
Pct. earning scholarships
1.2%
Boys tennis
UIL participants
19,217
National participants
156,285
Number of college scholarships
925.6
Pct. earning scholarships
.6%
Girls tennis
UIL participants
18,873
National participants
172,455
Number of college scholarships
1,848
Pct. earning scholarships
1.1%
Volleyball
UIL participants
38,367
National participants
397,968
Number of college scholarships
3,318
Pct. earning scholarships
.8%
Boys wrestling
UIL participants
7,783
National participants
259,688
Number of college scholarships
696
Pct. earning scholarships
.3%
Academics or sports, either way you will need to be committed to being very good. So parents, there is no easy way! Play to your strengths.
Jobs, Jobs, Jobs
For over a decade US industry has been markedly concerned about the low quality output of US schools. The problem: there are plenty of job openings, but the key positions are technical. I attended an aerospace conference a couple of summers ago where a major item discussed was the practical impossibility of filling the technical jobs being vacated by retirees and also that were being created by new objectives. Such jobs would maintain a high vacancy rate, even if the output of schools ramped up overnight to an idealized level. Proposed solutions tended toward reductions in inefficiencies and increased applications of intelligence technologies.
This problem with schools’ generally dismal output of technically motivated and qualified youth is not going to be an easy one to solve. But problems like these do get solved, often in surprising ways. Being part of the solution is not a given. Every school that proposes STEM education will not be “good”. As has been the case for decades, time in many classrooms will be somewhat of a waste of your children’s youth. Parents should keep in mind that industry, and universities, will not be fooled by high grades from marginal environments. The need is not for bodies -- the need is for brains. Brains that understand hi-tech for sure, but also brains that understand relatively low tech, brains that can communicate tech, brains that can operate tech, or train tech, or modify tech, or apply tech in an ad hoc way. While the people are chanting “jobs, jobs, jobs”, industry is answering with “tech, tech, tech”.
Accordingly, while setting your directions toward mathematics and science, the refrain that is probably more important for you and your children is: “learn, learn, learn”.
This problem with schools’ generally dismal output of technically motivated and qualified youth is not going to be an easy one to solve. But problems like these do get solved, often in surprising ways. Being part of the solution is not a given. Every school that proposes STEM education will not be “good”. As has been the case for decades, time in many classrooms will be somewhat of a waste of your children’s youth. Parents should keep in mind that industry, and universities, will not be fooled by high grades from marginal environments. The need is not for bodies -- the need is for brains. Brains that understand hi-tech for sure, but also brains that understand relatively low tech, brains that can communicate tech, brains that can operate tech, or train tech, or modify tech, or apply tech in an ad hoc way. While the people are chanting “jobs, jobs, jobs”, industry is answering with “tech, tech, tech”.
Accordingly, while setting your directions toward mathematics and science, the refrain that is probably more important for you and your children is: “learn, learn, learn”.