It's the 21st century fer cryin' out loud !!! WTF ?

[FreeMountainHermit]

Hope you guys don't think I'm making fun of my neighbors but I never encountered this before. To make fun would be cruel and I'd be showing my ass ta boot.

Very limited labor pool here.

[Plaincrazy]

Very interesting topic
First thoughts, we are teaching kids what they need to know to function in society, this has been a function of education for a long time. Do kids need to know cursive when everything we do is electronic? do they need to know how to read an analog clock when most are digital? do they need to know how to spell six when anyone knows what 6 is? not really... but walk with me if you will.

Kids are educated by three forces: parents, teachers and society. Society can be governments, media, marketing giants, etc. and I will throw in religious education in there as well but it could fit anywhere.
We would like to think that parents and teachers are the most powerful influences here but let's face it, that battle was lost long ago. Just look at a McDonalds playland or Pokemon Go for instance.

I will take a critical thinking society over a literate one any day!

So after reading this topic this morning I am still thinking it over as I am standing in the self check-out line at my local Canadian Tire. Three kids in front of me are buying fishing rods and it looks like it's their first time going fishing , they look about 18-20 years old, clean cut and High School educated or higher. One of them bails to the cashier seemingly intimidated by the self-check out. The other two fumble their way through the self-check out purchase, and fail to complete the purchase on their own. We all have used these things and since they are fairly new, we remember learning to use it the first time. There are written instruction as well as auditory instructions ( that's the literacy part). All I can hear is " please place the item in the bag", over and over. These two are stumped, without saying a word one of them waves the attendant over. She promptly assists them and they complete their purchase. And she says "you guys did pretty good figuring it out, good job" and in response he says " thanks, we did it with minimal mistakes, that's pretty good".

Now, back in the 50's industrial arts served to educate a work force for industrial production, in the 60's and 70's sciences in reaction to Sputnik. I suggest that today, all we need to do is educate people enough to be consumers. As all that is important today is driving the economy, as long as people keep buying cars, no government bail outs are required. I am sure the fishing rod company was satisfied with the skill level displayed by the customers at Canadian Tire as they were able to fulfill their roles as consumers in society.

Now keep in mind that these three stooges at the self-check out were born and raised in this technology, they are literate in today's technologies and have all the skills required for the today's world. Critical thinking? not required when there is always someone there to bail you out.

Can't spell six? Never gave it a second thought, too busy realizing that I think we are fucked

[FreeMountainHermit]

Only dumb people work for you

Nah, just ain't too swift as the educational system has left them on the side of the road.

Newest yard guy hasn't showed up for 3 weeks and things are looking kinda dismal around the property considering that we have had a lot of rain.

FMH : "Where ya been Billy ??

Billy : " I had a flat tire"

[HDNB]

I am standing in the self check-out line at my local

i'm in the grocery the other day completing a purchase. i had a pocket full of change so i thought what better place to unload it.

drop a quarter in

the self serve sez: insert cash or use credit card...
drop another quarter.

the self serve sez: insert cash...
drop another quarter.

the self serve sez: insert cash....
etc...


i turn to the guy behind me and say "sounds just like my wife."

poor bastard had to go get a new milk, he dropped the one he was carring laughing so hard.

apparently sounds just like his wife too.

wet clean up aisle 7.

[Plaincrazy]

poor bastard had to go get a new milk, he dropped the one he was carring laughing so hard.

[WooTeck]

HDNB thats awesome. i will try to steel that if given the chance

[raketemensch]

I dunno, if I was inserting quarters into my wife she'd get pretty upset.

[Chauncey]

Here in New Orleans dealing with people who cant even speak normal English is a daily fact of life. reading and writing is out the window, this city is swamped in impeded speech.

[Hound Dog]

I dunno, if I was inserting quarters into my wife she'd get pretty upset.

Yea, I just insert the whole thing at once

[raketemensch]

Yea, I just insert the whole thing at once

I LOLed...

[city shiner]

My dad was from Arkansas. 6th grade education. He was probably the smartest person I've known. He built and remodeled houses in his youth. Became a millwright at a natural gas recovery plant in Texas, in his old age he got bit by the gold bug. Spent 20 years making recreational gold mining equipment, which he sold through a local shop here. He taught himself to read, do math, learned about geology from books. He said he could do everything he could because he grew up out in the country. Couldn't go to the store and buy what you needed if something broke. You had to fix it or make a new one of whatever. I don't meet people like that very often. Sad that things are going the way they are.

[DoubleJ]

I've had two experiences with guys who have a hard time reading, or just lazy learners... Anyway, the guy I have working for me now is functionally illiterate. He's about 42 or 43 years old. He was born and raised in Jamaica and came to Canada maybe about 15 years ago as a migrant worker. When I first hired him, and worked with him for a bit, it wasn't long before I figured out something was off. It took me about a month, I guess. Finally, I asked him how much education he had. He told me about grade 4. Hmmm... I think that was stretching it. Maybe grade 1 or 2 at best. I have a daughter in grade 3 right now who reads night and day better than he does. A few months ago I had to take my WAH (Working At heights) training and WHMIS refresher. I had to make special arrangements with the instructor for his testing. I still don't understand why he doesn't try to better himself. Lazy, I guess. I don't know.

Another kid I hired about 18 months ago was similar. He was semi-new to trade work, but seemed eager enough to learn, and I was kind of doing my wife's daughter's friend a favour to help him along. The kid was 19, and already had a 1 year old son with a girlfriend who was lazy as shit who'd barely get off her own ass to wipe it. I had him on the job cutting for me. I'd call out the measurements and get him to do the cutting. A few cuts in, he was already falling behind and wasn't getting the cuts right. I went over to see what he was doing and saw he was really struggling with the tape measure. I told him right then and there, that if he really wanted to get into this sort of work he had to know how to read a tape measure. I don't remember all the details of the conversation, but remember giving him a brief lesson on fractions. I then asked him what half of 16 was. His answer was 6. I was dumbfounded. I couldn't believe what I had just heard, but at the same time was very disheartened. Here in front of me was a 19 year old kid, for all intents and purposes went to school, but somehow slipped through the cracks. I guess there's something to be said for an old school education where failing a grade was accepted, and discipline had some kick to it... I certainly can't say that about what I'm seeing at the schools today....

[FreeMountainHermit]

In the area where I live it's not uncommon to come across many, many people of all ages that can't read at all or as the above poster called it "functionally illiterate".My newest helper around the property is by far the best worker we have had so far but at the age of 19 can't read the back of the 2 stroke oil can to get the proper oil/gas mix. It's everywhere and in my heart of heats I truly believe that "the system" has let these folks down. Nobody gives a damn and after generations of this it has become the norm rather than the exception. Sad. Incompetence in government and tax $$$$ wasted.

[Truckinbutch]

The dumbing down of America . Now these folks need a grubberment functionary to assist them in a fuel mix or some store that sells premixed quantities of fuel .

[Hound Dog]

The dumbing down of America . Now these folks need a grubberment functionary to assist them in a fuel mix or some store that sells premixed quantities of fuel .

Sad thing is the ones who buy that pre mixed fuel are the highly educated ones who don't have a lick of mechanical sense and are not confident enough to mix oil and gas for themselves.

[FreeMountainHermit]

Sad thing is the ones who buy that pre mixed fuel are the highly educated ones who don't have a lick of mechanical sense and are not confident enough to mix oil and gas for themselves.

LOL, My dad fell solidly into that grouping. Several degrees in chemistry and taught English @ Georgetown yet didn't know which end of the nail went against the wood. He was a moose killin' mofo though as he put several of them big critters in the record books and this was back in the day way before fancy guided trip into the wilderness. Packed his gear in and packed it out. Gone for weeks at a time.

[Hound Dog]

Heck, the guy next door to me was telling me how the spell check on his phone didn't work. I asked what was wrong. He said it doesn't get any words he tries to spell. He tried to spell nayber and it wouldn't let him spell it. I had to explain that you had to be somewhat close to spelling neighbor for it to recognize the word......

[shadylane]

In the area where I live it's not uncommon to come across many, many people of all ages that can't read at all or as the above poster called it "functionally illiterate".... Sad.

Just a thought
You say "it's not uncommon to come across many, many people of all ages that can't read at all"
What is the Per capita of "functionally illiterate" people in your area?
And was it better, Before or after the government started wasting tax money on education?

[rad14701]

Heck, the guy next door to me was telling me how the spell check on his phone didn't work. I asked what was wrong. He said it doesn't get any words he tries to spell. He tried to spell nayber and it wouldn't let him spell it. I had to explain that you had to be somewhat close to spelling neighbor for it to recognize the word......

His phone "might" be able to figure words out better if he spoke them to the phone...

[Hound Dog]

Heck, the guy next door to me was telling me how the spell check on his phone didn't work. I asked what was wrong. He said it doesn't get any words he tries to spell. He tried to spell nayber and it wouldn't let him spell it. I had to explain that you had to be somewhat close to spelling neighbor for it to recognize the word......

His phone "might" be able to figure words out better if he spoke them to the phone...

That would be his best chance. He's not winning the local spelling bee.

[FreeMountainHermit]

Just a thought
You say "it's not uncommon to come across many, many people of all ages that can't read at all"
What is the Per capita of "functionally illiterate" people in your area?
And was it better, Before or after the government started wasting tax money on education?

Shady, just the other week on the local news the commentator reported that 1 in 4 folks in the county read at a 4th grade level or less. However, I live back in the hills where it's pretty depressed so I'd venture a guess that it's considerably worse back in the country. A few friends are teachers locally and according to them it's the time honored battle between the teachers, the admin. and plain old $$$$$$$.

Retired here 7 years ago and this is completely foreign to me. Darn nice folks in the area and I have a lot of friends but all this is as I said above, completely new to me. We did a little logging on the hill behind the house and the skidder operator became a good friend. 56 years old and a 3rd grade education.

[shadylane]

"Where I live:It's a magical mythical place loaded with deer and flowing moonshine in the middle of nowhere back in the hills not found near any ZIP code."
"Retired here 7 years ago and this is completely foreign to me. Darn nice folks in the area and I have a lot of friends but all this is as I said above, completely new to me."
Not being mean FMH just looking at the picture from the other side

[FreeMountainHermit]

Some of the culture is puzzling but make no bones about it. I love it here. Rarely venture out of the holler.Mailbox is about as far as I want to go as it's on a 2 X 4 a half mile down the dirt road.

This from a guy that shot pistols very competitively on a national level as well as serious regional level Harley drag racing. No skin off my nose if the populace can't read just never been around it and it's so widespread.

Peace, FMH.

[Truckinbutch]

Guess it's easier for me as I grew up with it . Standing joke here , years back , was ; 'They made me go to school but I fucked them .............. I just refused to learn nothin '.
Bet that skidder operator knows more about that skidder and runnin it than you do . Not doggin ya . Just that they are so uneducated that they can totally focus on one thing and figure out every little thing about that one focus point .

[shadylane]

FMH, Let's look at this from the other side.
You relocated 7 years ago, and are now surrounded by "Professional hillbilly's" with generations of experience

[FreeMountainHermit]

Butch, he's a good friend and can take that skidder apart and back again as well as all the equipment he and his brother own.

It's the system and not so very much the people as I see kids that should be in school wandering the hills and nobody gives a flyin' fuck.

The school system should extend beyond the playground fence in order for these good folks to get ahead and realize a dream should they care to do so.JMHO

[FreeMountainHermit]

FMH, Let's look at this from the other side.
You relocated 7 years ago, and are now surrounded by "Professional hillbilly's" with generations of experience

And some of them are my very good friends. Last year a few of them voted me "the mayor of Gaines" After I told them about my qualifications to hold office I was quickly demoted to the "janitor of Gaines"

[Truckinbutch]

FMH , I came from this environment and rose above it (education wise) by my own choice . Few of my peers chose the same path . That was their choice . I have no answers for you .
Shit ! My Grandpa left school in the 2nd grade to start making a living with a team of horses . He was one hell of a baseball player and was spotted by a talent scout in 1914 . The man paid for his train ticket to Baltimore and guaranteed him more money for a year than he could make in 10 driving a team . He spent 3 days in Baltimore and got back on the train . The big city just was not for him .
Everybody has to float their own stick .

[jb-texshine]

Knew a guy i went to school with that couldnt read a sentence and still managed to go to jail for manufacturing meth. Splain that.

[goinbroke2]

I always bragged I was the smartest kid in grade 3, course I was 15....