Stupid things you were taught in school

[TheWannabeAnarchist]

When my 9th grade history class learned about the October Revolution, our teacher put "Revolution" in quotation marks on every quiz, or called it the "October Coup."

We also "learned" from our textbooks that when Red Army units deserted, Leon Trotsky had one out of every ten people in the unit shot randomly. No sources given.

In my friend's economics class, everyone had to watch a movie version of Atlas Shrugged, because what would education be without learning about the lovely books written by Ayn Rand, the Objecti*****?

What other fascinating things have you folks been privileged to learn in school?:laugh:

[radiocaroline]

Great thread comrade!

in short...

Britain is the best
Empire is good
Monarchy is AMAZING
Only white figures in history are worthy of discussion...
Nationalist propaganda, which inevitably stays with you for the rest of your life (if you remain passive)

[motion denied]

Chemistry.

No, seriously, I didn't even get to study Russian Revolution. Even when it was mentioned at all, the teacher would spend half an hour telling us how communists would steal our houses (which was funny because me and my parents lived in an aunt's house; we didn't really own a home).


ps: fuck chemistry though.

[BITW434]

A good example from this week would be my form tutor trying to convince me that Russia is still communist :laugh:

[Sinister Intents]

When my 9th grade history class learned about the October Revolution, our teacher put "Revolution" in quotation marks on every quiz, or called it the "October Coup."

We also "learned" from our textbooks that when Red Army units deserted, Leon Trotsky had one out of every ten people in the unit shot randomly. No sources given.

In my friend's economics class, everyone had to watch a movie version of Atlas Shrugged, because what would education be without learning about the lovely books written by Ayn Rand, the Objecti*****?

What other fascinating things have you folks been privileged to learn in school?:laugh:

Don't use sexist epithets, it doesn't matter Ayn Rand is a reactionary, don't use sexist crap no matter who it is.

As per the thread, that america is a great progressive nation thats saviour of the world and defeated communism, school was full of bullshit.

[Tenka]

Eine Nation, unter Gott, mit Freiheit und Gerechtigkeit für alle.

edit: I didn't remember the "indivisible" part. Probably because I went to school in the South.

[Sperm-Doll Setsuna]

A good example from this week would be my form tutor trying to convince me that Russia is still communist :laugh:

Me thinks you ought to lose that imbecile, whoever they are.

[DasFapital]

That John McCain was pro freedom and Obama was a big government liberal

[Dr Doom]

the irish 'language'.

[Bala Perdida]

Communism fell. As if it was ever reached.
Also Zachko and Vinccetie (spelling) were communists (Marxists).
Iraq was responsible for 9/11.

[BIXX]

Every country that claims to be socialist is socialist.

[consuming negativity]

The pledge of allegiance. I even know the damn thing in Spanish.

The only remarkable thing about Helen Keller is that she was blind/deaf. Learned about her almost every year and not a word said about her politics and activism.

The political spectrum "is more like a circle", with far-right wingers and far-left wingers being equally bad and violent, in comparison to the moderate, sensible centrists.

[Bala Perdida]

I hate how they try to pass off the center as a "best of both worlds" situation. Acting as if the center is absolute freedom and free from any possibility of repression. I guess Vladimir Putin is just getting aa bad rap then...
Also, putting us on a spectrum and putting us on the falling edge and them on the center balance is almost as annoying as the full circle bullshit.

I hate government basically. Both the class and the actual practice. Jajaja!

[Ceallach_the_Witch]

that history is essentially a linear progression from barbarism to modern liberal democracy

[Psycho P and the Freight Train]

I had a history teacher who explained communism, socialism, and capitalism like this.

Capitalism: You have two cows. You keep both and get to use them for whatever you want.

Socialism: The government takes your cows and gives you their milk.

Communism: The government takes your cows and you get nothing.

Oh, and Christopher Columbus sailed to the Americas to prove the world wasn't flat and he civilized those savage commie natives and brought them Jesus, who was a white European man with long brown hair and blue eyes.

[Brandon's Impotent Rage]

Jesus, where do I begin?

The way that history is taught in the U.S. is deplorable...as is the situation in much of the first world (I'm guessing).

Obviously there's the way the War of Independence and the Founding Fathers are mythologized and deified beyond all reason. The cult of personality around the likes of George Washington is so intense that it almost puts the Kims to shame.

(Don't get me wrong, the War of Independence was a very important event in history, and there's a lot of things to admire the FFs for, but they weren't gods.)

The way that WWII history is taught here in the U.S., you'd think that America won the war single-handedly instead of being the Johnny-Come-Latelys that we were.

The teaching of labor history is almost nil. Important world events like the Spanish Civil War go completely unmentioned.

Then of course there's the old wives' tales that still get taught in school, like Columbus trying to prove the world was round, or the First Thanksgiving, or Washington chopping down the cherry tree, etc.

[Slavic]

Damn you guys went to some fucked up schools, I don't remember teachers when I was in high school pushing anything as reactionary as what is stated in this thread. I do remember one of my history teachers had us read a short essay on Columbus during Columbus day. It basically outlined the torture and mass killings committed by the Spanish in the Caribbean.

Actually had a teacher far back in middle school teach us about the Israeli occupation of Palestine and the atrocities therein committed. Had to write a paper about it.

The most stupid thing I was taught was a 4 year degree will guarantee you a comfortable job. Bahaha

[Brandon's Impotent Rage]

Damn you guys went to some fucked up schools, I don't remember teachers when I was in high school pushing anything as reactionary as what is stated in this thread.

Public schools are notoriously underfunded down here in the South.

[Rosa Partizan]

I went to a catholic private school, it was much better than the public ones in town, we learned more in less time. However, religious education was a total pain in the ass. Our "teacher" was a priest (:laugh:) and he was being so damn biased all the time, about all kinds of everyday issues like premarital sex, homosexuality blah blah. I remember one lesson that was about abortion. He looked around and asked "when does life begin?" and we were like, uhmmm, no idea, with birth, in week 12 of pregnancy and so on, and he was like, no, life starts with fertilization, and trying to look very convincing while glaring at us. This kinda creeped me out, but at the same time, I kinda believed this shit and really had this year or two in my teenager time believing that abortion was murder.

[radiocaroline]

Reading this thread is so confusing when a "public school" in England is the term for a private school where stupidly rich, spoilt middle class kids go to...

[Rosa Partizan]

Reading this thread is so confusing when a "public school" in England is the term for a private school where stupidly rich, spoilt middle class kids go to...

yeah, right, I mix this up all the time. I chose "private school" because I guess the American users represent the majority here. To the Brit ones: My post relates to a public school.

[radiocaroline]

yeah, right, I mix this up all the time. I chose "private school" because I guess the American users represent the majority here. To the Brit ones: My post relates to a public school.


Us Brits in this case are wrong, I don't get why a private school is called a public school in the UK silly etymology... Oh well

[Vladimir Innit Lenin]

Being taught to respect authority just because...they're teachers/older than you. Not because they are also humans and they will respect you too. As a result I always tell my kids now that I will respect them, listen to them etc. and in return I expect the same, not just because of some blind authority.

History in the US sounds terrible; the curriculum is horrific in the sense that it is a patchwork mess of learning about 'stuff', that isn't connected by any unifying theme or underlying historical context/perspectives.

I have to say that History in the UK (or at least in London, I can't speak for anywhere else i've not seen) is actually very well taught, even if students don't always appreciate this at the time they were students.

[Prometeo liberado]

In high school we were taught that in order to become a Bolshevik Lenin made you kill a comrade. Now you do the math on that one folks and get back to me.

[Ceallach_the_Witch]

Yeah, elements of the liberal narrative aside i have to say i can't really complain about my history teachers (at secondary school at least.) All of them were also very willing to explain some stuff left out/distorted by of the curriculum etcetera

[Sinister Intents]

My teacher in global history insisted that Stalin was another way of saying Satan...

[Ro Laren]

Communism and fascism are the same thing.

I also had a creationist biology teacher. The worst part is, I really liked her and wound up buying into her bullshit for a while. :glare: At the very least it taught me to question everything teachers spout.

[Firebrand]

Us Brits in this case are wrong, I don't get why a private school is called a public school in the UK silly etymology... Oh well

Technically private schools are different from public schools over here the school system over here goes a bit like this.

State schools- where the common people send their kids. Quality varies from area to area. Better off parents buy houses in specific area/lie about their religion in order to make sure their kids end up in good ones.

Private schools- where the middle classes send their kids. They may re-mortgage the house to get their kids in, they also get the kids tutors in order to pass the entrance exams.

Public schools- Where seriously rich people send their kids, there are also occasionally scholarships for poor kids so that the rich kids know who they will be oppressing when they grow up. These kids will almost certainly be running the country one day, which makes the degree of inbreeding even more worrying.

Oh yeah and my parents went the lie about you religion route so I got taught that abortion is wrong except for cancer patients.

[Sabot Cat]

It's less about what I was taught and more about what I wasn't taught. The extensive regime change actions carried out by the CIA have nary a mention in any U.S. history book I've encountered in my education, nor were the Palmer Raids or the Mexican Repatriation. And anything that could suggest the possibility of an economy or a society without capitalist overlords is glossed over, as if our current structure is just the most natural thing in the world.

[TheWannabeAnarchist]

Chemistry.

No, seriously, I didn't even get to study Russian Revolution. Even when it was mentioned at all, the teacher would spend half an hour telling us how communists would steal our houses (which was funny because me and my parents lived in an aunt's house; we didn't really own a home).


ps: fuck chemistry though.

I actually love chemistry, but it's ridiculous that every single high schooler is forced to learn it. To be able to understand basic chemical reactions and safety hazards is a must, but not many people really need to learn how many grams of sodium will react with 22.45 moles of flouride. Total waste of time and money.

[TheWannabeAnarchist]

Don't use sexist epithets, it doesn't matter Ayn Rand is a reactionary, don't use sexist crap no matter who it is.

I apologize; I forget how sexist that word really is sometimes.

[Vladimir Innit Lenin]

Technically private schools are different from public schools over here the school system over here goes a bit like this.

State schools- where the common people send their kids. Quality varies from area to area. Better off parents buy houses in specific area/lie about their religion in order to make sure their kids end up in good ones.

Private schools- where the middle classes send their kids. They may re-mortgage the house to get their kids in, they also get the kids tutors in order to pass the entrance exams.

Public schools- Where seriously rich people send their kids, there are also occasionally scholarships for poor kids so that the rich kids know who they will be oppressing when they grow up. These kids will almost certainly be running the country one day, which makes the degree of inbreeding even more worrying.

Oh yeah and my parents went the lie about you religion route so I got taught that abortion is wrong except for cancer patients.

I have never heard (i'm presuming you're talking about the UK) of this difference between 'private' and 'public' schools. As far as i'm aware, their names are inter-changeable. Obviously some private schools (Eton, Harrow etc.) are in a different league to other private schools, but I don't recognise any official difference between the two.

[Red Commissar]

During middle-school our history teacher was pretty hellbent on downplaying the role of slavery in the civil war and trying to move states right as a primary concern. I bought into it too then, makes me sick thinking back to it.

[Redistribute the Rep]

That Stalin was worse than Hitler

[Derendscools]

That Ho Chi Minh was a ruthless fellow :huh:
And that Henry Kissinger was aaaaaaaaaaaaliiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiirght :thumbdown:

[Sea]

Second year in college I figured out that, in classes where the homework is not graded, I could absolutely skip all the homework and, on average, fall by only 2/3rds of a letter grade.

So basically I learned how to compromise. That's a good skill to have, no?

[RedPanda55]

That North Korea is proof that Communism is a terrible thing (Communism has nothing to do with brainwashing an entire population to worship their one leader and hate anything foreign).

That Russia is still Communist.

That the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan were all about bringing democracy and freedom to people (further: that our troops are saintly heroes and are seen as such by the Afghans and Iraqis. Not saying that all of them are bad, but the instant, mindless glorification of the military and their crusade against uncivilized and evil terrorists is...no. And the people in Afghanistan often don't have positive things to say about our presence there).

I'm a HS junior now and I'm taking US/VA this year, so I'm bound to run into more BS.

[Naroc]

The most stupid thing i heard/had to learn in school was the fact - because Hitler's Regime was called National Socialist - that therefore all socialists were "evil" and want to spread slavery and fascism among the people. Very sad when even history teachers can't distinguish between Fascism and Communism/Socialism. But i have to say that i don't believe the way it was teached was part of the curriculum. Our teacher had some ...uhm special preferences. And people like him are allowed to teach history in our schools..

[Sinister Intents]

I apologize; I forget how sexist that word really is sometimes.

It's alright. One thing I learned in high school is that teachers will go to great lenghths to justify the bullshit they spout. For example a post I've made in another thread, it's about how my tenth grade English teacher was teaching about animal farm:

I went through this in tenth grade with a teacher who was using it to justify his racism, islamophobia, and use it as an anticommunist book. I debated with the class about presenting the facts I knew and he just made my grade suffer and I got called retard. He used the Cyrillic letters CCCP, English letters because Slavs are apparently too dumb to make acronyms. I hated that fucking man.

[Philosophos]

Oh boy I love this thread. I could actually write a book of 600 pages minimum for all the shit that I learned in school.

-You should respect your elders no matter what.
-The official language of the USA was going to be greek, but greek lost for one vote to english (generally this "for one vote" applies to everything)
-If you try and work enough you are going to get what you deserve.
-Capitalism if fair.
-Byzantine Empire was greek.
-We are related to the ancient greeks.
-Since the creation of Greece every single primeminister focused on making education better.
-E. Venizelos was a good guy.
-We tried to "libarate" (NOT CONQUER) regions that were turkish for more than 400 years in 1920s
-Greeks were always the victims in every single war.
-Something was always happening at every government and they couldn't do anything about it and that's why they were shitty.
-Macedonia is ONLY greek even though three countries have macedonian regions.
-Russia is always there to help us because we are both christian orthodox (even though I have hard time recalling the last time Russia helped us just for the fun of it)
-Your vote counts.
-School teaches you the most important things.
-The courts are uncorrupted.
-The Apocalypse is coming.
-Sex before wedding is bad.
-Foreigners can't ever be a part of this country.
-Foreigners shouldn't hold the greek flag.
-We gave birth to democracy (I have hard time believing that we are directly related to some people 2-5 thousand years behind and at the same time they gave birth to democracy not us).
-People should protest, but not very much.
-People should express themselves, but they can't say anything they want.
-There is no discrimination in Greece (lmao)
-Women have the same rights as man in Greece (lmao x2)
-There is no propaganda in the media (god I laugh every time with that one).

I wish I had time to write everything, but that's the most usual that I believe is taught in every single public school.

[BIXX]

Oh boy I love this thread. I could actually write a book of 600 pages minimum for all the shit that I learned in school.



-You should respect your elders no matter what.

-The official language of the USA was going to be greek, but greek lost for one vote to english (generally this "for one vote" applies to everything)

-If you try and work enough you are going to get what you deserve.

-Capitalism if fair.

-Byzantine Empire was greek.

-We are related to the ancient greeks.

-Since the creation of Greece every single primeminister focused on making education better.

-E. Venizelos was a good guy.

-We tried to "libarate" (NOT CONQUER) regions that were turkish for more than 400 years in 1920s

-Greeks were always the victims in every single war.

-Something was always happening at every government and they couldn't do anything about it and that's why they were shitty.

-Macedonia is ONLY greek even though three countries have macedonian regions.

-Russia is always there to help us because we are both christian orthodox (even though I have hard time recalling the last time Russia helped us just for the fun of it)

-Your vote counts.

-School teaches you the most important things.

-The courts are uncorrupted.

-The Apocalypse is coming.

-Sex before wedding is bad.

-Foreigners can't ever be a part of this country.

-Foreigners shouldn't hold the greek flag.

-We gave birth to democracy (I have hard time believing that we are directly related to some people 2-5 thousand years behind and at the same time they gave birth to democracy not us).

-People should protest, but not very much.

-People should express themselves, but they can't say anything they want.

-There is no discrimination in Greece (lmao)

-Women have the same rights as man in Greece (lmao x2)

-There is no propaganda in the media (god I laugh every time with that one).



I wish I had time to write everything, but that's the most usual that I believe is taught in every single public school.


For a second I thought you were from the US because if your second point, and so the list made even less sense Hahahahaha.

[Diirez]

I have a teacher who still calls Russia the Soviet Union.
Communism means everyone is the exact same, from your clothes to what you eat.
Marxism just doesn't work because of the Soviet Union.
Every Bolshevik is responsible for the thousands of deaths in Ukraine under the Soviet Union.
Atheism is a problem to society.
Hitler was an Atheist.
In Communist society, there's only one form of everything. One form of jeans, one form of laptops...etc.
In Communism, personal property would be abolished.

And I also had someone argue that Russia still Communist by saying: "Are they a democratic country? No! So they're Communist."

[Red Economist]

-The Apocalypse is coming.

wow. Talk about psychological scaring....


Overall, I was pretty fortunate. But there are somethings I would like to have been taught in school;

1. A science lesson on the philosophy of science; not just being presented with the scientific method as true by definition
2. An actual Sex Education Class which deals with the psychology of sex and relationships, not just the biology of "insert dick here".
3. What Maths is used for (and why it matters).
4. How do you actually get a healthy-balanced diet (and not just a diagram for 'healthy diet' out of a textbook).
5. Basic Accounting (to keep track of personal expenses)
6. Best ways to help deal with Climate change on a personal level.
7. An Religious Education Class on why people are religious (not just, here's a list of what 'they' think as if 'they' are an alien species out there, somewhere but as if one day things like the meaning of life, responses to death etc actually matter to the person concerned).
8. The implicit role of Propaganda in Advertising and Mass Media.
9. How to write essays properly (something that I had to figure out at degree level).
10. The Art of conversation and small talk (as an introvert, this is still 'hard').
11. Martial Arts in PE, but just because it's cool.

[Bostana]

George Washington is a genius war hero who fought for equal rights

Also my favorite econ quiz question and i quote,
"North Korea is a communist economy, true or false"
The answers was of course true

[Loony Le Fist]

I would say the eurocentrism. That Christopher Columbus was some great guy, whereas the truth was he was a merciless racist imperialist slaughterer that single-handedly killed off the native population of Cuba. And we have a day named after him. How fitting.

Also nearly everything I learned about the USSR was biased and incorrect in the details.

[Loony Le Fist]

First off, I'd like to give you an applause for these suggestions. I wholeheartedly agree.



1. A science lesson on the philosophy of science; not just being presented with the scientific method as true by definition


This would go so far in combating the problems we are having with the evolution v. creationism (EvC) "controversy". The problem is, that without understanding the philosophy of how science works, when individuals are faced with this dilemma, they don't know how to discern the valid falsifiable claims from the bollocks. There are people that graduate with university degrees that still don't know. Hence, the unfortunate fact that a little over 50% of Americans believe creationism is a valid explanation for origins.



2. An actual Sex Education Class which deals with the psychology of sex and relationships, not just the biology of "insert dick here".


Agreed. A holistic approach is needed here to teach young people, not just about the sex act itself, but the emotional aspects of relationships.



3. What Maths is used for (and why it matters).


Yep, and I would add we need to update the math curriculum to teach kids how math works, and not just rote memorization. There are ways to demonstrate to young people through it's application how much it does matter.



4. How do you actually get a healthy-balanced diet (and not just a diagram for 'healthy diet' out of a textbook).


This is a big one. One that is influenced by large agribusiness. I would add to this teaching young people how to prepare their own meals.



5. Basic Accounting (to keep track of personal expenses)


This one is already being implemented in a lot of places. But sadly not enough.



6. Best ways to help deal with Climate change on a personal level.


It is a shame with this. When I was growing up, they actually made it a point to talk about climate change in science textbooks. But sadly, there has been industry influence to actually change our schools textbooks in the US to remove this from the curriculum, or present the "controversy"; much like the EvC "controversy".



7. An Religious Education Class on why people are religious (not just, here's a list of what 'they' think as if 'they' are an alien species out there, somewhere but as if one day things like the meaning of life, responses to death etc actually matter to the person concerned).


Definitely. There is so much taboo about religion sometimes in the US, that school systems are afraid to tackle the subject at all. But truth be told, there are lots of religious people. And sometimes when you make an omelet you've got a break a few eggs.



8. The implicit role of Propaganda in Advertising and Mass Media.


Agreed here too. Manufacturing Consent should be required viewing for at least high school students in politics related classes, like government.



9. How to write essays properly (something that I had to figure out at degree level).


Yes, there needs to be more communication between the high schools and universities so they can coordinate what will be expected at the university level for english classes.



10. The Art of conversation and small talk (as an introvert, this is still 'hard').


Another necessary skill that is totally missed by the normal education framework.



11. Martial Arts in PE, but just because it's cool.

This is another great idea. Martial arts build confidence, teach persistence, relieve stress, and is great physical exercise.

These are great ideas. We need to implement them all.

[GerrardWinstanley]

'Did you know ketamine is a horse tranquiliser?', lol

[Philosophos]

For a second I thought you were from the US because if your second point, and so the list made even less sense Hahahahaha.

hahahahaha. the best thing is that a teacher of mine once told me that native americans had some words that had roots to ancient greek words so apparently greek people discovered America 5000 years ago....

The Illuminati want to keep the wise and god blessed greeks in the dark, we conquered America and they won't give it back, oh lord show us some mercy :laugh:

[Comrade Jacob]

'Communism doesn't work because the Tibetans grew different things'.
I don't even know where it came from, especially in maths.

[The Jay]

I was taught that Jesus was real and that I'm going to hell for not praying harder.

[TheMaroon]

I learned:

Che is an evil man
Karl Marx was a failure
The communist movement is dead
Communism and Socialism are evil, and that the only capitilism can fix our coutries' economic nightmare

[Hexen]

Oh boy I love this thread. I could actually write a book of 600 pages minimum for all the shit that I learned in school.

-You should respect your elders no matter what.
-The official language of the USA was going to be greek, but greek lost for one vote to english (generally this "for one vote" applies to everything)
-If you try and work enough you are going to get what you deserve.
-Capitalism if fair.
-Byzantine Empire was greek.
-We are related to the ancient greeks.
-Since the creation of Greece every single primeminister focused on making education better.
-E. Venizelos was a good guy.
-We tried to "libarate" (NOT CONQUER) regions that were turkish for more than 400 years in 1920s
-Greeks were always the victims in every single war.
-Something was always happening at every government and they couldn't do anything about it and that's why they were shitty.
-Macedonia is ONLY greek even though three countries have macedonian regions.
-Russia is always there to help us because we are both christian orthodox (even though I have hard time recalling the last time Russia helped us just for the fun of it)
-Your vote counts.
-School teaches you the most important things.
-The courts are uncorrupted.
-The Apocalypse is coming.
-Sex before wedding is bad.
-Foreigners can't ever be a part of this country.
-Foreigners shouldn't hold the greek flag.
-We gave birth to democracy (I have hard time believing that we are directly related to some people 2-5 thousand years behind and at the same time they gave birth to democracy not us).
-People should protest, but not very much.
-People should express themselves, but they can't say anything they want.
-There is no discrimination in Greece (lmao)
-Women have the same rights as man in Greece (lmao x2)
-There is no propaganda in the media (god I laugh every time with that one).

I wish I had time to write everything, but that's the most usual that I believe is taught in every single public school.

It's very interesting that each country/nation's schools aren't interested teaching the facts but rather promote their own nationalist and capitalist ideology which is all about.

It's also the main source of the hardcore liberals, reactionaries, MRA, etc I often argue with outside this forum because they're basically spouting what they are indoctrinated by their schools.

[The Jay]

I was also taught that I was an idiot that would never make it by my 8th grade teacher.

[DOOM]

You know, that standard communism-is-the-booman stuff like China is communist and that's why there's a dictatorship, poverty and massive environmental problems.
far-left and far-right are basically the same.
In communism you aren't allowed to have a bigger house or a better car.

Nothing that wasn't written in this thread. So yeah

[DOOM]

I remember how our teacher was speaking with us how colonialism and neo-colonialism are still affecting Africa and the third world. But he was unable to develop those thoughts further and to find the real problem; capitalism.
It was like he didn't even want to think about it properly.

[Hexen]

I remember how our teacher was speaking with us how colonialism and neo-colonialism are still affecting Africa and the third world. But he was unable to develop those thoughts further and to find the real problem; capitalism.

It is because they won't attack the system they function under while they tend to create strawman to point fingers at ("Communism", "Socialism", Stalin, Hitler, etc) but of course when confronted about colonialism/neo-colonialism, they run short basically much like going "uhhh....".

[G4b3n]

My Euro history teacher was a socialist who taught the Russian revolution from a worker's perspective. He focused on the structure of the soviets as opposed to emphasis Bolshevik actions as being representative of the tonality of the worker's movement. The argument that the Russian revolution was actually a coupe does hold some weight; not when backed by liberal fabrication such as in the case of your teacher, but when assessed in terms of the worker's movement as a whole.

My current history professor is a liberal who uses the materialist conception of history only in regards to things in which substance and explanation can not be fabricated without it, such as the incorporation of the peasantry into the working class, which is true of most liberals I believe. The only off base political assertion from her was the notion of the political spectrum being a circle in which by going "too far left" one ends up on the right, which is of course false as it is built on the false assumptions that 1. Authoritarian worker's states are the equivalent of fascist states and 2. Stalinism is the "farthest left" one can "go" in a political sense.

[ArisVelouxiotis]

Every country that claims to be socialist is socialist.
This.I'm sure in every western school at least we were taught that every eastern bloc country was socialist.
Also that Metaxas the fascist dictator was a good guy who said no to the evil Italians.

[ArisVelouxiotis]

Oh boy I love this thread. I could actually write a book of 600 pages minimum for all the shit that I learned in school.

-You should respect your elders no matter what.
-The official language of the USA was going to be greek, but greek lost for one vote to english (generally this "for one vote" applies to everything)
-If you try and work enough you are going to get what you deserve.
-Capitalism if fair.
-Byzantine Empire was greek.
-We are related to the ancient greeks.
-Since the creation of Greece every single primeminister focused on making education better.
-E. Venizelos was a good guy.
-We tried to "libarate" (NOT CONQUER) regions that were turkish for more than 400 years in 1920s
-Greeks were always the victims in every single war.
-Something was always happening at every government and they couldn't do anything about it and that's why they were shitty.
-Macedonia is ONLY greek even though three countries have macedonian regions.
-Russia is always there to help us because we are both christian orthodox (even though I have hard time recalling the last time Russia helped us just for the fun of it)
-Your vote counts.
-School teaches you the most important things.
-The courts are uncorrupted.
-The Apocalypse is coming.
-Sex before wedding is bad.
-Foreigners can't ever be a part of this country.
-Foreigners shouldn't hold the greek flag.
-We gave birth to democracy (I have hard time believing that we are directly related to some people 2-5 thousand years behind and at the same time they gave birth to democracy not us).
-People should protest, but not very much.
-People should express themselves, but they can't say anything they want.
-There is no discrimination in Greece (lmao)
-Women have the same rights as man in Greece (lmao x2)
-There is no propaganda in the media (god I laugh every time with that one).

I wish I had time to write everything, but that's the most usual that I believe is taught in every single public school.
Yeah.Or that,that the civil war is the worst thing that can happen to a country.Entante(spelling)were very good guys even though they blocked the port peraius and starved thousands of Greeks for us to get into ww1.Turks are our sworn enemies and that E.Venizelos was the best thing that happened to greece.Also Constantine the Great was a saint apparently.

[Ember Catching]

That the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan were all about bringing democracy and freedom to people
While the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq were by no means principally humanitarian interventions, it strikes me as really quite ignorant to deny political liberalization as the cornerstone of Coalition strategy that it was.

[Sea]

In communism you aren't allowed to have a bigger house or a better car.I think this one is worth defending. Why should everyone have a car worse than yours? Why should you want a better car? There is only one really good refutation for that, and I'm surprised it's not more obvious to everyone, and that's that in capitalism, you, the workers, have the shitty car in the first place. All the other refutations ("You CAN have a better car because communism isn't about XYZ!", etc) seem to accept consumerism which is just stupid.

[Philosophos]

It's very interesting that each country/nation's schools aren't interested teaching the facts but rather promote their own nationalist and capitalist ideology which is all about.

well it's only natural that the governments do so, because they can't pass the things they want if they let you have your own view of the world. They try to create their own perfect (for them) picture in the heads of every kid so they can control him/her in a much easier way. At the same time if they give you the real facts then people start thinking and understanding and boy they don't want that.


Yeah.Or that,that the civil war is the worst thing that can happen to a country.Entante(spelling)were very good guys even though they blocked the port peraius and starved thousands of Greeks for us to get into ww1.Turks are our sworn enemies and that E.Venizelos was the best thing that happened to greece.Also Constantine the Great was a saint apparently.

I can't remember anything that has to do with the civil war, simply because they never talked about it for more than 5 minutes. The Alliance talk on the other hand (with the très romantique relation that we are supposed to have with the french and the all mighty orthodox link with Russia) was analysed in depth in every WW2 history subject and most of my classmates still think they were nice on us. I won't even comment about turks you've said more than enough. I don't know if you studied the history of the theoretical direction ( greeklish ftw!!!) but it was basically the biography of Venizelos and his awesomeness. If you haven't I totally recommend you to do so, you're gonna laugh your ass off.

[RedPanda55]

While the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq were by no means principally humanitarian interventions, it strikes me as really quite ignorant to deny political liberalization as the cornerstone of Coalition strategy that it was.

Forgive me, I don't think I was exactly thinking straight when I posted that. I just hate how my teachers glorify the invasions all the way knowing there's been some f'ed up things that have occurred during the wars and and knowing that it isn't quite going in our favor. I understand Saddam and the Taliban were douchebags to the people, but other than that, I believe it's a lost cause what we're doing over there now and it's only turning people against us by staying there and allowing some messed up people to do their BS in the field (talking about war crimes and whatnot).

[ArisVelouxiotis]

well it's only natural that the governments do so, because they can't pass the things they want if they let you have your own view of the world. They try to create their own perfect (for them) picture in the heads of every kid so they can control him/her in a much easier way. At the same time if they give you the real facts then people start thinking and understanding and boy they don't want that.



I can't remember anything that has to do with the civil war, simply because they never talked about it for more than 5 minutes. The Alliance talk on the other hand (with the très romantique relation that we are supposed to have with the french and the all mighty orthodox link with Russia) was analysed in depth in every WW2 history subject and most of my classmates still think they were nice on us. I won't even comment about turks you've said more than enough. I don't know if you studied the history of the theoretical direction ( greeklish ftw!!!) but it was basically the biography of Venizelos and his awesomeness. If you haven't I totally recommend you to do so, you're gonna laugh your ass off.

Ι know,I like history and probably go to theoretical direction(3η γυμνασιου ειμαι τωρα)my sister is giving exams and yeah 20th century is Venizelos century.

[bad ideas actualised by alcohol]

I can't really say I have too much issues with the content of what is taught. Of course it is lacking and biased but it seems to be less bad here than at some of the places other posters in this thread went to school.
What mostly bothers me when it comes to school is not what is taught per se but how it is taught. School is basically set up around the idea that you can only get students interested in education by scaring the fuck out of them with standardised exams, high pressure, mandatory classes, detention etc. This completely misses the point of education, which is educating, and instead turns school into a place we keep children until they are old enough to go out into the world on their own and get a job.

[Criminalize Heterosexuality]

Byzantine Empire was greek.

For that matter, the notion that there was something called the "Byzantine Empire" which was different from the Roman Empire, because of course you can't have the Roman Empire surviving until the 15th century, and particularly (if you're in Croatia) not if it's mainly Orthodox.

In history class, we were taught all about the glories of the glorious mediaeval Croatian kingdom, a state that covered about 3/4 of modern Croatia, whose royal title was barely recognized and that was an effective Byzantine vassal for most of its existence.

Also plate armor weighted 100 kilos and knights had to be placed on horses by cranes.

[ArisVelouxiotis]

Wasn't Byzantine empire greek though?I mean they talked Greek and the King was named(βασιλευς εν θεω).I don't know,I may be misinformed.

[Criminalize Heterosexuality]

Basileus Romaion, if I recall correctly. And yes, in the late Roman Empire a dialect of Greek (not at all identical to modern Greek) gradually supplanted Latin as a language of administration, commerce etc. But this doesn't make the empire Greek, per se; Greek was also used extensively in the earlier Roman Empire. Ethnically, the Byzantine population was extremely varied, comprising both established ethnic groups, Greek, Asian and African, and newly-arrived groups such as Goths.

[ArisVelouxiotis]

Basileus Romaion, if I recall correctly. And yes, in the late Roman Empire a dialect of Greek (not at all identical to modern Greek) gradually supplanted Latin as a language of administration, commerce etc. But this doesn't make the empire Greek, per se; Greek was also used extensively in the earlier Roman Empire. Ethnically, the Byzantine population was extremely varied, comprising both established ethnic groups, Greek, Asian and African, and newly-arrived groups such as Goths.

I guess I bought what I was taught in school.Thanks anyway.

[Trotsky'sWorker]

I went to a Catholic school and I was taught that Homosexuality is a disease similar to AIDS (somehow). We were taught to pity them. We never learned about the Bolsheviks or anything like that. Also, most of the students were insanely rich so they didn't care much for helping the poor.

[JudasMaiden]

Stupid shit at school:
*Writing objectives, basically rote memorizing the objective of the class.
*The United States cares a lot about human rights
*The Soviet Union cared little for human rights
*Communism is when the state owns the properties and the means of productions.
*[Public] School is about making critical thinkers
*Students need to be "well-rounded"(by that logic, students must learn ballet and learn how to pilot a plane to succeed) to succeed in life

[Goblin]

We got to hear the whole thing about Stalin killing 8 trillion people, but other than that our history classes weren't that bad.

[goalkeeper]

Great thread comrade!

in short...

Britain is the best
Empire is good
Monarchy is AMAZING
Only white figures in history are worthy of discussion...
Nationalist propaganda, which inevitably stays with you for the rest of your life (if you remain passive)

Assuming (and maybe it is wrong to do so) you were educated in the 2000s, unless you had some wacky teacher, this seems like an exaggeration. not that education is any good in england, but that is completely out of kilter with the history curriculum of the New Labour years.

[goalkeeper]

that history is essentially a linear progression from barbarism to modern liberal democracy

REALLY?!?

It sounds completely at odds with how schools have taught history in recent years, which is to focus in on specific areas rather than provide some sort of linear narrative

[Remus Bleys]

Principles of democracy is just praise for everything America does. Asshole teacher has us all praise vietnam, loves waiting for superman, and told me he was anti capitalist (until I wrote my first paper I guess) and then made me buy the book. The class is required to graduate.

[Krasnyy]

My American History Teacher goes on all class condemning pre-20th century European colonialism, but then commemorates NeoCon wars like Vietnam (which was meant to re-establish French colonialism), and Iraq. Which are essentially (by definition) forms of neo-colonialism.

[ComradeViktor]

How America "liberated" the "Kingdom of Iraq" from tyranny. :mad:

[sylvanus olympio]

Globalization is great

[ComradeYakov]

In my history class we were taught
-that Fascism and Socialism are the same with different propaganda styles.
-that Canada has only intervened to in other countries as "peacekeepers"
-that Lenin was a conniving trickster who took power in a "coup"
-that history is a circular process
-that all revolutionaries are bad, and that all reformists are great

[Comrade Jacob]

In short: DUR CHURCHILL!!!11!!!

[Redistribute the Rep]

Ronald Reagan saved the world from communism

[Abstract Labor]

No mention of the Chicano Movement. Ever.
No mention of the Women's Liberation Movement. Ever.

[hashem]

i remember my religious lessons (which were mandatory in my country). they tried to prove that god exists but only ended in "proving"(!) their stupid assumptions. for example they claimed that world is a complex place and its order cannot be accidental, so it has to have a god who created it! but when students asked were did the god (who must be more complex than the material world) came from in the first place, they answered that gods existance doesnt need any reason and it existed from the begining!

i have seen that after 16 years of religious studies in schools and universities, most of students mock the governmental religion. but the true reason for the buisness of religion is that it creates a militia for the government. religion treachers, mosque keepers, servants of mullahs and ... know that their way of life dependents on the existstance of a theocracy. therefor, they defend it with their lives even when they fail to win an ideological struggle against children.

[Crabbensmasher]

i remember my religious lessons (which were mandatory in my country). they tried to prove that god exists but only ended in "proving"(!) their stupid assumptions. for example they claimed that world is a complex place and its order cannot be accidental, so it has to have a god who created it! but when students asked were did the god (who must be more complex than the material world) came from in the first place, they answered that gods existance doesnt need any reason and it existed from the begining!

i have seen that after 16 years of religious studies in schools and universities, most of students mock the governmental religion. but the true reason for the buisness of religion is that it creates a militia for the government. religion treachers, mosque keepers, servants of mullahs and ... know that their way of life dependents on the existstance of a theocracy. therefor, they defend it with their lives even when they fail to win an ideological struggle against children.

Haha, if you're going to have religious studies, don't put it in the damned school.

Imagine going straight from a calculus class to a religious class and hearing that crap. The contrast would be fucking hilarious. There's no other situation where the absurdity of religious education is highlighted so easily. They're literally digging themselves their own grave.

Maybe religion could be studied with other subjects, in say, the middle ages, but in today's schools? After the scientific revolution? The enlightenment? It's crazy. Yet as I think about it, they do it fucking EVERYWHERE

[Comrade Thomas]

That capitalist Economic theories are subjective and reducing Union power is good.

[Zoroaster]

I remember the first time I got into a political debate with a adult. It was our schools's student resource officer, who is friends with my science teacher, and always comes to chat with him. I was discussing with the teacher about the Revolutionary War, then the officer asked me,
"What party do you support?"
I said, "None, change comes from below". He asked if I supported the Tea Party, in which I replied "no, they are fascists and supporters of the elites." He told me that the Tea Party would ensure the economy would function again, to which I told him to read some Marx. He then said that Obama was a Marxist, to which I replied "if Obama was a Marxist, he would destroy the state, and create a free, non-hierarchical democratic society in which workers control the means of production, currency is abolished, and communities co-operate out of human kindness, rather than hate and competition. If Obama did all these things, I would support him." The teacher, the officer, and the class stared at me quietly while I stood their with a smirk on my face, and standing just like Max Stirner in that drawing of him done by Friedrich Engels. He called me a communist and stormed out of the room. I stood their and laughed.

And to add on all that, the next day I wore a T-Shirt which had a art style like the Obama "hope" picture, except it showed the face of Marx, with the word "liberty" under it.

[Multiaccounting]

I was taught at home so I was lucky enough not to have learned stupid stuff. Although some of what I learned I found hard to understand, but I don't think it was useless.

[BIXX]

I remember the first time I got into a political debate with a adult. It was our schools's student resource officer, who is friends with my science teacher, and always comes to chat with him. I was discussing with the teacher about the Revolutionary War, then the officer asked me,

"What party do you support?"

I said, "None, change comes from below". He asked if I supported the Tea Party, in which I replied "no, they are fascists and supporters of the elites." He told me that the Tea Party would ensure the economy would function again, to which I told him to read some Marx. He then said that Obama was a Marxist, to which I replied "if Obama was a Marxist, he would destroy the state, and create a free, non-hierarchical democratic society in which workers control the means of production, currency is abolished, and communities co-operate out of human kindness, rather than hate and competition. If Obama did all these things, I would support him." The teacher, the officer, and the class stared at me quietly while I stood their with a smirk on my face, and standing just like Max Stirner in that drawing of him done by Friedrich Engels. He called me a communist and stormed out of the room. I stood their and laughed.



And to add on all that, the next day I wore a T-Shirt which had a art style like the Obama "hope" picture, except it showed the face of Marx, with the word "liberty" under it.


Oh you guys have those fucking SROs as well? Those guys are such fucks. The one at my school burnt a woman's stomach on a stove and was involved in the beating of a Hispanic man for no reason (I read the police report/court records- a lot of which was missing, which implies to me that there was a cover up). Plus, for the lady who got burnt, they destroyed the public files, which is hugely illegal. So he's been involved in cover ups for fucked up shit, and I would to be surprised if I found out there was way more that's been hidden.

[Zmest]

In my school, I *learned* that Ronald Reagan was the best president of the USA, that Bush was right to invade Middle East, because it was self-defense, and of course that Communism was the same as Nazism and Mussolini's Fascism!

[Zoroaster]

To EchoShock:

Yeah, there not great. The officer is a complete mad hatter republican. He always rambles about how FOX News is the only clean news source, in which I begin talking about Chomsky's book "Manufacturing Consent" and how most US news stations are filled with nonsense. He also attempted to glorify that recent event where that local militia which repelled the FBI when they were trying to take the cattle of a guy who wasn't paying up for using federal lands. What shitlords.

[ArisVelouxiotis]

We have a teacher at school that says we descend from Ancient Greeks and when I said no because so many people have passed here from so many other regions of the world she said "Greeks have special DNA and it can't be mixed".

[Comrade Jacob]

Mussolini was still a leftist when he invented fascism. And Anarchy is not an ideology it's "chavs" with baseball bats.

[Seriously?]

There wasn't much mention of Communism at my school...

[Sea]

I was taught that the puritans were the driving light of liberty and freedom in this great land, long before George Washington or T.J. even existed. The reason, of course, is that the Puritans were prepared to align the new wold with god's will, which is how freedom and peace can foster in the first place.
I remember the first time I got into a political debate with a adult. It was our schools's student resource officer, who is friends with my science teacher, and always comes to chat with him. I was discussing with the teacher about the Revolutionary War, then the officer asked me,
"What party do you support?"
I said, "None, change comes from below". He asked if I supported the Tea Party, in which I replied "no, they are fascists and supporters of the elites." He told me that the Tea Party would ensure the economy would function again, to which I told him to read some Marx. He then said that Obama was a Marxist, to which I replied "if Obama was a Marxist, he would destroy the state, and create a free, non-hierarchical democratic society in which workers control the means of production, currency is abolished, and communities co-operate out of human kindness, rather than hate and competition. If Obama did all these things, I would support him." The teacher, the officer, and the class stared at me quietly while I stood their with a smirk on my face, and standing just like Max Stirner in that drawing of him done by Friedrich Engels. He called me a communist and stormed out of the room. I stood their and laughed.

And to add on all that, the next day I wore a T-Shirt which had a art style like the Obama "hope" picture, except it showed the face of Marx, with the word "liberty" under it.:wub:
i love you
be the daddy of my butt-babies

[Smash Monogamy]

I learned "socialism just doesn't work!"

[Tolstoy]

Ronald Reagan was wholly responsible for defeating the Soviet Union, while failing to mention the disastrous aspects of Perestroika.

The AFL-CIO was wholly responsible for winning reforms for the working class, the IWW were just terrorists

[AnaRchic]

I was taught the typical bourgeois propaganda version of American history written by the rulers and masters. Didn't question it for a while. Then I read some Howard Zinn....and some marx, and bakunin, and on and on and on.

The obvious one-sided pro-status-quo nature of high school is what put me on the revolutionary path in the first place, in just trying to learn the truth about history.

[Redistribute the Rep]

Ok I saw a poster in my history class (it was made by a student) depicting the Cold War and it showed two sides - democracy vs communism. Under democracy it listed the US, Iran, South Korea, Taiwan, etc. I weep for humanity.

[exeexe]

I was tought that 1+1=2 when in reality
The whole is greater than the sum of its parts

[Comrade Raymund]

That 9/11 was a attack from terrorists

[QueerVanguard]

Geez louise, where to begin?? Uhh, gender essentialism, tons of anti-Communist cliches, slut shaming, patriarchal dogshit left and right, nationalist lies about history, and I could keep going.

[exeexe]

I was tought that 1st of May was something they just did because the worker movement wanted to show their presence, but in reality we are doing it because of the 7 anarchists that got killed or sent to prison in Chicago. The 8th anarchist committed suicide.

[MarcusJuniusBrutus]

America was founded on freedom and democracy.

These ideas did not gain wide currency until the 19th c. and even then they were pretty exclusive virtues to be enjoyed by white males. The Founders were not out to overthrow the monarchy in America. Rather they wanted to replace the king with themselves. For the most part, the Founders' view of a republic was a lot closer to Roman oligarchy than to any Athenian notion (which itself was pretty restrictive). They were committed to the republican form of government with some democratic elements and against the idea of hereditary power, but they still assumed that the rich, educated class was the only one suitable to rule.

What the USA was REALLY founded on was slavery and ethnic cleansing. The map of the USA is a direct result of the compromises made between slave states and free states, to maintain a balance of power in Congress. The Crown's efforts to stop westward expansion into Indian country was one of the chief complaints the rebels had. Both N and S greatly desired to expand west, but in the S. the need was frantic. The absorption of so much S land into plantations worked by slaves meant there was little left either for sons of aristocrats to start their own plantations or for small, white farms to be able to support themselves. The solution was to expand slavery to the west, which they could not do officially as long as the Crown insisted on keeping its promises to the natives. By the opening of the Civil War, the bulk of American wealth was not in land, factories, or cash, but in owned humans. When teaching American History to 1877, one of the things I try to impress upon my students is that slavery and genocide were not just incidental unpleasantness, but were the underlying foundation of this country.

[Kaoxic]

I don't know where to begin. I don't think I learned anything that wasn't stupid in shool.

[SensibleLuxemburgist]

The Cuban Missile Crisis was an unprovoked threat by the Soviet Union and Cuba on the United States.

[Kaysone]

The ABC's, and the belief that the names of the letters have anything at all to do with they way they sound or are pronounced phonetically. For starters. Also, all the silly songs in Kindergarten, what was the point? By the way, every country in the world teaches it's students that their country is the best, their leaders are the best, their history is the most glorious and greatest in history, etc., since the governments approve the history books.

[Max]

I used to go to school in Washington, DC, and we spent an entire unit on the evils of communism and how if you supported it you supported killing people. And there was a lot of teaching about how the US and all other white people are the best, and how colonialism is a good thing, how slavery wasn't that bad, shit like that.

[ProletariatPower]

Although we do learn a lot about Marxism, we never cease to hear that rhetoric than it's all good in theory but never can work in practice.

[4thInter]

Being in a an area of Ohio thats mostly republicans i get taught that
The USA is the best country
The USA brings freedom and democracy
The DPRK is communist
Communism doesn't work
That communists want to kill babies
Im going to hell for being a communist (this is what one of my high school teachers told me this being my first year, I'm exited for more school:grin:)
What else...
Communism is a dictatorship
Athiests are going to hell (same teacher) (I'm atheist)


(What RevLeft has taught me)
Im someone else called bosickle
people can be assholes
I have no life this is what i spend most of my time on...

[Црвена]

- That capitalism is utopia and no progress will ever happen from here.
- That Hitler was a real socialist.
- That the French Revolution was a proletarian revolution and not a bourgeois one...so apparently the workers wanted capitalism.
- That the ultimate goal in life is to get a job that makes lots of money.
- To get used to being exploited because we're going to have to put up with a whole lot more exploitation in life. Ok, they didn't actually say that, but we have no freedom in schools and they are forever exploiting us...setting us up for adulthood I guess.

[Dictator]

When my 9th grade history class learned about the October Revolution, our teacher put "Revolution" in quotation marks on every quiz, or called it the "October Coup."

We also "learned" from our textbooks that when Red Army units deserted, Leon Trotsky had one out of every ten people in the unit shot randomly. No sources given.

In my friend's economics class, everyone had to watch a movie version of Atlas Shrugged, because what would education be without learning about the lovely books written by Ayn Rand, the Objecti*****?

What other fascinating things have you folks been privileged to learn in school?:laugh:

having been a schoolkid in the seventies and eighties, I was just taught that SU, communism is bad, capitalism good! kind of like Animal Farm in reverse.

:o

[GimmieFire]

One stupid thing I was told: that Communism is evil.

[GalickyH]

Hehe, it´s funny, but I didn´t remember to any obvious bullshit. What are you writing here is pretty..:ohmy: :grin:

[midnight888]

They found a tooth in Nebraska and this tooth belonged to our ancestor nicknamed the Nebraska Man. Teacher showed us a picture of a half man half ape creature saying this is proof evolution is correct. 20 years later scientists now say this tooth belongs to a pig!

We also "learned" that everyone's standard of living goes down under communism and if you work hard under capitalism you will will prosper as it is a fair system :crying:

[Skyhilist]

Hmm I think people have covered most of the stupid stuff I was taught. Oh in kindergarten they told us that Pluto was a planet, what a goddamn bourgeois lie that ended up being.

[Trap Queen Voxxy]

Idk I have always loved school and even through severe personal differences still appreciate their tutelage and opinions. :)

What I have thought is stupid is not so much the lessons but just how modern schools and learning actually work. That's what I think is stupid.

[Creative Destruction]

The Texians were heroes at the Alamo.

[Trap Queen Voxxy]

The Texians were heroes at the Alamo.

They weren't? But but Danny Crokett and Hanks Hill. :( Murica?

[COЯЯUPT]

Although I haven't taken any form of world history yet, I did have an extra study hall period with a teacher who taught it. She left displays up on the board that summarized communism (and basically most leftist ideologies) as very detrimental to "progress" and what not. I had a teacher that told his students some things about communists I can't seem to recall, although he was a hardcore rightist. When we had a Russian substitute who asked the students, "who is the current [president] of Russia?", most of them answered Stalin. I almost was sucked into the Ayn Rand cult thanks to forced reading from my English teacher. Oh, I almost forgot to include the Pledge and other nationalist activities in school, along with all the usual crap taught about George Washington and his godly deeds.

[Ele'ill]

d.a.r.e.

[Lefteris]

I think the worst thing about my school is not what the teach us but what they don't. In History the syllabus is pathetic. We only do Greek history and study the national holidays of Greece. We have an old book on Cypriot History but the teachers skipped most of it until we reached the EOKA campaign in the 50s and the Invasion in 1974. Other that we do the Byzantine Empire and that's pretty much it. Hardly anything on international matters.

[Creative Destruction]

They weren't? But but Danny Crokett and Hanks Hill. :( Murica?

lol

I actually didn't find my history or social studies classes to be any dumber than normal. I had a good ongoing discussion with my junior year History teacher, who was probably one of the best teachers I had. He was a Libertarian to the core, but he also had a respect for Howard Zinn. I got him to read Michael Parenti's Julius Ceasar book and he told me he enjoyed it seeing written from a different perspective.

But, growing up in Texas, you have to take Texas history in middle school, as part of the curriculum, and then it's refreshed at high school level. That's some bad history, I'll tell ya what. And one of the first things you learn is that Santa Anna (by extension "The Mexicans") was bad; Sam Houston, William B. Travis, Stephen F. Austin and Davey Crockett, were gods and the Alamo and San Jacinto are hallowed ground. As long as you remember the dates surrounding these myths, then you're golden in the class.

Nothing says TEXAS, FUCK YEAH than a large phallic symbol of victory plopped down in the middle for God and all to see:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/94/San_Jacinto_Monument.jpg/640px-San_Jacinto_Monument.jpg

We had field trips to this fucking thing. I've been to it at least three times, all against my will.

[Lord Testicles]

We also "learned" from our textbooks that when Red Army units deserted, Leon Trotsky had one out of every ten people in the unit shot randomly. No sources given.


I was taught this in school as well. I've never found anything which suggests that Trotsky decimated the red army though.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decimation_%28Roman_army%29

[Redhead]

About a year ago we had about different ideologies in politics. In my school book they had introduced 3 persons: The Nazi, The Communist and the Liberal. What i reacted to was that a public school book claimed the communist wanted a totalitarian state ruled by a single person or group, with less freedom for the common good. And since nobody wanted that (or the nazi) everybody identified themselves as liberals after that.
This is one of those things keeping communism down, learning false propaganda at school.
(Keep in mind, this is in Norway)

[Atsumari]

The way the Holocaust was taught. I understand that teaching history can be pretty difficult but for the love of God, do not fuck up the Holocaust by turning it into a feel good week.. Whenever we had Holocaust week, I wanted to beat up the teacher for turning the Holocaust into a theater and I want to die whenever we watch Schindler's List. There are things in the Holocaust that are even darker and much more disturbing than the gas chamber, visible ribs, and extreme hate that will make any sane person incredibly uncomfortable and sick that needs to be taught.

[flaming bolshevik]

North korea is apparently communist

Social studies teacher is talking about north korea and he keeps referring to it as communist. I raise my hand and try explaining that it isn't and that even north Koreans don't consider themselves communist (constitution change) and long story short, I made myself look like a complete dumbass :glare:

[John Nada]

I was taught: -The US is a democratic force of good. -The Europeans civilized the Native Americans. -Peaceful protests works, violence always makes thing's worse. -All of the US wars were to spread democracy. -Boris Yeltsin brought democracy and freedom to Russia. -Socialism is an unbearable tyranny. -In "communist" countries the government assigns you a job, puts you in a apartment of their choose, bans religion and everyone get's paid the same. This is BAD! -However under capitalism you get to choose your own job and home. Work hard, be positive and all your dreams will come true. -The stupidest shit they taught was what the didn't teach, like a lot of the massacres and suppression of worker's and minorities.

[The Red Star Rising]

That Fantasy and Science fiction isn't real literature and I should be ashamed of turning it in for a creative writing class.

Otherwise, save for a McCain supporting government studies (I think it was called Civil something or other formally) during my time in the United States, I generally have a pleasant academic career. Still have four years to go though.

I do think that they tried way too hard on trying to make the American Civil War a grey vs grey thing when a cursory examination of the conflict shows one side was clearly in the wrong. I'll give you a hint, it's not the side that seceded from it's union in a hissy fit over not being allowed to own human chattel and generally be even bigger pricks to darker skinned people than was the norm.

My teacher in my seventh grade class in America was very big on showing just how awful the settlers were to the Indians though, so points for her.

[Red Star Rising]

Mainly that a supernatural deity committing absolute genocide of everything on Earth is morally acceptable and appropriate to adapt into a classroom story to tell children.

Also that the USSR, China and DPRK are "Communist states"

[Brasil]

Moralist Bullshit. Every fucking day.

[CommunistKid]

In elementary school, my teacher taught us that socialism is total government ownership of everything, and that if you didn't like your government-selected place to live, you'd get beheaded.

In high school just last year my geography class had a vocabulary list of government systems, one was "communism/socialism: government owns everything"

This year I have an english teacher who actually understands communism, but still sees it as "unrealistic"

[Chomskyan]

America doesn't commit Imperialism, only Russia does that.

The US has a 35% tax rate... the largest in the world! :rolleyes:

[Hatshepsut]

I actually didn't find my history or social studies classes to be any dumber than normal. I had a good ongoing discussion with my junior year History teacher...But, growing up in Texas, you have to take Texas history in middle school...Nothing says TEXAS...[more] than a large phallic symbol of victory plopped down in the middle [of town] for God and all to see...


I was taught...in "communist" countries the government assigns you a job, puts you in a apartment of their choosing, bans religion and everyone gets paid the same.
I was fortunate to get a less overtly ideological history education than Texas kids probably do. But not so fortunate as to have a running dialog with the instructor. The curriculum refrained from describing states or groups as "good" and "bad," yet this was communicated in a subtle way: The U.S. is on a railway track to success throughout, with its Civil War and Great Depression having predetermined outcomes from the start. The U.S.S.R. slogged past massive death and destruction on its way to gerontocracy, with no mention of the Great Northern Wars or Catherine or Tsar Alexander. (This was in the 1970s.)

I also heard the myth about authorities choosing your job and residence. All states resort to conscription at least at times, but the idea that Soviet citizens had to find their own jobs and apartments like everyone else would have been easy to acknowledge--why invent a contrast between countries when there are already plenty of real contrasts? And oddly, it was economic difference between West and East that got attention, favored over things like how hard it must have been for Russians to live through having 12% of their whole population die in four years during the war.

[The Modern Prometheus]

The British Empire was a good thing and my people got slaughtered at the Somme and Sulva bay for a good cause. And our province joining Canada was a great thing :rolleyes:

Of yeah and of course Communism was evil.

[Obrero]

"People are bad naturally", a human person (bad people) tell me that. Genius

[GerrardWinstanley]

Raw tomatoes as the ideal main ingredient for tomato pizza topping. Don't know how I coped in the real world tbqh.

[Sinister Intents]

Can college count? Fuck it, Karl Marx talked about global communist revolution in Das Kapital he also was a wife beater and an antisemite. Yay management class and a ranty teacher!

[vijaya]

Where to start.

Most annoyingly, that British history basically began with the Norman Conquest in 1066. Which ironically was perhaps one of the major invasions that least effected day-to-day social, cultural and religious life; as well as leaving almost no change in the ethnic composition of the British Isles.

That the British Empire was all lovable jolly hockey sticks and not so much exploitative, murderous exterminations. Mostly just imperial and national myths, that getting a mortgage and a job at a nuclear power plant is the be-all-and-end-all of adult life, that the illegal invasion of Iraq was justified, there was no encouragement to pick apart British, European or world history to see the inherent foolery of nationalism or capitalism and such... and a whole host of other nonsenses and farcicalities that a child or teenager ought to be taught to challenge.

I think the most valuable education I got would be in science, but that was probably down to the teachers themselves.

[Atsumari]

"Chivalry is dead and there are no more gentlemen."
Anyone who knows anything about authentic chivalry would immediately compare it to Sharia found among Islamists.
Oh and this one just reeked of racism and ignorance.
"Yes gangsters of the past were bad, but at least they had class and respected women unlike today."

[Alexios]

Where to start.

Most annoyingly, that British history basically began with the Norman Conquest in 1066. Which ironically was perhaps one of the major invasions that least effected day-to-day social, cultural and religious life; as well as leaving almost no change in the ethnic composition of the British Isles.


What are you basing this judgement on? It's pretty well understood that the Norman Conquest and the introduction of European feudalism to England was a major turning point in English, and by extension, European history.


"Chivalry is dead and there are no more gentlemen."
Anyone who knows anything about authentic chivalry would immediately compare it to Sharia found among Islamists.
Oh and this one just reeked of racism and ignorance.
"Yes gangsters of the past were bad, but at least they had class and respected women unlike today."

Chivalry was a code of honor created by the knightly class; it really isn't comparable to Sharia in any substantive way.


Odd how people in this thread seem to be assuming that their teachers were wrong for teaching pretty basic historical concepts.

[Hermes]

Chivalry was a code of honor created by the knightly class; it really isn't comparable to Sharia in any substantive way.

I was actually taught differently from this, in that it wasn't the knightly class who created it, but the priestly class, and that you could see this reflected in the tenet not to loot from/injure clergy members, etc. This is a vague recollection of several years ago, so I can't present their argument in its entirety.

My knowledge of the period is extremely limited, though, so if you could provide some further reading it would be much appreciated.

[Brandon's Impotent Rage]

That knights were chivalrous heroes of daring-do.

In reality, knights were more like hired muscle for a mafia don. It just so happened that in this case, said don was also the governing power.

[Alexios]

I was actually taught differently from this, in that it wasn't the knightly class who created it, but the priestly class, and that you could see this reflected in the tenet not to loot from/injure clergy members, etc. This is a vague recollection of several years ago, so I can't present their argument in its entirety.

My knowledge of the period is extremely limited, though, so if you could provide some further reading it would be much appreciated.
Some of it probably did come from the clergy; it certainly wasn't a focused movement. But there were certainly chivalric codes written by actual knights, and they seem to have been somewhat followed. As for sources, it's hard to find ones online but here's two you might be interested in:

The Rule and Statutes of the Teutonic Knights (http://www.the-orb.net/encyclop/religion/monastic/tk_rule.html)

Statua Armorum (http://www.fordham.edu/Halsall/source/1260statute-arms.asp)

[Atsumari]

What are you basing this judgement on? It's pretty well understood that the Norman Conquest and the introduction of European feudalism to England was a major turning point in English, and by extension, European history.



Chivalry was a code of honor created by the knightly class; it really isn't comparable to Sharia in any substantive way.


Odd how people in this thread seem to be assuming that their teachers were wrong for teaching pretty basic historical concepts.
I compared it to Sharia because the first thing most people think of when Sharia brought up is women's rights whether the individual sincerely cares about those issues or not or whether the person may know a thing about Sharia.
According to Cretien de Troyes

If a knight found a damsel or lorn maid alone, and if he cared for his fair name, he would no more treat her with dishonor than he would cut his own throat. And if he assaulted her, he would be disgraced for ever in every court. But if, while she was under his escort, she should be won at arms by another who engaged him in battle, then this other knight might do with her what he pleased without receiving shame or blame. This is why the damsel said she would go with him, if he had the courage and willingness to safe guard her in his company, so that no one should do her any harm.

[The Red Star Rising]

America doesn't commit Imperialism, only Russia does that.

The US has a 35% tax rate... the largest in the world! :rolleyes:

Russia ain't got nuthin' on the Isles.

http://lrrpublic.cli.det.nsw.edu.au/lrrsecure/sites/web/int_india/aust/graphics/mapOfBritishEmpire.jpg

But of course it'd be poor form to badmouth the British in a history lesson post war of 1812 in a history class amirite?

Oh and before France gets smug:

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kfvDOK2aL8s/TlBvDsANK2I/AAAAAAAAIYk/gNc2obdPyg8/s1600/Anachronous_map_of_the_All_French_Empire_%25281534 _-1970%2529.png

There's a reason why the period from the 1700s to WWII is sometimes called "The Anglo-French world order."

[ℂᵒиѕẗяᵤкт]

"Violence never solved anything."

Historically speaking, violence has solved every single thing.

[Magón]

"Chivalry is dead and there are no more gentlemen."
Anyone who knows anything about authentic chivalry would immediately compare it to Sharia found among Islamists.
Oh and this one just reeked of racism and ignorance.
"Yes gangsters of the past were bad, but at least they had class and respected women unlike today."

Speaking of chivalry...


http://www.blogcdn.com/slideshows/images/slides/279/317/5/S2793175/slug/l/chivalry-1.jpg

[ChrisK]

Math
I was part of the unfortunate group of students who were taught math with "practical" applications. No, I didn't learn about math as it applies to physics, mortgages, compound interest rates, etc. What I learned is how to calculate all sorts of things about a ferris wheel. No wonder I didn't understand math until college.

Sex Ed
If you insert dick here, this will happen to your dick [insert horrific picture of genital warts]. (Girls had a similar slide show with slut-shaming added in)

English
George Orwell was a rabid anti-socialist.
Ayn Rand's work proves communism is bad.
Ayn Rand was a good writer.
Everything ever written is comprised entirely of symbols, even if they don't look like symbols.

History
Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jr. were the only people involved in civil rights... ever.
The Civil War was purely about states rights.
George Washington and Abraham Lincoln were GODS!!!!!
America has never lost a war.
The Paris Commune is a proof that communism doesn't work.
The Soviet Union was communist after Khrushchev, but not before. Figure that one out.
Africa, Asia (pre-1941) and the Americas (pre-1492) didn't have history... at all.

Government
Only America has true freedom.
All sorts of bullshit about the electoral college.
Reform works.
Strikes that force capitalists to make concessions prove that communism doesn't work.
The two-party system is flawless.
If you don't vote you have no right to complain.

Biology
Darwin works kinda.

From other Students/Teachers
All girls are whores.
Its not rape if she is drunk.
If you engage in anal sex and there is shit on your penis afterwards, you dislocate her jaw for it.
France has never won a war.
Communism is [insert cliche here].
If your final project is immaculately made, with an excellent presentation, if it is about radicalism during the civil rights movement you will get a worse grade than the project about fishing.

[Redhead]

According to my social science teacher communism isnt an ideology, it is a way of implenting socialism (which of course doesnt work). Also socialism = less freedom and dictatorship.

[Redistribute the Rep]

People realized communism didn't work so then they renamed it socialism. When they realized socialism didn't work, they renamed it the green movement. Therefore, global warming is all a communist conspiracy.

[Redistribute the Rep]

Oh also I had a teacher, who was otherwise relatively sympathetic towards leftism, say these things:

"If Kerenskys provisional government continued, russia would be a democracy today"

"It was worse living in the Soviet Union than Nazi Germany because in the SU you had to live in communal apartments"

What do communal appartments even have to do with communism? They still have them in Russia.

[Illegalitarian]

American education is extremely broken and morally bankrupt in general by most developed-nation standards, but I come from the part of the nation where it's far more broken than it is anywhere else: The southeast.

I was genuinely shocked that any of you were even taught about socialism, communism or Ayn Rand period.. I had to wait until my high school jr year to ever hear the words "communism" and "socialism", and then of course the definitions were a simplistic "system where the state seizes all private property" and socialism as simply "a system of a large powerful government; the economic step between capitalism and communism".


Most of what I was taught has been said in this thread... Supply-Side economics was conceptualized by Reagan to supplant the failed strategy of Keynesian economics (after being taught that Keynesianism saved America from the great depression, FDR = god etc etc)

The center of the earth is hot because that's where hell is in the 4th grade, that was fun.

Columbus discovered America by mistake and they all lived happily after

The civil war was fought over states rights. Sometimes we learned it was over slavery depending on the grade, but that's just as simplistic and wrong.


Very euro-centric history up until the revolutionary war, then it got American-centric, mentioning Russia only briefly as a part of the allies during WWII then focusing on North Africa and Normandy, entirely ignoring Russia, who did far more and more important fighting against the Germans than the western allies did.




But it's not about what I learned, it's all of the things I didn't learn that disappoint me looking back... During our brief lesson on WWI we learned nothing of the Russian revolution, we learned nothing of the assassination of the Arch Duke and how that sparked the war.. we learned that it sparked the war, but nothing else of the conditions around the start of the war. Though we were taught in high school that America made up bullshit reasons to go to war in WWI and that Germany got the raw end of the deal simply for coming out on bottom.

The one mention of Stalin in all of grade school was in the jr high years, where he was always referred to simply as "dictator of Russia, and father of the Russian revolution" (I bet Stalin would be proud)... but nothing of Lenin, and really nothing from the cold war either aside from the fact that it happened and that it ended.

I was told in honors AP history my senior year to do a report on the differences between fascism, communism, socialism, authoritarianism and totalitarianism, which is actually what got me way more familiar with these terms and ideas, though guess what? It didn't matter, I flunked the report because my teacher was, as he told me, suspicious of my research since my answer should have pointed to all of them being the same thing more or less.

We were taught a lot, for some reason, about the M-R pact, I guess a point they wanted to drive home to try and make some point about the USSR and Nazi Germany actually being the same type of system. We were even taught that Stalin had all of his Jewish ministers purged to satisfy Hitler, lol.


The most upsetting thing we were never taught, I think, was the Spanish Civil war.. The Civil war and the rise of Franco played a pretty huge role in the rise of fascism in Europe and the foreign policy and military initiatives of Italy and Germany both during the war, and you're not even going to talk about it? I didn't learn about Franco's Spain until college, and even then it was in a Spanish studies class, we still didn't even learn that shit in fucking 20th century European history class.

I know Spain had little to do with the war itself, but it was still a big part of the war as a military movement by the axis and leaving it out altogether is still strange. Maybe because it was a huge foreign policy failure on the part of the west, thinking the rise of a fascist movement would be better than the rise of a communist movement when in reality it was the former who launched brutal pogroms and invasions all throughout the world.

[CaptainCool309]

I've had a couple strongly anti-communist teachers. My freshman world history teacher gave our class a good scare when he explained the horrors of communism through the failures of Maoist China (The famines, cultural revolution, etc..) And my sophomore modern world cultures teacher whipped out her anti-communist scare tactics when we spent a whole class analyzing Pol Pot's failure to bring a "Communist Utopia" to Cambodia and all the tragedies associated with that "in the name of Communism."

Just recently today I was working on some American government homework with a friend, when my school's art teacher approached us from behind. I teased him a bit by asking if he wanted to help me out with my homework. And He replied, "Listen, all I know about Government, is that Democracy is good, and Communism is bad." My friend sitting next to me proceeded to give the art teacher a big five while proclaiming: "Right on Dude! Right on!" I just chuckled to myself, and thought, "Ignorance must be bliss..." :laugh:

[Return_Of_The_Mac]

I honestly can't think of anything. Most of what I was taught was, with hindsight, well balanced.

Although at university I get taught stuff that if I repeat to anyone who hasn't done my course, I get called a liberal conspiracy theorist. :rolleyes:

[consuming negativity]

"you can be anything you want in america if you put your mind to it"

[RedBlackStar]

We didn't actually learn anything that I'm applying to my current studies or the career in Journalism which I want to pursue. We also didn't learn any practical life skills like mortgages, how debt and insurance and tax and stuff works etc...

but THANK FUCK I can do Trigonometry.

[Anglo-Saxon Philistine]

We didn't actually learn anything that I'm applying to my current studies or the career in Journalism which I want to pursue. We also didn't learn any practical life skills like mortgages, how debt and insurance and tax and stuff works etc...

but THANK FUCK I can do Trigonometry.

Yes, because I'm sure you'll never be interested in or required to do anything that needs basic mathematics. In your entire life.

To make things worse, a basic mathematical education is one of those things that makes socialism a real possibility (of course, this education is an expression of the growth of the productive process and the changes in the production processes, it didn't coalesce from thin air). It gives everyone a real possibility of participating in the task of managing the means of production.

If we're talking about elementary or high school, the one thing I think should be cut, here at least, is introductory Croatian, which is mostly "look this stone tablet mentions the prince Fuckislav, this proves we weren't unwashed barbarians when we first arrived in this area honest".

(We were unwashed barbarians when we first arrived in this area.)

[RedBlackStar]

Yes, because I'm sure you'll never be interested in or required to do anything that needs basic mathematics. In your entire life.


Might still be new here but I gotta say that I'm really getting really sick of your shit 870.

Either you're an idiot or you know exactly what I was saying and you're trying to get my back up. Your choice.

[Anglo-Saxon Philistine]

Might still be new here but I gotta say that I'm really getting really sick of your shit 870.

Either you're an idiot or you know exactly what I was saying and you're trying to get my back up. Your choice.

Yes, in fact I know exactly what you're saying, and it's far from the first time I've heard the sentiment. Trigonometry isn't "practical" unlike mortgages (ha, "how to become a wage slave 101"), why do kids have to learn things like mathematics etc. etc.

Chances are, you're going to need mathematics, including trigonometry, more than knowledge of mortgages. Unless you plan to ruin yourself financially.

[RedBlackStar]

Chances are, you're going to need mathematics, including trigonometry, more than knowledge of mortgages. Unless you plan to ruin yourself financially.

O wise one impart your dear and timeless wisdom onto me.

Hear the sarcasm?

[DOOM]

If we're talking about elementary or high school, the one thing I think should be cut, here at least, is introductory Croatian, which is mostly "look this stone tablet mentions the prince Fuckislav, this proves we weren't unwashed barbarians when we first arrived in this area honest".

(We were unwashed barbarians when we first arrived in this area.)
Well to be honest this isn't really exclusive to Croatia. We have our own Fuckoslavs, Shitomirs and other historical highlights which are pushed by bosniak nationalists. And let's not forget the serbian and croatian stuff.
Bosnian educational system is a clusterfuck nightmare.


O wise one impart your dear and timeless wisdom onto me.

Hear the sarcasm?

He's making a fair point though. Capitalism teaches us to distinguish between useful, concrete stuff and useless, abstract stuff. In other words things that can be actively used to fuel the capitalist machinery (basic econ knowledge > Non-Euclidean geometry). This is a purely ideological point of view because there's no explanation on how one subject is more useful than the other by merely looking at the subjects itself. However, by analyzing the social context (living in capitalism), we're able to explain how business administration seems to be a more relevant subject than maths.

[consuming negativity]

sorry but as an American™ it is my duty to inform you plebs that when it comes to having a shitty nationalist masturbatory education system that America™ is, as usual, #1 in the world http://blocgame.com/forums/Smileys/default/emot-911.gif

[Counterculturalist]

In Ontario, parents have the option of sending their kids to French schools. Unfortunately, since the majority of French-speaking Canadians are Catholic, so are all French schools. And since my parents wanted me to learn French, I got stuck attending a Catholic grade school and high school despite not being Catholic.

In grade school, I learned that people who aren't baptized (such as myself) are not part of God's family, and headed straight to hell.

I learned that you can pray for something and have it come true the next day. When I objected to this, I was called a liar.

I learned that even atheists secretly believed in God.

I learned that the Canadian First Nations were warriors who murdered many innocent Catholic priests for absolutely no reason in the early days of Canada.

High school was a bit better. Non-Catholics didn't have to take religion, for one thing. And even though most teachers were conservative, a small minority were at least intelligent and fair.

For example, I have a lot of respect for one English teacher who, despite being an outspoken free-market extremist, actually didn't try to sell Animal Farm as some kind of right-wing manifesto, instead actually explaining that Orwell considered himself to be a socialist, and discussing some of the different varieties of communism.

Another conservative teacher gave me an A-plus for a very enthusiastic report and presentation on Marx.

And one teacher - despite being a devout Catholic - taught evolution, and refused to dignify creationism with more than a couple of dismissive sentences. He also asked us not to tell anybody about what he taught that day. I guess 20 years later, it's OK to mention it.

Those were the few good ones that snuck through.

[The Disillusionist]

The phrase "We're preparing you for college" comes immediately to mind.

[Illegalitarian]

A basic mathematical education in order to participate in managing the means of production xfd


Algebra, trig, calc etc is important in many important careers, but of course there are many paths one can take that do no use any of these things very much at all. If I had to pick the one class in the American public education system to scrap, I would say social studies.

Social Studies in High School and Elementary School was basically just another excuse to teach us a skewed version of history and an even more skewed version of the inner workings of society. If the way these classes were taught was changed, they could be the most useful classes offered, but alas

[Sewer Socialist]

My history classes were full of bourgeois ideology, and I even got kicked out of my history class for arguing too much, but if we're talking about how education "should" be, why not say that social studies should be free of bourgeois ideology?


A basic mathematical education in order to participate in managing the means of production xfd


Algebra, trig, calc etc is important in many important careers, but of course there are many paths one can take that do no use any of these things very much at all. If I had to pick the one class in the American public education system to scrap, I would say social studies.

Social Studies in High School and Elementary School was basically just another excuse to teach us a skewed version of history and an even more skewed version of the inner workings of society. If the way these classes were taught was changed, they could be the most useful classes offered, but alas

[consuming negativity]

i once student taught in a social studies classroom and i still feel guilty for lying to the children so many times

like the problem is that 80% of it actually isn't propaganda and is actual scientific/historical fact

and then the other 20% is layered throughout and spins the rest until it is barely recognizable at the same time the bullshit is legitimized by the fact that it is surrounded by truth

fuck textbooks and school and the middle class

[Illegalitarian]

Yeah, it's kind of like many creationist claims that are only half-true, or a huge stack of lies wrapped in truth - like saying "90% of scientists interviewed reject Darwin's concept of evolution", then finding out that there were like 40 people interviewed and none of them worked anywhere near biology or geology.

[BIXX]

Yeah, it's kind of like many creationist claims that are only half-true, or a huge stack of lies wrapped in truth - like saying "90% of scientists interviewed reject Darwin's concept of evolution", then finding out that there were like 40 people interviewed and none of them worked anywhere near biology or geology.
Or that they rejected it in favor of a more accurate model or something.

[OzymandiasX]

The one point which was stressed very enthusiastically throughout my primary education was following directions, paying attention, attendance and doing the work assigned --- The most fundamental and characteristic traits of an obedient working class. The death-nails of identity and character.

Hand yourself over to the power structure on a platter, and do their bidding like the slaves you are.

[Dodo]

That the Ottomans had to lose WWI because Germans had surrendered.

That Ottomans brought peace and civilization to Balkans.

Turks throughout history have lost their empires on the "table" due to treacherous relations and diplomacy.

That Turks are an "army nation".

That Atatürk pretty much ownz everything and is the bestestestestestest leader to have ever lived.

Cant say we were thought any form of ideological position except how awesome and right everything Atatürk did...so that pretty much became our ideological outlook. His 6 concepts which define Kemalism today.

[GaggedNoMore]

That Canada is a generous, caring, progressive country famous for peacekeeping around the world and that of course we're better in every way than our neighbours - those greedy, mean-spirited, individualist, capitalism loving freaks south of the border. That we're basically morally superior and more righteous than the Americans in every way

Parts of Canadian history that might contradict this often got glossed over, ignored or told from a revisionist perspective. I was in my early 20s
when I learned the truth about

- the residential schools for aboriginal/first nations children - and the abuse and trauma they caused

- Internment of Japanese Canadians during WWII

- the imposition of the War Measures Act in Quebec in 1970 - a thinly veiled attempt to crush the Quebec nationalist movement

Those are but a few.

[Edel]

They didn't mention CIA-backed dictators in my textbook.

[TheLonelyCommunist]

When learning of the Russian Revolution, they almost constantly white-wash the atrocities committed under Tsarist Russia, and make Nicholas out to be some misunderstood leader, who tried his best to do good in his country. xD

while, on the other hand portrayed Lenin & Bolsheviks to just be Terrorists and dictators, who wanted to oppress the people, and were only motivated by greed...

[ShadowStar]

The teachers said capitalism was good. Communism bad. One of my teachers who was a sports coach working as a geography teacher said that global warming was a commie liberal plot from Obama to destroy the gas companies and the Iraq war was a war for freedom. When I argued with him about it he yelled at me and told me to shut up. He also showed a bullshit conspiracy theorist global warming denialist film, The Great Global Warming Scandal to the class.

[Guardia Rossa]

USSR = Communism
Communism = Bad
Brazil = Awful Land
Patriotism = Fine
Nationalism = Nazi (Not quite stupid, contextualizing)
USA > Europe > USSR > Nazi Germany > Sealand > Federation of Micronesia > Brazil

EVERYONE SUCKING AMERICAN DICK

EDIT: I guess this is the norm for Compradour Bourgeoisie but I can't know.

[olahsenor]

"that all living things were made in "7 days""...:laugh:and that there "were vampires in our town and prey on communists"

[Aslan]

when I went to elementary school we didn't have much bullshit. Just the usual ''I FUKIN LOVE MERICA SO MUCH'' bullshit that is sprouted almost every day. Math class was mostly useless unless you become an accoutant/engineer. Natural sciences/Physical sciences were good.

The problem I have is that my school has an ''active'' and ''nice'' principal favorite thing aside from education is the sound of his own voice. He constantly talks about integrity and other fuzzy bullshit but never talks about the true problems in society.

What I'd like is some martial arts (self defensive ie tae kwon do/judo/) and self defense classes to be offered in school!

[willowtooth]

Egypt is not in Africa.... I insisted it was.... my teacher said "no, its not its in the middle east"

[Comrade #138672]

The teachers said capitalism was good. Communism bad. One of my teachers who was a sports coach working as a geography teacher said that global warming was a commie liberal plot from Obama to destroy the gas companies and the Iraq war was a war for freedom. When I argued with him about it he yelled at me and told me to shut up. He also showed a bullshit conspiracy theorist global warming denialist film, The Great Global Warming Scandal to the class.Did you report that teacher? If not, you should have.

[RedKobra]

not so much bad curriculum as bad teacher; at my school for a while our English teacher* doubled as our humanities teacher**. The only problem being he knew feck all about history or geography. During one class he confused World War I & 2 (including the fact that, apparently, world war one was about Hitler and world war two was about Stalin) and then claimed Michael Foot was the last Labour Prime Minister. (Michael Foot was never Prime Minister). In his defence he was a massive hippie and probably didn't know what day of the week it was.

When I told my dad he nearly hit the roof.

*in the UK English class is basically what we call literature class.
**humanities being the amalgamated class for history, geography, religious studies.etc

[Counterculturalist]

That reminds me of the year my high school English teacher was fired (for sending sexually explicit love letters to 15 year old female students, but that's another story) and replaced by the phys ed teacher. It was a nightmare for me, since English was the only class I remotely liked in high school, and this teacher was almost illiterate.

Some examples I remember: We were reading To Kill a Mockingbird and this teacher insisted that the character "Scout" was pronounced "Scoot" because there is no such thing as girl scouts. When I wrote a short essay about the book referencing the civil rights movement, she tried to give me an F because apparently the civil rights movement was such an obscure historical event that I must have plagiarized the paper. We had to take this to the principal. When this teacher said "well, I had never heard of civil rights until I read this paper" the principal laughed and told her to re-grade my paper. She also didn't know the difference between "to" and "too", "worse" and "worst" or "they're", "their" and "there".

She went back to the gym after that semester and stayed there.

[Бай Ганьо]

Like all of you, I learned filiopietistic nonsense and anachronistic lies that are intended to create an imaginary sense of community in our minds. Some of the earliest examples I can remember: I learned that Julius Caesar's "Horum omnium fortissimi sunt Belgae" ("Of all these, the Belgae are the bravest/strongest") was about us, Belgians, and that Godfrey of Bouillon was a bilingual hero of our national history sent out to civilize the Muslim world, while the truth is that he was a mass murderer-crusader.

[Comrade Jacob]

"Communism doesn't work because the people of Tibet couldn't grow anything other than roots." - My maths teacher

That's actually what he said.

[OnFire]

We were all taught that communism is impossible and capitalism still exists bc it is the perfect system.