By Loyd Eskildson
Advanced Guitar, Advanced Sports Medicine, Advanced Guitar, Advanced Vocal Ensemble, Algebra Support, Algebra Support II, AP Drawing Portfolio, AP Drawing Portfolio, AP French Language and Culture, AP Japanese Language and Culture, AP Mandarin Language and Culture, Art History, Band Auxiliary, Beginning Guitar, Brief Calculus, Career Awareness, Careers in Criminal Justice and Criminology, Creative Writing, Essential Musicianship, Creative Musicianship, Culinary, Digital Photography, Drawing and Painting, Essential Musicianship, Excel, Fashion and Textiles, Fashion Design, Film and TV, Foundations of Math, Freshman Transition, Geometry Support, Graphic Design, Healthcare Assistant, History of Rock and Roll, Hospitality and Tourism Management, IB Extended Essay, IB HL Art Design, Integrated Mathematics, Interior Design, Introductory P.E., Japanese, Journalism, Junior Transition, Latin, Legal Studies, Marching Band, Medical Terminology, Music Appreciation, Musical Theatre, Newspaper Production, Peer Assistant, Peer Helping, Peer Tutoring, Percussion Ensemble, Performance Dance, Personal/Family Finance, Photography, Physics First, Piano, Principles of Public Service, Reading Enhancement, Reading for College Success, Restaurant Management, Sculpture/3D Design, Service Learning, Social Media, Senior Transition, Sophomore Transition, Sports and Event Marketing, Sports Medicine – Intro, Studio Art, Symphonic Band, Symphonic Orchestra, Technical Theatre, Theatre, The Lord of the Rings, Thinking and Learning Strategies, Varsity Choir, Wind Ensemble, Women’s Studies, and Yoga.
They’re all preparing students for occupations predicted to be severely impacted by Artificial Intelligence in the near future (art/graphics design, educators, finance, jr. programmers, legal assistants, translators, writers/editors), or fail to strengthen analysis/math skills forecast by experts to become increasingly in demand in the near future. In other words, a major waste of pupil time and taxpayer funds.
Will traditional U.S./SUSD math/science skill levels be acceptable in the near future? Being below the world average in math and 4 years behind world leaders, and 3 years behind in science will not likely be acceptable in the near future. SUSD students will be competing via the Internet, off-shoring, and H1-B Visas with peers from around the world, and the ranks of those competitors will be further enhanced by those displaced by A.I. in other occupations (also including accountants, and market researchers) around the world. SUSD graduates’ competitiveness will be even further hampered by their having little/no background in Artificial Intelligence – mandated in grades K-12 in China and Taiwan, at the high-school level in numerous other nations, and in 27 states in the U.S.
Why hasn’t SUSD moved to act on these forecasted changes? The most obvious explanation, consistent with answering why SUSD has done very little/nothing to 1)reduce market share losses (now 57% and creating an estimated $200 million/year in lost revenues), 2)substantially boost graduates’ math and science skill levels, 3)double the skill levels of SUSD minority students, 4)reduce waste (estimated at $100 million in 2022, and/or 5)reduce pervasive serious security vulnerabilities) – SUSD leaders just don’t care. What they seem to care much more about is having to terminate numerous obsolete/low-value high school teachers connected to these courses and hire numerous new, staff that wouldn’t think of being paid the same as eg. elementary, P.E., art, and music teachers or completing low-value/worthless certification requirements. (BASIS doesn’t require its teachers to be certified, but strongly prefers those with a graduate degree in their teaching field.)
So, once again – What is the purpose of SUSD? 1)To provide stable, secure well-rewarded employment and maximize SEA dues-payors, or 2)To Prepare graduates to successfully compete in an increasingly competitive/demanding world? Or is it the duty of SUSD parents and taxpayers to sweep this all under the rug so those (ROSS, et al) lobbying for more housing w/i SUSD boundaries can more easily convince City decision-makers to permit/facilitate more housing?
And why are our political leaders downtown allowing this wasting thousands of minds and millions of dollars to continue?