high school

High school made less stressful; a roundup of high school horror stories and tips on asking your date to prom, preparing for college and much more.

The Math AI Can’t Do for Us
Mathematical research aims to discover new mathematical knowledge. That sounds tautological, but it is often reduced to a narrower claim: the aim is to produce the first proof of an unsolved problem. These are not the same thing. A theorem proved true is an important kind of knowledge. Mathematical knowledge also includes methods, concepts, proof paths, error estimates, structural insight, the ecology of problems, and the judgment of what is worth pursuing. Proofs are the hard currency of mathematics. They are not the whole of its wealth.
By Jinabout 8 hours ago in Education
The Homework Looks Fine. That’s the Problem.
At ten at night, a message landed in the parent chat: “If your child used AI for today’s essay, message me privately.” Ms. Li put the phone face down. Forty-two essays covered her desk. The top one was neat. It opened with a poem, ran three parallel paragraphs through the middle, and closed on “New Era Youth.” She underlined those last three words in red. The pen stopped. She had asked the boy why he put that phrase there. He said, “The template has it.”
By Jinabout 9 hours ago in Education
Schools Need to Stop Fighting AI and Start Teaching Students How to Use It
I spent a significant portion of my childhood struggling with reading and writing. Even today, although to a lesser degree, those challenges haven’t entirely disappeared.
By zane faoura day ago in Education
Keon and Kavon Herbert: Childhood, School Years, and Growing Up in Hampton, Virginia
Keon Gerard Herbert and Kavon Sherard Herbert are fraternal twins born on May 19, 2001, in Hampton, Virginia. Before becoming known as social media influencers, internet personalities, and aspiring models and actors, the twins spent their childhood growing up in their hometown, attending local schools, building friendships, and experiencing the everyday moments that shaped their early lives. Their story begins long before viral photographs and online recognition, with the experiences they shared as brothers growing up together.
By Kavon Herbert2 days ago in Education
We’re Turning University Libraries Into Study Halls. We’re Losing the Accident That Makes Them Matter.
Two weeks before exam week, the line outside the library stretched from the first floor to the third. Someone arrives at 6:30, puts a bag on a chair, and then goes to buy breakfast. Someone else claims a seat but never shows up all day, leaving only a note that says “Taken.” Rows of students wear headphones, facing their computers and books, so quiet that the only sounds left are pages turning and keyboards clicking.
By Jin3 days ago in Education
Doing the Right Thing Is Easy — Until It Costs You Something
Most of us believe that we are honest and principled people. We believe that we would resist improper pressure, treat everyone fairly, defend someone who was being criticised behind their back and tell the truth even when a convenient lie would make life easier.
By George Dimitriadis3 days ago in Education
Jimmy Discovers That the Equals Sign Does Not Mean “Here Comes the Answer”
I wrote a simple problem on the board: 8 + 4 = □ + 5 “What number belongs in the box?” I asked. “Seven,” said several students in unison.
By George Dimitriadis4 days ago in Education
40 Complaint Letters, 5% Valid: What Schools Lose When Parents Stop Talking
Start with the numbers: 40 complaint letters. After review, substantively valid and compliant complaints accounted for only 5%. What about the rest? A child was bumped by a classmate. Two extra pages of homework. The teacher’s voice was a little loud.
By Jin5 days ago in Education
Jimmy and the Boy or Girl Paradox
It was a hot, muggy day. Students were languidly completing a worksheet on probability. Jimmy was fidgety, looking for an escape clause.
By George Dimitriadis6 days ago in Education
The Secret Compartment Economy: Why Schools Cannot Win the Phone War
On e-commerce platforms, one thermos has an inner liner whose bottom unscrews into a compartment. The product page says: “Double-layer hidden compartment, metal-detector-proof.” Next to it is a storage box shaped like a fake book. Open the cover and inside is a phone-sized hollow, with the product image helpfully labeled “lockable.” Scroll further and alarm clocks, desk lamps, lunch boxes, and tissue boxes have all been remade for the same purpose: hiding phones.
By Jin9 days ago in Education
China Just Changed What Counts as a Graduate Degree
The headline writes itself: some graduate students in China may no longer have to write a traditional thesis. The policy behind the headline does something more specific. It rewrites what counts as proof that a professional-degree candidate deserves the degree. The requirement of proof stays. Its form changes, and the places where proof must be produced multiply.
By Jin9 days ago in Education
My Intern Turned In 1,000 Keywords in 20 Minutes. Then I Asked Him One Question.
Those Three Seconds When the intern handed me the keyword list, I was at the water dispenser filling my cup. He called out, "Zhou, it's done." I walked over. The screen held more than a thousand keywords. The formatting was neat. The categories were clear. He had even color-coded the search-volume ranges.
By Jin10 days ago in Education