'Square dancing': Former students share the most useless things they learned in school

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Emmy Pratt • Senior Editor
Mar 23, 2024 8:00 PM EDT

When it comes down to it, much of the information we learn in school does not pertain to our everyday lives. Sure, maybe the skills I learned in English class are pertinent to my current career, but I'm not thinking about the contents of my Chemistry or Physics classes regularly in my adult life. 

To be honest, the point of K-12 schooling is not to acquire a bunch of knowledge that you will use every day as an adult. It's more about being presented with challenges (tests, essays, homework) in a controlled environment and either rising to them or not. School is about learning how to learn and getting a well-rounded education in the process. Even if science, math, literature, and history aren't useless topics, there are plenty of other things that kids learn within the walls of schools that could definitely qualify as useless. Does anyone else remember "duck and cover?" 

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  • 01
    g? r/AskReddit u/Top_Interaction6581.5h What is the most that they teach in school? useless thing
    via u/Top_Interaction6581
  • 02
    Gnomies67. 4h "If you are being bullied, just say stop! - II 00 Reply 3.6k
    via u/Gnomies67
  • 03
    Rlfire16 • 3h . "Just tell a teacher" Infinite "Let me know if it happens again and then will do something about it" loop glitch ← 1.8k
    via u/Rlfire16
  • 04
    Expensive Plant9323 3h When I told the teachers all I got was the "He's only doing it because he likes you" and "boys will be boys" nonsense for months. Punching him was a much more effective way of getting him to leave me alone. ... 847
    via u/Expensive_Plant9323
  • 05
    Doggodoaattack • 2h I would always retaliate and then they would act like I started it. Told the principle in tears that they would not leave me alone, got a detention as a result. My bullies were told to "just ignore her when she gets like this" no detention for them. . . . 355
    via u/Doggodoaattack
  • 06
    PK_Pixel • 4h Hot take. Not every single second has to be spent on things "for the real world" Learning math. Reading. Even the recorder. These are all things that exercise different parts of your mind. I would NOT be in my comfortable position right now if I made a B-line for it. The brain has a lot of criss-crossing, and the more general knowledge you acquire, the more you're able to cross reference and figure things out by association. Not to mention the engagement aspect. I admit, some thing
    via u/PK_Pixel
  • 07
    LiEuTiNenTOzzi • 4h The tongue/taste map. Not only useless, but incorrect. Reply 807
    via u/LiEuTiNenTOzzi
  • 08
    Nova Mila5 3h They mostly taught us to ask permission in order to use the bathroom ... Reply 277
    via u/NovaMila5
  • 09
    SpiritedLook7280.4h Square dancing. Yes, this was a thing ... Reply 103
    via u/SpiritedLook7280
  • 10
    photoguy423.3h I think the dumbest thing they tried to teach us was school spirit. Having to sit through pep rallies and cheer on the sports teams that you honestly don't care about was a huge waste of time. The only reason anyone was excited about it was it got us out of class. ... Reply 144
    via u/photoguy423
  • 11
    SadCaterpillar4582 ⚫ 4h I learned cursive and was told that colleges would only accept my work if it was in cursive. Guess who wrote all his papers on word document? Reply 92
    via u/SadCaterpillar4582
  • 12
    fermat9990 • 3h "Duck and cover" back in the day ... Reply ↑ 8 ⇓
    via u/fermat9990
  • 13
    gcjunk01.3h The way they teach rote memorization instead of actually understanding the material. This is especially true when everyone has a smartphone. More emphasis should be placed on things you can't look up on your phone. Reply 44
    via u/gcjunk01
  • 14
    CmdrChrazz • 4h When i was in the school system (im only 25) i remember the teachers always saying that when we grew up we wouldnt always have a calculator at hand..... Ohhh boy were they wrong . . . Reply 53
    via u/CmdrChrazz
  • 15
    flatstacy • 5h To blindly follow the authority Reply 94
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  • 16
    SWtoNWmom • 2h Standardized testing. Soo much school time wasted in these tests that did nothing at all other than checked some boxes for admin. And square dancing. ... Reply 6 ↓
    via u/SWtoNWmom
  • 17
    Mark_Michigan • 2h That working in groups is better than solo work. Sure for a few things, but group work is way over rated. ... Reply ↑ 8 ⇓
    via u/Mark_Michigan
  • 18
    LadyArbary 4h Contrary to most people's experiences, I have actually used algebra in a real life situation. I have never, on the other hand, had occasion to diagram a sentence in real life. Reply 721
    via u/LadyArbary

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