'When Am I Ever Going To Use Algebra?' The Real World Utility Of Classroom Learning

I occasionally mutter a version of this inane line: "I've never had to use physics, chemistry, or geometry in a job." It's a common, if benighted, refrain that has the ring of seeming truth. Conventional wisdom says that unless you are employed in a field that requires "STEM skills," it's unlikely that you will deploy such knowledge -- as well as esoteric nuggets of history, civics and literature -- that don't regularly come up in daily life. Or as your son or daughter is likely to intone, "When...