Why do people think education in America is so bad?

Question

I'm going to school to be a teacher, and from what I've seen so far, our school systems do very well with what they have. The biggest problem is not letting teachers TEACH, and forcing them to teach to benchmarks.

We try to educate EVERYONE. That includes the mentally handicapped (special ed) and people that don't care and don't want to learn. They bring us down relative to other developed countries where the education system is much more competitive than the job market (the opposite of our system).

Of course, perhaps if teacher pay was decent, you'd have more highly qualified teachers. I graduated in the top 3% in undergrad (I'm going for an MA now). Most sharp students declined to go into teaching, leaving that avenue for the C students.

The one thing that could be said for the Soviet Union - they could teach their kids to read. You had good students made to be teachers. Here, good students want to join the fat cat world.

I don't think the communist system did much good, but it's ironic that their education was successful. Obviously, that did not help their economy as a whole, and they still collapsed.

Answer 1

I find that the school in america strives for average. Let's get everyone to 70 and it's perfect.
In other countries, they strive for perfect marks, top of the class, they encourage competition between students to achieve the highest grades.

Mac: actually, that's a lie. In every single education survey/test done around the world, the US has come in last, or close to last, even behind other second or third world countries. It has nothing to do with only the rich being tested, it has to do with school playing a more important part in the life of a child.

For example, I grew up in a former communist country in eastern europe. It was instilled in the people since they were young kids that education is important, and then you go off to university. Its like there was no other option, not like over here.

Another thing is that in the US, it's possible to find good-paying jobs and be successful without a proper education. Parents are also more lax when it comes to their kids, which again ties in to the mediocrity issue. As long as their kids get average marks in the class, then everything is fine.

School is getting dumbed down as to not discourage those that are doing bad. I'd rather a kid gets left behind and has to repeat a class, than barely get by with the teacher's help and then find himself in high school barely knowing how to do basic math functions.

Answer 2

Ah, you've hit it. There's so many ways that teachers want to teach- I hear them saying "Well, we need to cover blah blah blah by the end of the year. I guess that means we can't cover what I wanted to."

And what's blah blah blah? Why, it's usually teaching useless mathemetics (remember proofs?), reading babyish stories, or doing otherwise stupid things.

My seventh grade social studies teacher used unorthodox ways. He showed us how different things were related. He told us about the history of western civilization. The books that the state had on their approved list were cracked maybe once a month to copy vocabulary words when he was gone. I remember a lot from that class now.

I think that if the teachers could do as they wished, then we would have a much more successful system.


Also, in some countries like Japan, students know how to speak three or four languages by the time they get out of school. They learn Japanese because... well, duh. Then they learn English, the language of the business world. Then they take another language, such as Mandarin Chinese or French.

If we didn't count those who didn't strive for a good grade, though, our scores would be much higher.

Answer 3

Have you looked at the DC school system lately? An organization called MathCounts did a seminar with middle school math teachers a couple years back. Most of them could not do simple fractions, much less algebra. THESE are the people teaching our kids math. They do not have a degree in math or math education - they have general ed degrees and are shoved into their positions because no one else wants to teach in the public system.

Yes, there are some GREAT public school systems in this country. But mostly they are great because the parents are involved. They make sure their kids do their homework, know their teachers, etc.

I actually thought about teaching. I have a degree in naval architecture, but I figured it might be good to help the community. But honestly? I hate the Education unions. HATE THEM. So I won't work for them. I think that's the case for a lot of would be teachers.

Oh and the tenure system needs to go. If teachers stink, who cares if they've been teachers forever. Just like any other job, they need to continue to strive for the best and not rest on their laurels. If they get lazy, they get fired. Period.

Answer 4

Both. I think that I know something about this, being a 3.7 GPA student that is currently a sophmore and avoiding the slump. I have a teacher who could care less about grades. He hates them. He stands up in front of the class and tells stories. Theyre stories about morals, about the human condition, morality, and what it means to be alive. I've learned more from him than all of my previous health classes combined. Even throw in a couple of Social Studies classes, and it's only three weeks into this year. Kids DO have a ton of pressure. Stress like that can affect anyone academically. You didnt see colleges THIS competitive six years ago, did you? I bet they also cracked down on kids who did bad things instead of being afraid to be "judgemental." Yes, graduation requirements are lax. Tons of people graduate where i live. Most of them go to college after. There are a bunch of slacker kids who are too lazy to do anything but screw each other, though. They take their newborns and drop out. However, I've had bad teachers that HAVE stunted my education. One never explained anything in math (told us to read the textbook at home and only graded homework in class... I had four hours of math homework in the 7th grade, and did it all. Mind you, I did it wrong because I didnt know how to do things. Does that sound like a lazy kid to you?) and took me back two whole math classes. I'm a sophomore with Algebra 1, along with ten other kids who are in the same boat with the same exact teacher. There's TWO kids from the other three teachers you could have gotten. Both. And yes, we are "learnin' somethin'." EDIT: Here's more: I'm not supposed to be even saying these things. There's a rule that states that any "blog or forum" on the internet that you write bad stuff about your school on can be found and you can be suspended or expelled for badmouthing it. Now, I believe in freedom of speech in moderation, I mean, we cant have people dropping F bombs loudly in the workplace, but that's ridiculous. Can you imagine the horror if the government passed a law like that???!!!

Answer 5

The teachers are not the problem. It's the students. I'm in my 20's, so I recently went through the schooling affair and I witnessed many my age that cared little for their education. You could tell them day and night they are building a foundation for their own future and it would only make them care less. Other countries don't have this problem, the students know what they are doing and TRY. How can you get the American student to care? I don't have a solution....

I support benchmarks for teachers too. It's important to try and standardize education with good guiding benchmarks to measure where specific schools / teachers / students are falling behind, and determine ways to correct that. I went to school in NY state, we had regents exams which you might be familiar with. In the past most states had them, I think every state should because it ensures a level of education across an entire state. Setting a curriculum for teachers also prevents a lazy or misguiding few from teaching bad / inaccurate or useless information.

Answer 6

Because it is. There is nothing to think about, look around and it hits you in the face. It has gotten as liberal as our media and is know longer teaching much of anything. Public school teachers make darn good pay and this does not has not helped learning at all. It might help if schools went back to teaching the 3R's and maybe some US History/ Civics and a few morals but the PC teachers unions/school committees will not allow that. Peace

Answer 7

The problem with American education is that it is publicly run and mandated for every student. So you have rampant discipline and language problems and 30-to-1 student-to-teacher ratios.
Further, public education stifles the very impulses and principles that made this country great: entrepreneurialism, self-reliance, self-confidence. The goal of public education is to make students good citizens and good workers, not good thinkers and business owners.
Specifically, our schools require an approach that makes the best students bored and attempts to bring up the worst students to an acceptable level. If parents have a gifted child, they look to private schools to nurture him/her because public schools can not provide a comparable level of education.

Answer 8

I agree with you. It is a sad state when sports player make more then the educators, even doctors and lawyers make more then their educators.
My problem with education right now, no money for teachers, too much out of pocket money for the teachers, too much focus on no child left behind test, which still makes no sense. (if the school fails govt money is with held, no money would follow no books, teachers, etc.. and this works or you have a choice to go to another school, overcrowd that one and do not supply more teachers (no money) not enough books for students to take them home, lunch program is poor, no real nutrition for learning, superintendents usually stand by ther poor and abusive educators, to name a few.
I am glad to see you are joining the force of educators. You sound like a person who cares. Thank you and good luck.

Answer 9

Becoming a teacher is a wonderful vocation, however we are not training our children to compete in the world. Study the education systems in other countries, they can get as much as they can handle; here the bottom line is money, keep the poor classes down education for the rich, vouchers for rich families, a multimillionaire in NY got the state to pay for his kids private education, they disguise this voucher system so that private schools can get public funding. Good Luck.

Answer 10

One need only read the posts here to realize that the educational system is producing a generation of illiterates.