Thursday, November 17, 2011
Education...what's that??
The fact that our educational system is a problem is definitely not a secret. Documentaries, such as the one that we viewed in class further illustrates this point. I cannot understand why educators, law makers, parents and society have not demanded change. The children that are graduating from highschool are not prepared for their experience in society. As I look back I wonder why we were forced to take subjects such as calculus that the majority of students will never apply this to anything in our future lives. I have a younger sister who is 14 and can tell me about the Spanish-American War, but has not a clue what interest on a credit card means, or why you have to pay taxes out of your paycheck. I understand the importance of teaching history and fundamental concepts, but isn’t the point of our educational system to prepare put children to enter into society. After working with youth the past couple years, it amazes me the lack of accountability that some teachers require. Its evident that our educators are overworked and underpaid. If the youth are our future, why aren’t we making more of an effort to provide the education that they so desperately need. The lack of education becomes a problem for society. Uneducated children are not able to function among their peers. There becomes an increase in crime and deviance as these schools are unable to teach the basic rules to their students. Society needs to start back at step 1 with the basics. Educate our youth so that they can contribute to society and become productive citizens. Parent s must take responsibility for their children’s education. Many parents have left this responsibility solely up to the schools. It takes a village to raise a child. Parents, educators and politicians need to finds solutions immediately to this problem. This is a priority for the United States and should be treated as such. The job is not just for one superintendent, it’s a problem society must tackle together.
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Education is an issue that exists not only in the United States but universally. I think education is not just about teaching subjects, giving tests and homework. Like you said, children can learn many different subjects and get good grades from school but still are not prepared for their experience in society. I am not saying that those subjects that schools offer are not necessary but there is much more beyond that. I am currently tutoring some middle school and high school students at an academy, and they are already struggling from their daily homework and weekly quizzes and tests. I see them trying their best to get As. They sometimes ask me to do their homework which I reject every single time and they even cheat on their test to get good grades. Those students, especially high-schoolers, are so into their grades because that is what college and society want from them.
ReplyDeleteThe stress has become more on the grades and scores than actual comprehension and application of the material. This has been shown even by cases of schools cheating on standardized tests in order to achieve certain levels rather than the children actually understanding the material and being able to apply it. When I first entered nursing school, I was told it is an application type of education rather than just memorization which many struggle with. Why are we teaching kids to just memorize information for the heck of it rather than learning information that we will be able to use in the future and not just during trivia night at the local bar? Some of the basics do fall back on the parents’ responsibility but the parents and school should be working together to produce the best possible education for a person to succeed in life not just to pass an exam or earn a degree.
ReplyDeleteIt is truly sad to say that education reform is high unlikely as a result of an outdated, corrupt teachers union and government officials that do not have the collective courage to make a change (fearing political career suicide). It seems the only way for the majority of society's youth to prosper in an educational system, is by having them enrolled in a costly private school. The fact that our public education system as a nation is sub-par should be addressed by the government officials of our nation. In order to have more aware political leaders in the future, a well established sense of education for our youth is essential.
ReplyDeleteIt truly is unfortunate that our youth suffers because are governement has their hands tied when it comes to education reform. The teachers unions so hold much power it is practically impossible to bring about any significant change. When we saw the videos in class, I was disgusted with they way teachers are not held accountable for their actions. This whole tenure thing is bullshit. Sure some people may deserve it, but if there is clear evidence of job neglect and irresponsibility they should be held accountable just like in any other career.
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