Screwed up Priorities
74
If you are not Worried, you are not Paying Attention
The scores on standardized tests for reading, science in math, conducted by the Program for International Study Assessment (PISA) are in and the results are speaking for themselves. Students from 65 countries have been tested on their abilities to read and their accomplishments in science and math.
Should we be surprised that America comes in at 17, 23 and 31 respectively? Maybe not!
We have mortgaged our children future
Education became the last priority and the first to be cut when it comes down to where we should save a dollar. Spending billions on wars that are taking us nowhere seems to be the wrong answer to our many problems.
We are “building nations” while demolishing our own.
We are “saving” money by importing brains from other countries that we used to consider as part of third world. We are depriving our children not only of a good education, but of hopes for their future as well.
America, once at the top of the world is slipping behind and is now the 12 country per capita in terms of college graduate students.
At the Very Last Minute
Oh, well...
Surprise, Surprise...
Out of the 65 countries participating in the test, the first 5 places were taken by China, Hong-Kong, Taiwan and Japan; the only western country to place in an honorable position was Finland who came on second twice.
Ever wonder what makes those top countries students more successful than our own. In China they have 41 more days of schooling per year and 30% more hours of studying. In Finland, by the time children finish middle school, they speak three languages.
Are we to think that our children might be less intelligent? By no means; they are just being discouraged by a system that does not see the value of educating them. They are being brainwashed by the media who is turning them into the next generation of consumers, while teaching them that lying cheating and cutting corners is the road to success. They are neglected by parents too busy to supervise them and who are spending no time in helping with their homework.
The combination of those factors is lethal; most of our children are applying themselves only in terms of getting better at playing games on the computer and they only compete among themselves at who is faster and who got the latest gadget.
Wake-up Call?
Informed about the findings of the PISA, Obama called it a “Sputnik” moment, alluding to the challenge America faced decades ago when Russians where the first to send a shuttle into space. It took the vision and determination of J.F. Kennedy to reignite the enthusiasm of the American people and to convince Congress to fund the space program that ensured America’s success on putting the first man on the Moon.
Now, once again, America is playing catching up with the rest of the world. In reality, we have missed the train in educations, leave alone the space shuttle. Should we want to put our minds and hearts to work, should we be willing to invest in our children and the future of this country, we can do it again. Would we? Let’s ask that question again.
The Dream Act
Giving students whose parents entered the country illegally a chance to better their lives is considered by many as being unfair and a total waste of money. Would it be better to leave them ignorant and desperate enough to join violent gangs and never get out of the ghetto? Would it be better to support them as welfare recipients? If we look close at the reaction of the opponents of this measure, it sadly seems that way.
I am by no means encouraging any illegal act, but those children are already here, so trying to integrate them is a better alternative than marginalizing them for no fault of their own. If by attending college or going into the military they can serve their country, then they do deserve a chance to do so. Would those children be taking away jobs from American born citizens? Maybe so, but it seems to me that our system is based on competition and if they are better than the rest, then so be it.
Educating our children is, with out a doubt better and more of a moral solution than outsourcing jobs and looking for the faster and easy way to make a profit.
Give our Children a Fair Chance
As long as a college tuition cost has the price tag of a house, the American dream is either dead or in life support and only the ones who can afford to pay will enter the world of high education leaving the others in front of sealed doors.
By talking from both sides of our mouth, by ignoring the sad reality and being hypocritical about it, we are not making things better, but worse.
Every politician is talking about reforming the education system, but they do nothing about it; ops, I almost forgot, they actually do! They cut the budget again and again.
Congress may allocate more money for building a new highway to nowhere, but will not pave the street to education. Politicians, from both parties, may put some obscure endangered species ahead of our children and we have seen that happening more than once.
We are worried about being “invaded” by other cultures and becoming insignificant in our own country; that is exactly what happens when there is a cultural void. The best way to defend our values is to enforce them – not around the world, but at home.
Spending Money on Education is Never a Waste
Any farmer knows that it takes time and effort to grow seeds into fruit-bearing plants and the harvest will only be as good as the seeds we planted and the care we took of them. Our children are the seeds of our future and we can’t let them grow as weeds without taking the enormous risk of finding ourselves wandering into the swamps of ignorance while wondering how we got there.
By cutting funds to school programs and “saving” on lunch money is like treating a scratch when the mortally wounded is blooding porously because of a severed artery. The patient already on life support will not make it but we will find someone to blame for it; politics comes to mind and both parties are equally responsible for it. And so are parents.
Treating teachers as second class citizens and paying them less than an auto-worker or many government bureaucrats is not going to improve the gravely ill scholastic system any time soon. Ignoring the problem and looking the other way is not going to get us out of the woods and back into the high speed freeway towards being again the nation that America once was.
Do you believe other countries have better and less expensive education systems
See results without votingReforming the American Education system will take what?
See results without voting- Two Imperfect Education Systems
For a very long time now, all politicians running for office have emphasized the need for more and better education. We hear about our students not being able to compete in the new and ever growing...
Related articles by other Hubbers
- U.S. Public Education at the Precipice
You may be expecting that this article is going to be another gloom and doom polemic on the dire condition of public education in the United States. That will not be the case here. Public education in the U.S....
- K - 12 Education Is A National Security Issue
I firmly believe that the education of American youth, from Kindergarten or 1st grade through 12th grade, is a national security issue and it needs to be treated as such! The dynamics of how we should view...
vote upvote downshareprintflag
- Useful (16)
- Funny
- Awesome (12)
- Beautiful (3)
- Interesting
CommentsLoading...
Hello Valerie,
Thank you for visiting and leaving a comment. Unfortunately the quality and affordability of our education system leaves a lot to be desired. There is enough blame to go around and it is sad that nobody is taking responsibility for a situation that is getting worse by the day.
I consider this to be nothing short of child abuse.
The clock is ticking and we are already close to the 12-th hour, but few seem to worry. We found billions to bailout greedy and incompetent bankers, we are spending other billions to fight losing causes in wars we can never win, but our children are the ones to pay for it all.
Hey Petra , We In America are finding that the majority of costs associated with educating our young is a very organized teachers labor union. Pay and benifits of teachers is almost totally out of control. Out of sinc with the norm , Unaccountablility in performance is pretty standard across the board. Tenure protects unproductivity . And Educational benifits to teachers furthering thier education ? About 100 % refunded. On and on and on. And the end results, high drop out rates , higher drop out rates of college ages and increasing costs still. A huge out of controlled mushroom growing on and on and on. The worst recession in 70 years and teacher's here going on strike.! But everyone agrees ......Poor teachers !! While I agree with you about where all our "war money' should and could go go ; We still have a huge problem in education that throwing money at, won't fix......Voted your hub up though. We got problems in America , Thats for sure.
Hi ahorseback,
So now you are saying that teachers are the problem and their salaries are too high? Hard to believe; I know plenty of them making much less than any other professionals. This is not happening only in America, it is a global problem.
While a doctor may kill one or two pacients in a life time of practicing medicine, one single bad teacher may mutilate a few generations of students. Paying them a decent salary is a good investment; asking them to perform at high standards is what we should expect and enforce.
The problem starts at the very top; out of control tuitions that prevent the less fortunate from entering collage, brainwashing by the media, very low standards for high school children, total neglect from parents. As I said, plenty of blame to go around.
With the fact that not all asian children get to go to school and Finland has a socioecomic government,where there's no encentive to become more than just acceptably successful financialy.The US is unique,but does need to retrace it's intrest in education in every way you mentioned,Petra,more pay to teachers along with their accountability,and restructure higher learning away from a corporate mentality...if you want the government to reform then your going to have to pay for it...and by the way I'm willing to do so and for a semi-extensive socionomic adjustment,but not to the extent of losing American Entrepreneurship and access to self accomodation;)
You made good suggestions about illegal immigrants' children getting an education and changing the system. Yet, alas, it's a voice in the wilderness...
I see the problem lies in the indulgent atmosphere of many families, where parents do not consider their children's dropping out of school the end of the world, while they should. Just that aspect alone is something to think about. It's a vicious circle: if parents did not study efficiently, how could they encourage and support their children's education?!
The greatest thing about American school system is that it is not uniform, thus letting states and school districts experiment on their own. So ideally it's quite competitive but in the reality it's more or less the same everywhere. Again, schools may change their methods but it's parents who must follow them at home.
An excellent and valuable hub! A huge thumbs up to you Petra on an important and timely topic. Thank you so much!
How interesting: “The first 5 places were taken by China, Hong-Kong, Taiwan and Japan; the only western country to place in an honorable position was Finland who came on second twice.”
I believe the problem of this issue lies in the fact that the ‘winning team’ often becomes too sure of their first place, and they become relaxed and lazy, while the rest are still working hard in their endeavor to win. (And I’m not talking about individuals now, but of nations as entities... the collective attitude, exposed by the government elected by the majority). Self-confidence and laziness – 'splashing' too long in victory - caused the fall of many empires.
Much-much more money should also be assigned to education by the government of SA.
Great, well-written hub, Petra! Voted UP and UP.
Excellent hub. I do believe we have our priorities screwed up. Why would we be concerned if our children have an education when we don't even care if they eat or can have health care? This is a sad situation and furiates me. The cost of college is so outrageous. I sent my youngest son to college and could not get any help from the government and I paid out of my pocket 50,000 dollars for two years plus his living expenses. I still owe them money. My son had to quit college because I was depleted of money. He was a full time student and was working and we still couldn't afford to keep him in. This is sickening. The old saying of "anyone who wants to go to college can, with government grants, student loans, etc." is a lie. You have to fit into the perfect box to get any assistance and many of us don't fit into that box. Thank you for this hub and I hope America wakes up soon or it will be too late for us as a country.
Hello Mentalist,
If what you say about China and Finland is true, HOW does that make the American system half way decent?
"To reform the education system, you will have to pay for it" - you say and I agree. I would happly pay for education rather than paying for two worthless wars and so are millions of other Americans.
I really do not see the connection between a better education and the danger of losing the American spirit of entreprenorship; if anything, just the opposit is true. Was Bill Gates a hopless kid from the projects and a bum? Were the two guys who build Google not working on their PhD?
Hello Moncrieff,
I do blame the parents big time. Too busy with everything else, except supervising their children, a lot of them are seeing the duty of being a parent as buying children more stuff and much less as developing their minds. Parents are passing the responsability to teachers and they do not want to be bothered.
Letting children spend hours on end in front of the TV is another convenient way to keep them busy and out of parents hair. They seem to ignore the truth that "garbage in, garbage out" works every time and when it is too late they are all surprized by the outcome.
The "dream Act" is not my idea; it is a debate going on right now and has met a lot of opposition by the ones who think that the children of illegal immigrants should just get out of the way
Thank you so much vocalcoach,
Ignoring the problem will not make it go away. It may be "the dream solution" of politicians, but it will keep our children victims of a system with screwed up priorities
Hello Martie,
If America was ever the winning team" in education (which I doubt), those moments are just distant memories and long gone. What is going on now is a national tragedy that few seem to ackowledge.
I do see your point about overly confident nations and how that can be detrimental should they stop applying themselves. Success requieres discipline and that is in very short supply those days. Money alone will not make the system better; the problem is much deeper and we just refuse to address it.
Hello Lisa,
I hear you; sending children to college is prohibitive for middle class families. My son will probably be in debt for the rest of his life because he took out loans and at times even paid tuition by using a credit card.
The lie of "equal opportunities" is an outrage. Was Bush bright enough to be addmited at Yale? Are all children of members of congress bright enough to go to Harvard? NO, they are not, but they do go to the best schools money can buy; the message is clear - money and connections are better assets than brains will ever be.
Your right about war spending...,and shifting government encentives toward education is worthwhile,but comparing the US to other countries is apples and oranges,which I found confusing by trying to apply their method of facilitating higher standards of learning would be a serious reform to the way you and I live...
Hello again Mentalist,
Who said anything about applying their methodes? I doubt they are torturing their children. At any rate, all I would love to see is getting their RESULTS.
As for the "serious reform to the way we live", I would really like to see how can that be any worse considering the high unemployment, the millions who lost their homes, the millions who are in debt over their head and so on...Just please tell me, so I know
Excellent article, Petra! I was watching an episode of Oprah the other day where she interviewed Michelle Rhee. Michelle asserts that if the lower 6 to 10 percent of teachers were replaced with average teachers, America would rise in performance dramatically. It's appalling that the quality of education varies according to zip code! She has started a drive to change the entire system. If you are interested in reading her ideas, you can find them here: http://www.studentsfirst.org/#
Next, we have to change what passes for entertainment!
Hello Alexandra,
As it happens today the mayor of Los Angeles was talking about the fact that, when education budget cuts are inevitable, teachers are being laid off according to seniority and NOT performance. Surprisingly, the teachers' union agreed.
Thank you for the link and let's hope things will change before it is too late.
Not many people understand that without education, we have nothing and nothing comes of nothing.
Without education there are no doctors, no inventions, no art, no food ... there would be nothing because without education we would not know anything. We'd be complete donkeys.
I was having a conversation with Mr. Wayne on the topic of education on his http://hubpages.com/hub/COUNTIN-CHICKENS#comment-4 blog. This is a difficult topic.
I do think like most conservatives that governments waste a lot of money. There is very little efficiency and I am not sure if it is due to lobbyists, lack of interest, lack of education or what but the system is indeed failing.
I have come across some terrible teachers in my life and for a messed-up kid as I was, that's all I needed to skip class: a useless, unpassionate and uninterested teacher/professor. Those type of teachers are extremely detrimental I think.
On the other hand, as I told Mr. Wayne, my sister and her husband are both public school teachers. They tell me that their classrooms are over-crowded, they often times pay for supplies out of their pockets and they do a serious amount of unpaid work at home (marking, writing reports, preparing lessons, etc).
Fighting for education is ridiculous to me though. I wrote several politicians regarding the school in Attawapiskat (which I will see built or die trying lol) and nothing.
lol It's okay, I am going to a Liberal X-mas Party and talk to politicians in person if they ignore emails. Ottawa is also not far, I am lucky in that. Now I am ranting ... lol
Thanks for a great blog!! Craciun Fericit si La Multi Ani!
Thanks for a passionate, and well argued article. It seems to me that, in terms of educational attainment, pupils years ago were leaving schools better off than their counterparts are today, and that problem is not just confined to America. It's not so much ,the amount of money spent on education that determines the outcome, but the quality of the teachers and the courses taught.
That is where the real deterioration seems to be.
Our schools are suffering from the misguided notion that everyone has equal ability and shouldn't be made to feel badly if they get poor grades. The solution gives students grades according to their perceived ability. Therefore, if a student is deemed to be a C student then give him or her an A because they are performing at capacity. Insanity has taken over our education system and we are graduating students who can't read. As for the DREAM Act, the children of illegal aliens are already in our school system from grade school through college. This ACT gives them the right to in-state tuition but denies the same right to students who came here legally. Hardly seems fair to me. Voted up and awesome!
Hello Happy,
There is no doubt in my mind that education is a vital component in a person's life and can make or brake almost any child. By education I do not mean only a certain amount of knowledge that children are supposed to receive by going to school, I mean a way we can mold them into respectable people with good moral values.
In order to accoomplish that, the effort should be coordinated and parents, teachers and governments should take responsability and understand the value of the investment that will pay dividents in the long run by creating a better society.
It is the ignorance of the many that alloweded the few to take over the world and make their own rules and protect their own advantages. I have my strong suspicions about the good intentions of government in terms of their "desire" to educate the masses, since they know that it is hard and close to impossible to manipulate the ones that can see through the BS they are telling us day in and day out.
I have the upmost respect for the teaching profession and I had some outstanding teachers in my life, (from elementary school all the way through college), but most importantly I was fortunate enough to have an incredable father who guided me. I also had the advantage of getting a free education and a rigurous one, because the government made it a priority to invest in education (as it turns out to their disadvantage - because they opened our eyes and made us impossible to control)
I agree with you Christoph,
When we grow up there was no Face Book, Tweeter, cell phones, texting and the rest of internet games; children had less distractions and more time to study. I wonder how many yongsters can add up or multiplay without a calculator or spell without the spell check.
By no means is this problem going to be resolved only by putting more money into the education system; it takes a re-thinking of basic values and the cooperation of many factors.
What we need is a change of attitude
Hello POP,
It is insanity to grade students to their perceived ability, when "their best" is not good enough. Giving them extra help and additional tutoring is one thing, giving them passing grades is another and that's why I keep insisting that the system needs change.
I am not saying that the "Dream Act" is perfect of totally fair, just like "affirmative action" is not the most effective way to solve discrimination by creating a new form of it. All what I am saying is that the alternative is worse and keeping those students at the outskirts of society is a dangerous thing, while integrating them is better and more profitable.
I did mention to you the CIDA program (instituted by Carter and repealed by Regan); it was designed to teach English to new immigrants and give them an opportunity to become productive - earn a living and pay taxes. It was FREE and effective, it treated students like employees and we were expected to perform or leave the program and make room for the ones ready to take it seriously. It was the only help I ever got from the American government and I believe not to have wasted my time and their money.
You bring up some great points here, Petra. Short-changing our education will be devastating in the long run. I can only speak from a male's perspective, but for me, personally, the education system in America was creatively restrictive and yet unchallenging at the same time. Young boys should be taken outside to build log cabins to apply their mathematical abilities as opposed to being spoonfed information in a classroom. Thanks for the thoughtful hub.
Thank you Doug,
I agree; education does not mean only accademic skills, but a larger perspective about life. Exposing children to different experiences is part of making their personalities well-rounded and making them better equipped to deal with the complexity of life.
Excellent and though provoking article. I read it once and then returned to read again; by then, you had all these comments! Well done.
In England we have a microcosm of the woes of the US re education. We have had bloodshed on the streets this week with students seriously rioting and fighting police over the government's decision to raise university fees by two-thirds. The calibre of kids looking for higher education is frighteningly low anyway. I don't know what has happened in the "First World" that has caused us to fall behind Oriental students like this; maybe we have had it easy too long; perhaps we are too sodden with alcohol and drugs; for sure we are all the victims of greed from the banks, etc. We suffer in the UK because foregners still want to come here to the top universities like Oxbridge, and seem to have unlimited funds to divvy up. So the unis are predujiced in favor of foreign admissions viz a viz local kids. The standars of teachers has dropped and they are being forced to take cuts in salaries, pushing more professionals away from academia. I honestly believe, Petra, that humankind is on the slippery slope of becoming extinct and it wouldn't take much for the retreat to become a route. Thanks again for your article, I wish I could offer more expertise of hope...Bob
Thank you Bob,
Yes, part of the problem is that western countries have access to a lot of comfort that became too easy to obtain without much sacrifice and children developed a sense of entitelment that is asurd.
I do know about the riots in England and, altough I am against violence of any kind, I believe a message should be send to governments that people will only take so much unjustice and will put up with only that much abuse.
Teachers are being sabotaged not only in terms of low salaries, but also on the way they are required to observe stupid rules and be "plitically correct" about what they teach and how they do it. This type of impositions have lowered the standards and killed any motivation of great people to embrace what was once considered a noble profession.
I agree with everything you wrote Petra. It is a disgrace the way we have allowed our public education system to slip. We need to reconsider the ways we educate our students and the length of our school year. Unfortunately with the economy being so bad and municipal budgets under siege, one of the first things cut are school budgets. There are so many things needed to be improved upon and I am very glad you touched on many of them. I wrote a Hub detailing some of my own ideas on improving public education a few months back. I believe charter schools are a marvelous engine for educational experimentation. The Obama administration seems intent on imroving the system which is wonderful to see. But without the municipalities and the unions on board, nothing significant will happen. Parents need to be heard in a much greater force and we all need to speak out on this subject. Maybe the PISA report and Hubs such as ours will spur our elected officials.
Hello HSchneider,
Thank you for your support. I did read your hub about public schools being at the precipice and I think it is a great hub (in fact I will be linking it to this one).
What I admire most about you is the fact that you not only aknowledge the problem, BUT come up with possible and reasonable solutions; you did that on your immigration hub as well and for that I respect you more than words can say.
Thank you, Sir.
Dear Petra,
There is no question that we have to deal with the illegal immigration problem. What we need is a comprehensive and humane way of solving things. The DREAM ACT, in my view, is not the solution.
Petra,This hub is excellent.When a country puts war before education it shows how ignorant we've become and the idea that immigrants are not welcome in this country is absurd.We all were immigrants at one time.We have become selfish and so full of greed that we have no compassion left.In my view the dream act is a start.We must start somewhere.We are becoming a nation of the super-rich and the poor.In my view,that's the plan.If you look back 'they'didn't want the slaves educated,knowing they would rise up and demand equal justice.I didn't intend to ramble on,but this is a hot topic that demands attention.Thank you.
Cheers and Peace
Petra,
I would suggest also reading a Hub by My Esoteric called K-12 Education is a National Security Issue. He also makes many great points.
Hello again POP,
No attempt at solving any problem will ever please everyone; the Dream Act is a compromise and a first step. As imperfect as it maight be it paves the way to legality for thousands of children who did not make the decision to do anything illegal and should not be held accountable for their parents disperate actions.
It is not the tuitions given to them that will bankrupt America, but rather the wars we are engaged in and the lack of responsability of our politicians, not to mention the greed of the corporations and the corruption.
That is why the title of this hub is "screwed up priorities" - because we lost our perspective of what is important, what is moral and what is of value.
Hello always,
You just nailed it; a lack of education serves well the interests of the ones who want to control our destinies.
I have said it many times before and I am convinced that the collapse of communism sooner than anyone had anticipated, was due to the free and solid education they provided us with. Educated people are almost impossible to control and dominate, while ignorance does just the opposite. Thank you for your great comment
Hello again HScheneider,
I just read this hub and I am 100% convinced that the lack of education is indeed a national security issue for America. Thank you so very much for bringing this hub to my attention
A well thought-out hub, Petra, about a devastating problem. The education of our children should be one of our number one priorities as you suggest. Two issues stand out to me - parents refusing to or unable to take responsibility for their children - attending classes, doing homework, etc. - and teachers who cannot or will not be held accountable.
We need a complete overhaul of our entire educational system but I don't believe that will happen in this administration. Maintaining the support of union members including teachers' unions is of paramount importance to our leadership. Their votes are more important than the issues.
Hello drbj,
Although I am disgusted by the budget cuts to education while out of control spending is mortgaging our future, I have to agree that the first to be responsable for their children education are parents. It seems that almost everyone is "buying" affection by giving more stuff to their children and relaxing all rules, just to have some temporary "peace"
Teachers are not being paid enough, but even worse, they have their hands tide up behind their back and are afraid to enforce any discipline; God forbit someone may cry "child abuse" at any moment or get offended, because the precious "gifted" brat was "humiliated" in front of the class.
I would not put the blame on this administration alone; the problem started long ago and is deteriorating with each passing day; Bush's "no child left behind" was lip service for political gain, in the bast of cases, but in reality just a bad joke.
Unions are part of the problem and administrators' salaries as well as their penssion plans are an outrage. In the end, the ones to suffer are the children, the real victimes of a faild system
As a teacher, I give my big appreciation to you. I always care for anything related with education and you made this so beautiful. But I hope all teachers in the world always give the best to their children. They have to be appreciated for their job to prepare young generation become a leader and success person in the future. I know and realize there on each country has different curriculum, but I believe we have the same goal to make the student smart and independent.
Thanks for share this hub for us. Good topic selection and I give my Vote special for you. Take care!
Blessing and hugs,
Great Hub Petra and a great set of comments as well. I also read a few of your other hubs and it has given me great food for thought (and other hubs). While I am not yet as jaded as you have become of the American experiment, I haven't had your heartbreaking experiences either. Nevertheless, I will be looking forward to your thoughts on my thoughts about America. Thanks for reading my hub, I certainly enjoyed reading yours and have become one of your many followers.
Hello Prasetio,
I know you are a teacher and I know how much you care for your students; not all children are so lucky to have great teachers, but I consider this profession to be one of the most important one,
As I said in another comment, a bad doctor may kill a patient or two during his career, but a bad teacher can intellectually mutilate a few hundred and handicap them for life.
Be a proud teacher (as I know you are) and take good care of your students (as I know you do)
Hello Esoteric,
I am so glad HS told me about your hub and I totally agree with you that the education of our children IS a National Security Issue. Because of greed and narrow-mindness we are becaming our wrost enemies. I linked your hub to mine and I hope some of my visitors will become interested on your great perspective about this grave problem and enourmous risk.
I will be reading your hubs about America as I am always interested in different opinions and appreciate people who are not looking at only one side of the coin
Great job as usual, Petra, informative and entertaining.
I have always viewed the education system as a barometer of the health of American culture. As respect for teachers and parental involvement declines, it can only bode ill for our culture and civilization.
Thank you.
Thank you Tom,
You are so right; education IS a barometer for any society and its moral health. Parents are the first ones responsable to teach values and only then teachers and the rest of the society. Everyone is washing their hands and the children are in the middle and without much supervision - just the way they like it best.
Petra you continue to shine with your hubbing. You touch on subjects that tend to open our eyes and perk up our ears. We suffer in Canada with the same stagnant school problems you are having in your country. Teachers who don't teach, don't gain respect, have the I don't care attitude, dress like some of the students they teach.
I am just waiting to see one of them come to school with those gangsta pants on showing the crack of their asses like some of their students are baring.
I question my 16 year old son every day on school work, absentees, being late for class and the response comes back, it's okay with the teachers, they don't care anyways?? huh?
Of course I don't want to believe him, until I have a meeting with his teachers and find not to my surprise the easygoing attitudes that to many of them have.
We need better quality and accountability by our teaching profession and the school boards and trustees are often to blame, restraining good teacher from teaching and supporting the lower 6% as Silvergenes noted. Great Hub..I rate it way UP and Up some more.
I agree completely. we need to stop with the war effort and start with an education effort! I think we waste far too much money and time fixing up other countries when our own if falling apart! It's time to worry about our own! It's sad! Our children are the future and if we can't get on track what is going to happen??
Petra, nice hub, you make a valid point about the illegals, but it is not my responsibility to help them, no one helped my family nor my self! Their parents have all ready taught them to break the law by coming here illegaly! They have no role model at home so what makes anyone think the "village" is going to do it???
I blame teacher unions, government for not forcing teachers to take responsibility! In the last several years I have seen angry teachers who do not want to take test, nor prove to the parents they know what or how to teach!
Hi Ken,
First let me tell you how much I respect you for being the best parent you can be by taking a close interest in your son's education. More people should follow your example and who knows, we may have less of a problem as a country.
As for teachers being too relaxed and giving the impression that they are blending in with the students, that is part of what they are required to do; stupid instructuions to say the least. According to some idiots, in order to learn more and better, children should not be "intimidated" by the teacher and disciplinary rules should not be enforced, so nobody can, God forbid feel "humiliated".
I agree that the unions are big part of the problem and they care more about making their voice heard and less for what is good for the students. That too should change.
I'm glad that I found you here. Tis by design, our failures here in America, the globalist long ago decided that such a powerful nation should not be.
Hello Libby,
Happy to meet you and welcome to my site. Sure, we should know that "charity begins at home", but it seems that America is starved for attention and needs the acolades of others to feel good about itself.
The problem is the more we helped others the less they liked us, because the "help" was never given without strings attached and it was selective help; America "helped" only those country where there was an immediate strategic interest - political or military.
If only a fraction of what we are spending in wars and "help" to other countries would be spent at home, we will not have homeless people in the streets and uneducated childre, we will all have medical insurance and would be able to retaire before we die on the job.
Hello American,
As I am sure you know, the problem of illegal immigration is complicated; those people are already here and keeping them uneducated will make things worse.
Recruting soldiers to fight stupid wars is getting more and more difficult and the precious sons and daughters of our politicians (all of them Big Patriots, mind you) are not voluntiring for anything less than Harvard and Yale.
Hello Wesman,
Happy to meet you. I believe that the fall of America is our own doing and follows the patern of all other empires (I have a hub about it).
I am not excluding the possibility of a "by design" faliure, but greed, corruption and selfishness have not been impossed on us; they grew out of supreme arrogance and that IS tipical American
Petra: You're singing my song! I have been proclaiming this very issue for a very long time, though to call this the "sputnik" moment is almost laughable. Not to blame Obama, but the signs--very strong ones in fact--began quite awhile ago. Will people in the country ever wake up here? I hope so. I think our education system is a disgrace, not to blame the teachers (who now so often have to be their student's parents as well.) You have put it so well. This hub should be mandatory reading for everyone!
Petra...Very insightful hub. The failure of the U.S. educational system is only one symptom of a country that has been losing its power and glory for many years now. There was mention in a comment of the states' ability to experiment and improve education, but I live in Mississippi, the state that is always last or nearly so for anything that is positive. That certainly won't happen here!
Between politicians who want to throw all available money at the wrong things (mixed-up priorities)and even steal from needed programs to do so, making budget cuts where the money is badly needed, to citizens who don't consider education important, education takes a back seat to everything else. There are too many adults who are supposedly "educated" who are functionally illiterate. And it's parents who are setting the bar so low for their children.
Did you see that news video recently about the greatest majority of a college class cheating on their exam? The professor was heartsick about it, and even wondered why he had spent the past twenty years of his life teaching. One of the students was interviewed and blatantly said, "Everyone does it...why are they making such a big deal about it?" That is the attitude being perpetuated in this country. Everybody does it...Wall Street...CEOs...politicians... just be sure you get what you can at the expense of others and don't worry about cheating or who gets hurt. It's a very sad commentary on what this country has become. Jaye
I LOVE YOU Christopher, you know I do!
I wish I could be as optimistic as you are, since I know for sure I will never have your exquisite sense of humor. I just don’t see America ever waking up to face the music; everyone is too busy to put the blame on the next person and never take responsibility for anything.
For individual teachers I have a lot of respect and compassion, for politicians I have nothing but profound disgust and most parents deserve the brats they brought up with a sense of entitlement that is turning against them.
America is already turning into a banana republic and soon enough will be the supply of unqualified workers to the world; we already have the proof that our children can’t compete in the world market – but I am sure we will find someone to blame.
I know Jaye
It pains me to see the erosion of this country and how fast it happens. I am sure it started long ago, but is gaining speed and we are already at the very edge.
Children have always been influenced more by what they see than by what they are being told. I am not surprised that cheating became a way of life and everyone does it, as you said, from politicians to CEO.
Children learn and live by example!
For as long as the education is left on the hands of the media, we should not be surprised; “the bachelor” promotes promiscuity, “the house” promotes dubious alliances, “the house wives” promotes gossip, “the survivor” promotes stubbing and so on. I can’t name ONE positive show, I can’t name ONE role model worth emulating, but I can name a few celebrities who never finished high school.
I will say it again: Children learn and live by example.
Did I sound optimistic? I must have misspoke. And besides, I LOVE YOU MORE!
Hi Christoph
What a nice thing to wake-up to on Monday morning; thank you. Wish you and family a great Christmas and a health, happy, pprosperous and inspired New Year
You've hit another grand slam Dear Petra! I await your every word though. You're one of the smartest and most concerned people I know! I agree with you completely!
Thank you Micky,
I wish "we the people" can actually do something about it, but nobody is ever listening; what a surprise! Please read the hub about "education a national security issue" - I so tottaly agree with Esoteric.
We don't need outside enemies, we have more than enough in our own backyard.
Hi, I'm an education major (Integrated Language Arts). I'm not a teacher as jobs are scarce and so am just a sub. It is true that the American education system is horrible. Someone once said that the first year of college was a repeat of high school. In studying the education system, observing classrooms in Appalachia and teaching 8th grade Language Arts, it seems that the problem has a lot more factors involved like culture, family background, religion and class status. In the book Literacy With an Attitude, Finn observes how Jean Anyon performed a study of five different schools all with different economic backgrounds. The conclusions to the study were that the way knowledge was taught in the different schools had definite correlations with the kind of occupations students took on later in life. Grossly unequal funding of public schools is another problem, with some schools having the latest technology and their own pool while other schools don't even have safe buildings or up-to-date technology. There is also the problem with religion and education in that people of religious backgrounds (not all, but some nonetheless) are discouraged from thinking critically and so feel uncomfortable with higher-level thinking processes.
Then, so long as knowledge is taught purely for the sake of passing tests, knowledge learned will seem meaningless to those learning it. Psychology says that people don't remember things that are meaningless. Why should school be any different? I still remember my geometry teacher being unable to form an adequate explanation for why we needed to learn that material. And my government teacher used to habitually fall asleep in class, so I had little incentive to care. In education classes, I also became aware that it is much harder to get students to care about learning when they're parents don't. And why should students care about literature when they are just trying to get enough to eat? Teachers now also face the added challenge of more kids in the class with a variety of disabilities (learning disability, emotional problems, ADD/ADHD) and so creating lesson plans that fit the pace of each student is not easy at all and some do suffer because of this.
America has done poorly on test scores. Yet if we are to do better, it seems that more would need to be reformed than the education system. Yet I would question the scores and the meanings we derive from them. Specifically, what is the sample of students taking these tests in other countries? I seem to remember reading some countries (I can't remember which as it was a while ago) that took on a different policy towards students who couldn't advance as fast. According to the article, more suitable work was found for them earlier on. If that is the case (and I remember a friend of mine from Germany saying something to this effect), than wouldn't the sample of people taking the tests around the globe by nature be different? If only the people taking these tests in other countries have already survived a weeding out process that is absent in America, how could we expect different? Now, even if this is just my inaccurate information, just how trustworthy are these test scores? What makes them credible determiners of what is happening in education today? Should not the true determiners be in the products produced by people who have gone through the education system?
Anyway, these are just my thoughts. Thanks for the article.
You speak so much truth. The military backs the video games, the war games, wanting us to raise future soldiers, obedient and not able to think for themselves. For America, killing has become so much more profitable than educationg. We are headed in a very dangerous direction. Awesome write, and so true.
Hello Elefanza,
First let me thank you for bringing your contribution to this discussion, especially because you are involved in the education system and have an inside perspective. Many of the points you make are very valid and I agree with most of the, but not all.
There is no doubt that culture, family background, religious beliefs and class status are a determinant factor in bringing up children and helping them get an education that goes beyond just accumulating knowledge; it makes them into a well rounded personality with an intellectual advantage.
I also agree that government funding contributes to the quality of education; we all know that such funding IS selective and not fair. The way knowledge is thought makes a world of difference and has a strong correlation with the professions students will choose. Let me give you a first hand experience example.
My son went to Beverly Hills high school; they have a swimming pool, two tennis courts, an observatory and their own radio and TV station. How fair is that when most schools do NOT even have adequate lighting or heating?
Any wonder why most of the Beverly Hills graduates end up in the entertainment business? They are being groomed to become producers, journalist, politicians, etc. and they are making “business” connections early on – through family and friend exposure, paving their future careers.
In most schools the level of teaching is lowered to the levels of the less gifted (so nobody feels uncomfortable) and even average students lose interest in a class that does not challenge them.
As for international tests and their validity, I have to disagree. Just like the Olympics where every country sends its best athletes, students sent to international tests are being selected and NOT randomly picked. Math is math in any language and it makes no difference what nationality a student has. American students proved not good enough and that is a reflection on the system and by no means on the potential or intelligence of those students. It is a reality we should face and remediate rather than finding excuses for.
Hello Bobbi,
One way or another, America is killing its own future, but not to worry; we will find someone to blame and we will start another war to fix the problem.
It takes a healty dose of ignorance to look for the easy way out and cutting corners IS part of the problem that got us where we are.
Hi, Petra this is a very apt topic. at the moment in England we are experiencing riots in the streets because the government has decided in it's lack of wisdom, to tripple the amount that students have to pay to go to college or university. It used to be 3000 pounds a year for a student loan, now it is 9000! but we can afford to send Ireland 7 billion pound to help them out with their problems! Oh, and 60 million for India, they should get their priorities right! thanks nell
It seems that the entire world has its priorities screwed up and so, there is no wonder why things go the way they do.
"Charity begins at home", but do not try to convince politicians about this - they have their own agenda and a narrow minded perspective for what the future should look like - they even have the guts to say taht they are doing it "for our good and prosperity"; who ever sees it otherwise is just another instigator and uzurper oof society values.
Good for your students, at least they took a stand and tried to make ther voice count - a lot more than what I can say about Americans (who seems to have a love affair with abuse and will take whaterev comes their way)
Thanks for writing this. It's an impassioned look at a very serious problem indeed--our children's education!
Hello balthasar
welcome to my site and thank you for reading and leaving a comment.
The education of our children is an important issue and a big problem that too many people choose to ignore. All we can hope is that rather sooner than later they will wake up and start doing something about it.
HI Petra Vlah, -The response that is shown by the innumerable comment in the hub indicates the desire of and the very concerns of the future of US citizens. AS an outsider I like to point out that no body is inferior to anybody because after all, all are human beings. But because of environment all can not learn each and everything with equal prophecy. So far my knowledge goes I know the evolution of computer technology. It was IBM Company of the United State who was the pioneer of this science. At the beginning stage IBM thought it widely and wished to accumulate the knowledge of the Globe in the United States for its growth. Successful youngsters were brought to the United States to do the research works to find out the mystery of science in communication technology. People referred it as a policy of brain drain. My logic is to say to develop the knowledge and skill of the students of the United States it requires interaction of the students of different regions and of different countries. Knowledge can be flourished by isolation.
Hello H P R,
You are re-enforcing my point; America has brilliant minds and IMB, Microsoft,Google are just a few example of how we changed the world for the better. Unfortunately too many good minds are going to wast because of a lack of salid education and, from being the country who once set the standards, we are becoming a country who is importing brains. Globalization can't solve all the problems and education of each nation is still the base of future accomplishments
Great hub Petra, I agree wholeheartedly about the state of our country's educational system, especially in comparison to certain other parts of the world. While I'm not sure that adding 30+ more hours of studying or 40 more school days to the calender is the answer, I think we need to begin at the bottom, to foster a real DESIRE and MOTIVATION to learn. This comes from better teachers, broader subject material. I wish that languages in school were taken more seriously - I cannot think of a better advantage to have than to be able to speak more than one language fluently.
I also think however, that its ironic that while the quality of much of our education has gone down, the monetary value of our education has gone up. The cost of college rises every year, making it less and less afforable for people to attend. A great education should not be exclusive to those with money, a great education should be a right of every person with the desire to learn. We are caught in a vicious cycle.
Again, great hub! I really enjoy your writing.
Fantastic hub and right on! Have you read the ebook "The Deliberate Dumbing of America"?
I agree - Education dollars spent are never wasted. Peace through greater understanding!
Love - Light - Laughter
Neil
Very well written hub, Petra. And on a key issue. What we see around is a big marketing machine running which make people who largely belong to a "Dumbed-down" populace, believe that they are more intelligent and better informed that any other generation in the history, due to Internet age etc. The truth is that the new generation is being put to the educational system with so little affection and so much of contempt towards learning, that they no longer look at education as an endeavor towards enhancing the understanding about the life and world, in general around us. Education, irrespective of the stream in true sense, ought to liberate you and make you a better person. They are given to the new generation by the preceding one as a weapon to weed out your competition with, and the beginning and end of education is construed to be the amount of money it allows you to make. That is where the fallacy lies, and that is the worrying part. Sad thing is that lack of political will ensures that a majority, which could be having people who are keen on pursuit of knowledge as a driver to education are left out of the journey, altogether.
I think you hit all the marks when you talk about the responsibility of the individual and the responsibility of the parents and teachers. I think you miss the mark on the idea that spending more on education is part of the equation. I think we spend tons of money on education as it is, and I think during the Clinton years we spent tons on education. It got us nowhere, and typically never does. We have to be a society of people who take responsibility and ownership of our own futures. We cannot, and should not rely on the government to solve our every problem, and that sort of what I see as being one underlying suggestion here. It sort of brings me back to that old saying that you can lead a horse to water, but you can't force him to drink. Parents need to be more involved in their children's lives, and more in tune with their children's needs. They need to be more aware than they are that little Johnny is not a perfect little boy who can do everything right and nothing wrong, and they need to be willing to listen when a teacher says Johnnie might not be making the grade. Too often parents become offended when the suggestion is made that their children might be lacking. Right away they start pointing fingers at the teachers, at the system, at the politicians. No one in this country today wants to take any responsibility for anything at all, INCLUDING the education of their children. I think you are right to point out that the media plays a role in shaping the mindsets of people to believe that everything must be challenged, that everyone has inalienable rights, that everyone owes someone something...
And it's making it impossible to get things done.
Money is not the answer. I think entirely it's going to take a reshaping of the American mindset that it is up to US to get out of this world what we want and what we need, and that to look to others to solve our own problems is naive, foolish, and counterproductive. It'll get us nowhere ultimately. Things work best when there is a collective effort to getting things done. That means the teachers, the administrators, the parents, AND the children all need to be working in unison toward a common goal of acheiving.
If we can't do that, no amount of money is going to force the matter.
Great topic. Happy New Year.
Thanks for the great Hub! It is more beneficial for kids to learn a second language when they are young and their brains are developing. However, I think many Americans want the U.S. to remain a unilingual country in the face of massive immigration.
Hello Petra!
I agree with you that parents should be more involved with their children's education and that the government should invest more on this rather than cutting the budget for it. Although I also agree with some of the replies here that money is not the only solution here, but educators, parents and children are all responsible parties for children to do better in school and to have promising careers. I understand that achieving this, can, sometimes, be challenging. On the other hand, it can be very rewarding if everyone is willing to do their part. With the educational system as it is right now, teachers are bombarded with deadlines, which make them sometimes assign tasks that have yet to be covered in class and leave the students even more confused. Also, in this day and age, students have so much homework that it fills up their entire day leaving them little time to do anything else, let alone having dinner with their families. I think, other than the "money or budget solution" as well as parental involvement in their children's education, adjustments need to be made in the educational system. Somehow, I believe that the current system is not using the full potential of the students. I am certain that most teachers are willing to give all of their students "a chance to shine" if allowed by the educational system. Thank you for sharing such a thought provoking topic-I wish there will be more hubbers who would enlighten us on the subject. It is true that we need to open our eyes to this. Thank you for the reminder, Petra and keep up the good work. Have a wonderful and blessed New Year!:-)
As usual, you make some great points in your hub. Looks like very interesting comments too. Obviously, it's a topic dear to many people. So sad to see what has happened to our nation's children. Subtle changes due to rejection of fundamental values have brought us to this point that is threatening "no return."
The problem is multi-faceted with severe opposition to true solutions. It's been said before, but not enough, that shutting the only One who is bigger than the problem out of our school system is the point at which the degradation of the system accelerated. Today's students have to be highly motivated with established support to succeed in getting an education today. Individually, many are turning to their Creator for help, and they are finding Him to truly be the God of the impossible.
So glad you highlighted a topic that needs attention!
Well-researched article. Having lived and worked in both Asian and Western countries, here's what I feel. While Asian education makes pupils good at analytical and logical thinking, the western education provides scope for creative and innovative thinking. No wonder Asian students do well in Math and Science, and western students are dexterous in expressing themselves well through language, art and innovation. Of course, my statements are over-simplification, but you get the point.
We have great cause to worry. We have spent our money on wars and tax breaks for those that do not need them. While Education lingers far behind. I want to think America has great days ahead, but maybe I am just delusional. I know this, YOU SHOULD BE VOTING IN 2012. Opting out is never smart.
Petra, this hub is superb and should be bookmarked and read by every teacher and parent. The short shrift we have continued to endow our young people with is shameful, and we have been seeing the dismal results for some time. It is no wonder that other countries surpass our education system. This continues to be our downfall...in more ways than one.
I just read the hub, all the comments, and am now exhausted, yet concerned. I have more questions now than before. I am definitely wondering a bunch. Maybe A Brave New World depicted it best in that it is a social problem more than an educational problem. I'm interested in the money trail of the education systems of these top countries. I'm curious who is doing the investing.
I could write more, yet I realize how ignorant of this subject I really am, so I won't. I will say the emotion of your article drove the point home. Thank You.
I've missed you dear. I hope you are well. God bless you Petra.
ValerieH 17 months ago
Awesome hub Petra and I have often thought about the future of our country when it comes to the education of our children and especially the quality of education. I remember when I was in middle school and we had a foreign exchange student from China and she commented one day how easy the work load was in our history class and she even said that in her country they are made to memorize the whole text books word for word and that has always astonished me. No wonder they are far ahead of us. Peace.