The American Education System
It has been said that the No Child Left Behind act has caused teachers to lower their standards for children to pass and have effectively tried to "teach the tests" rather than the information need to apply the skills required understand the question and answer correctly. A child may be able to memorize various facts without being about to tell you why they are true.
So here' my question: Should standards be higher even if it means failing some kids?
I think so. A friend of mine once said "pressure creates diamonds" and I believe this analogy works in reference to education. We cannot expect children to excel at anything if they are not given the opportunity. It is wasting potential.
I believe that students should be divided according to the speed of their learning ability. If students can learn at a quick enough rate they should be allowed to skip grades however this is often seen as taboo because they don't want younger children to be placed with older children. I for example was far ahead of the children in most of my classes especially in elementary school but because I was often bullied in elementary school by the other kids and had no interest in playing with the little brutes I was told that I was not allowed to skip a grade because I needed to learn to associate with my own age group.
So here' my question: Should standards be higher even if it means failing some kids?
I think so. A friend of mine once said "pressure creates diamonds" and I believe this analogy works in reference to education. We cannot expect children to excel at anything if they are not given the opportunity. It is wasting potential.
I believe that students should be divided according to the speed of their learning ability. If students can learn at a quick enough rate they should be allowed to skip grades however this is often seen as taboo because they don't want younger children to be placed with older children. I for example was far ahead of the children in most of my classes especially in elementary school but because I was often bullied in elementary school by the other kids and had no interest in playing with the little brutes I was told that I was not allowed to skip a grade because I needed to learn to associate with my own age group.
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Standardized testing is problematic in itself. There are far too many variables to take these types of evaluation seriously.
I support federal standards, but only if they are built to enhance the educational process. If we look at the top education systems, they operate by inspiring creativity and unique characteristics in every child. This happens to be the exact opposite of what we do here.
I support federal standards, but only if they are built to enhance the educational process. If we look at the top education systems, they operate by inspiring creativity and unique characteristics in every child. This happens to be the exact opposite of what we do here.
Would you have a problem with standardized tests if various learning styles were addressed?
If they were not used as a means for passing or failing levels. There is far too much emphasis on the idea that scores correlate with knowledge and understanding. They should be used as a minor tool for judging baseline direction, nothing more.
But how would they know how much the kid understands without testing them?
Through class workload and individual class testing. I'm only talking about standardized tests.
This is a tough question for me to answer since I definitely had difficulties in high school trying to meet the steep learning curve.
When I was growing up(gosh, I feel old), the Regents exam just became the standardized test necessary to graduate from high school. I ended up flunking a few times due to the very tough Math Regents. I eventually did pass with a decent score and graduated from high school but the road to success was daunting and had a ton of challenges.
I believe that the American Education system as a whole need to be changed accordingly to prepare the students for tests like the Regents. I don't believe in making things too hard but we don't want to make things too easy either. I believe that there needs to be some kind of balancing act done and that every school should be hold accountable for their students not making the grade.
When I was growing up(gosh, I feel old), the Regents exam just became the standardized test necessary to graduate from high school. I ended up flunking a few times due to the very tough Math Regents. I eventually did pass with a decent score and graduated from high school but the road to success was daunting and had a ton of challenges.
I believe that the American Education system as a whole need to be changed accordingly to prepare the students for tests like the Regents. I don't believe in making things too hard but we don't want to make things too easy either. I believe that there needs to be some kind of balancing act done and that every school should be hold accountable for their students not making the grade.
I wasn't good at math either (I'm still not) but I think the problem why you and many others had problems keeping up was because you didn't understand WHY those were the answers. You can be told that certain formulas make certain charts but in the end it doesn't matter if you don't understand why.
Standards can only be raised by teaching children "why" things are true otherwise you're just making them memorize more junk.
Standards can only be raised by teaching children "why" things are true otherwise you're just making them memorize more junk.
That was exactly the reason why I had a tough time in math.
I swear no one bothered to break down the formulas in such a way that makes sense to me logically. Math felt like more of a riddle than actual factual computations. It was almost like taking a foreign language for me. The professors always knew what they were talking about but they just simply didn't explain it well enough to help me and others like me learn it.
That is one aspect that needs to change.
I swear no one bothered to break down the formulas in such a way that makes sense to me logically. Math felt like more of a riddle than actual factual computations. It was almost like taking a foreign language for me. The professors always knew what they were talking about but they just simply didn't explain it well enough to help me and others like me learn it.
That is one aspect that needs to change.
I had exactly the same experience in elementary school 9_9
You may not be aware, but many US school systems have tried similar techniques that have been successful in other countries. The problems arise from the methods of funding (taxes) and levels of control from the federal, state and local governments. Some states give their school districts more direct control over scheduling, curricula and basic regulation of the several types of schools offered to its residents. This flexibility has worked pretty well in NYC, where thousands of underprivileged students get to attend charter schools at no cost to the student's family. These students net higher grades and are provided a better all around school experience. The downfall is that these have limited slots and get filled quickly, leaving many others to fend for themselves in standard public schools.
While in some countries it makes sense for the kids to attend school six days a week 52 weeks a year, not all school districts could pull this off without massive amounts of additional funding. We do have school systems that run year round, but cycle students through various partial year stages that do not coincide with traditional schedules, which end up causing issues at home for families who have kids attending on opposing plans.
While in some countries it makes sense for the kids to attend school six days a week 52 weeks a year, not all school districts could pull this off without massive amounts of additional funding. We do have school systems that run year round, but cycle students through various partial year stages that do not coincide with traditional schedules, which end up causing issues at home for families who have kids attending on opposing plans.
If they allow kids to skip grades wouldn't that actually save money though?
There are so few kids who can academically skip grades that it doesn't come out in the wash. If you have a significant percentage of kids who can skip grades, this would show a serious flaw in the services provided to the students, as it woul be indicative of a system that directly caters to one speed of learning.
How do you know there aren't a significant number of children who could skip grades? Maybe a majority are being held back like I was.
Offering advanced classes are a better option all around, so as not to move more introverted children (typically those who do skip grades) into classes with older students, thus causing social alienation. Part of the school experience is the actual experience of classroom interaction, which aids in the learning and information gathering/sharing processes.
Good idea.
I agree with the "skipping grades' thing.
My younger brother skipped a few grades.
My younger brother skipped a few grades.
I think you have a valid point.
I don't know that much about the No Child Left Behind policy or even the Common Core (we here in Indiana abandoned the practice just this year).
I don't know that much about the No Child Left Behind policy or even the Common Core (we here in Indiana abandoned the practice just this year).
The USA could start by being more like the countries doing a good job at it 
Here is the list from wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Educatio…
Here is the list from wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Educatio…Ok thanks.
I hated that act. It needs to be gone first before any revamps can be started.
Grade skipping needs to be allowed, but bullying needs to be addressed on top of this. Education Standards need to be raised, but there needs to be more focus on learning useful information rather then throwing random classes that are unnecessary into the mix. There is no need to try hard in schools as there is no standards outside of sports players being told "you need a C" which just teaches them to do the bare minimum in life and of course waste potential.
That being said, the states themselves need to enforce educational standards which is not always prevalent and instead often money is the excuse for lacking educational success from States who don't do well. California spends large amounts of money on education yet is not even close to being a decent state for education, Massachusetts meanwhile spends significantly less but is right now the top state in education with Maryland being 2nd once again spending significantly less then other states.
Personally, I feel the education system should be more like Japan where students learn from an early age, go to school 6 days a week, and must do entrance exams to get into High School. There would be more competition resulting in more need to actually try hard.
That being said, the states themselves need to enforce educational standards which is not always prevalent and instead often money is the excuse for lacking educational success from States who don't do well. California spends large amounts of money on education yet is not even close to being a decent state for education, Massachusetts meanwhile spends significantly less but is right now the top state in education with Maryland being 2nd once again spending significantly less then other states.
Personally, I feel the education system should be more like Japan where students learn from an early age, go to school 6 days a week, and must do entrance exams to get into High School. There would be more competition resulting in more need to actually try hard.
I agree about the sports thing.
Isn't Massachusetts significantly less populated than California?
The idea of competition is a little strange to me. So... I guess only the top scoring students are allowed into high school?
Isn't Massachusetts significantly less populated than California?
The idea of competition is a little strange to me. So... I guess only the top scoring students are allowed into high school?
It is less populated, but remember that more money is being thrown into the school system in California for over 20 years now and yet even with such a high population the results yielded all around have been very poor no matter even if we go by a city by city basis. Texas would probably be a better example in this case, Texas has very minimal education spending and ranks near last when compared to other states. Texas beats California even with this in mind.
How High School works in Japan is basically the same as College works for the U.S. with a slight twist to it. Entrance Exams are basically the
equivalent to taking a SAT or ACT but must be done for that specific school which may or may not have differing overall questions that must be answered or goals to be achieved and high schools have very limited spaces available and very small windows for getting in. To even be considered for a good high school then you have at bare minimum scores that are equivalent to a B in the U.S system and then if considered then you can continue on to an entrance exam which can be taking more then once(Most Students who reach entrance exams, even with the equivalent to a high school education in the U.S a.k.a Japanese Middle School education still will not generally pass the entrance exam the first time at the least). Now if someone does not have high grades, then there options for success become very limited and the only high schools that may be available to them are to say the least, not ones you ever want to go into and make it much harder to hold any weight in the eyes of employers.
How High School works in Japan is basically the same as College works for the U.S. with a slight twist to it. Entrance Exams are basically the
equivalent to taking a SAT or ACT but must be done for that specific school which may or may not have differing overall questions that must be answered or goals to be achieved and high schools have very limited spaces available and very small windows for getting in. To even be considered for a good high school then you have at bare minimum scores that are equivalent to a B in the U.S system and then if considered then you can continue on to an entrance exam which can be taking more then once(Most Students who reach entrance exams, even with the equivalent to a high school education in the U.S a.k.a Japanese Middle School education still will not generally pass the entrance exam the first time at the least). Now if someone does not have high grades, then there options for success become very limited and the only high schools that may be available to them are to say the least, not ones you ever want to go into and make it much harder to hold any weight in the eyes of employers.
I think I would need to see something like dollars spent per student.
Eh.. I can't say that competition sounds like such a good idea... I'd rather everyone get as much education as they want for free. I think employers should look at the age at which you graduated if people are allowed to skip grades instead of limiting people's access.
Eh.. I can't say that competition sounds like such a good idea... I'd rather everyone get as much education as they want for free. I think employers should look at the age at which you graduated if people are allowed to skip grades instead of limiting people's access.