So, basically, of the three "categories" of people, the group that is "right" is the one who "knows" what you say is "accurate." In regard to "know", would that be in the biblical sense of faith? You make many proclamations, but you offer no support - just opinion. So, in essence, your contention is that an intelligent person should simply take your side, believe your opinions and condemn the entire educational system as an absolute failure - with no real factual proof. By the way, your use of the word "screwel" would lead me to believe that most of your information may be obtained by listening to the Rush Limbaugh show - as that is the one place I have heard the term repeatedly used.
All of that said, I don't necessarily disagree with the entire premise. Our education system has plenty of problems, but it is far more complex than lazy, undereducated teachers purposely "dumbing down" the youth of America, letting them run wild, handing out "A's" to everyone - all the while just sitting back and waiting for that "Big", fat pension to start rolling in.
Are there bad teachers? You bet. I would never say there are not. But, the problem starts a lot farther up the food chain and gets help from so many other areas. Ultimately, politicians are "in charge" of education. From the national spotlight, to the state level, to local school boards - there are several critical tiers of decision making that are not always conducted by educational experts. When you put a noneducator in charge of education, is it really surprising that the end result is something less than perfection? When the state of Texas dismisses an educational leader because of his "promotion of evolution," that says a lot about our educational system. Our national values are a sad representation of our value in regard to education - as mentioned earlier, sports "success" is a far greater prize than educational success. The social culture our kids grow up in is sad and pathetic - as displayed by the popularity of "reality" shows on MTV, VH1, E, etc. There may well be "grade inflation" in schools, but there is the same thing going on in the american home - kids being rewarded for doing less and less. As a Biology teacher, I have been allowed to spend a TOTAL of about $500-1000 over the past 5 years (not per year, total) for classroom supplies. The demand for "better accountability" (something I am fine with) has also led to an environment in schools that values "learning" stuff, rather than improving skills.
Another issue, which others have mentioned at various points, is the overall purpose and measure of our educational system. It is irrelavent to compare our educational system with the educational systems of other countries when they are not set up with the same goal in mind. Our system gaurantees the exact same education to all citizens ( and noncitizens for that matter.) On a student for student basis, we spend a disproportionate amount of time, money and resources attempting to educate the 10-20% of the population with the lowest level of ability and the lowest chance of success. Which other country does that? Every core subject in our HS has specific sections of classes that are "Team Taught", with a resource teacher and regular content teacher, for students who are low achieving. Where are the classes with two teachers trying to provide more opporunity for the high achieving? I am not saying this is right or wrong, just saying that it is a regulation that our schools are FORCED to follow. It is not my decision as a teacher. The goal of American Education is to provide services to EVERYONE, and the more unlikely it is you will succeed, the more services you will be provided with. Not saying it is good or bad - just saying that is where we are at. So, if we are going to compare ourselves accurately, we should do so in the context of other systems trying to accomplish the same thing.
Ultimately, a sad truth is that a very large portion of our society does not adequately value education. As long as NASCAR, Cage Fighting, Poker, Reality TV, Hollywood, Psychics, Alternative Medicines, etc. etc. etc. are the things that are of greatest priority to our nation, it should be little surprise that our educational system struggles. If anything, it is probably somewhat amazing it works as well as it does.
Some good points. Too bad you had to fall into the educationalist cant of blaming it all on them dumby redneckers and their NASCAR in the end, but let's give 'er a look-see.
You are free to believe what you will. I listen to Limbaugh occasionally, and admit to heisting "screwel" from him. To you, that means I am a "dittohead" who every day, gets his every thought from Limbaugh...as I said, you are free to believe what ever erroneous thing you wish to. By the way, this blankent condemnation of Limbaugh as a source for data...can you name something he's said that he was wrong about?
No, I do not expect you to take my word for it that the screwels are um, screweled because I say so. Go find out for yourself. The insistence that I provide some source from within the schools agreeing that they suck, is pretty stupid.
Indeed, the problems with the screwels are more complex than that, and more complex than your belief that it's stoopid, ig'nant, racist, rednecks who spend all their time watching NASCAR...too.
However, were I to look at the two parties: educated professionals who claim that they know how to educate kids, compared to stoopid, ig'nant, racist rednecks who watch NASCAR, I'd at least HOPE that the former is better equipped to educate kids than the latter.
Turns out ... not so much, by the evidence.
In fact, it also turns out that the majority of teachers in the US come from the bottom quintile of all graduating college students. What does this mean? Well, I don't have any NEA-santioned studies to back it up, but what any reasonably intelligent person can derive from that news is that those who can go into other fields do so, and those who cannot say "well, I can always teach!"
And that's just what they do.
There has been, since the time of Dewey and his crowd in the 30s, a desire by socialists and communist to use the schools to inculcate young Americans in soclialism. That was put on ice in WWII and the early Cold War years until the mid 60s when socialists began filling the higher-level positions in state and federal education agencies and in the education colleges. Today, in many if not most teacher colleges, you have to pass a board exam that essentially identifies whether you think-left good enough to be a teacher. Again, you can believe this or not...it just is what it is, and even in those colleges where they don't have such a board, profs and administrators work hard to weed out anyone who doesn't toe the leftist line.
So while every teacher is not a bomb-throwing lefty, most lean left, and the majority HARD left. Of course you will now scream "how do you teach leftist calculus!!?? Huh!!??? HUUUUHHHH!!!!?" I expect that level of shrill, rearguard stupidity, so it's okay. You know that virtually across the board in every discipline BUT math, and yes, that includes the sciences, leftisim is taught as a matter of course.
And then you say: we cannot compare our schools to anything else! Well, that's handy. Yeah, why should we compare the product of our schools to that of other nations, the product of which our product has been competing for the past 20 years? We compare ourselves in every other way to other countries, but in this way, sure...we shouldn't.
That only makes sense. Next you'll admit that no, we shouldn't compare US child mortality rates to other countries, or poverty rates, or obesity rates, or...well, any of those favorites of the left that they (you) so love to point at and say "see how tuuuurrrriiibbbllle is America in comparison!?"
And as a union teacher of course you despise any sort of accountability. You think this beneath you. Besides, it's not your fault students don't learn anything in your class. It's the administration's, TVs, music, the kids, the parents...anyone, really...save you. Anyone in the private sector (outside other union jobs) who were to tell their boss, "I should not be held accountable for the results of my work!" would be instantly permitted to market their valuable skills elsewhere.
Not so in the schools, for some reason. There, in fact, the worse a teacher you are, the more you are protected. And then there's the "money issue." If you don't like the reasonably good pay and exorbitant bennies that come with the job, then YOU are free to market your skills elsewhere. America enjoys a 96%employment rate right now. There are employers desperately seeking your unique and extensive skills as someone who has a 4 yr bio degree and an additional 2 years of "education theory"! Surely they are beating down your door, even as we key!
Look, I've always said there are some damned good teachers out there, and I agree that many if not most kids come to school today prepared NOT to learn and that the administration of schools is primarily there for self-serving purposes and they don't give a damn if kids learn or not.
Good teachers who really want to teach don't have an easy job, and your presence here and your words suggest you may be one of those rarest of teachers. The reality is, and denying this is something you will do--you feel you have to to be loyal--most teachers don't know their subject, can't teach, don't like kids anyway, and are in teaching because they can't do anything else.
If you've been a teacher longer than a year or so, you know this. You've seen the dance of lemons, and you deal with other teachers who are like this every day.
But you also belong to and support a union that protects such teachers come hell or high water. That's why where I live it costs $250k to get rid of teachers who are, everyone agrees (save the union) bad teachers. So nobody bothers, do they?
When an "education" system has become an employment system for a self-serving union and its members, it's no longer doing what it is supposed to do, and no number of links--LIIIIINNKKKKKSSSSSS!!!!--posted by me on an internet forum is going to chage that....and you know it as well as I.
Tokie
