What is your opinion on the current state of American public education? Good? Bad? Sort of in-between?
Help me out here, is bragging about beating Mexico in the US's version of the OECD PISA report a good or bad thing?
Lefts have destroyed the former good public education, it must be everything changed and reformed, more conservative education and traditional values in schools are urgently needed.
It is in a bad state, but many communities care passionatly about their schools so there is hope. The thing is that in some places the education is great, in others it is not. The problem is the disparity between the good and the bad.
The future of schools in America are charter schools. I believe that all schools should be partially funded by the government - in other words there is still a tax for education. However, that money should NOT be given to bureaucrats. The money should be given to private schools, instead. Honestly, all of the regulations and standardized tests are TERRIBLE. This is coming from a senior in high school.
Variable. In some areas, it's excellent, in others, it's deplorable. I think the main thing we need to do is lower our standardized testing requirements. As my father-in-law used to say, you don't fatten up a cow by weighing it, you fatten it up by feeding it. Too much emphasis on testing isn't leaving enough time for education. I wish educators would realize that if you emphasize good teaching, you can ignore the B.S. of teaching to the test.
In general I find the American liberals on the net are erudite, intelligent and usually well read As opposed to many republicans who, for the most part, are so blinded by partisan hackery that they will only regurgitate sound bytes from Glen Beck or Rush. The level of science education among the right wing Americans is somewhere between appalling and ' head smacking" I am talking BASIC science here
Public education when provided by the government is inherently somewhat poor in quality. With that being said America's is particularly wretched I think that the poll results here speak to the support that America's public education system has from those who are required to pay for it. No system that is viable and not fail can be 'failing' but not be 'revivable'. For this reason, even though it's hard to have a lower view generally of the public education system than I do, I chose the more popular option.
i believe the discussion revolves around the state of public education in american Primary school. not on the educational knowledge Conservatives or liberals. why don't we stay on topic rather then try to flame someone. but yea educational levels is not the same for everyone in the U.S. depending where you live... it can either be very good or very bad.
Do you believe that this is the logical outcome of a party that is so religious? Or merely that the more open and empathetic liberal position attracts those who are more likely to have their world views challenged? I wouldn't describe most liberals I've encountered on the web as erudite, but certainly more so than most republicans and capital C conservatives.
However a good education system should prepare people for the world - and that includes being able to distinguish between a blog and a research article - this is something lacking in right wing America ergo I believe it comes down to education - possibly because more right wingers have been home schooled
There is nothing wrong with home schooling in general. Many people have gotten very good educations from home schooling. Is it unnatural to want your kids away from potentially dangerous situations like drugs and violence? Or what about poor class room conditions like over crowding, bad facilities, and worse teachers?
The Republicans are constantly making education cuts that are destroying the system. This can be fixed and reversed if we do it soon. Republicans don't want people to be capable of critical thinking, and education is an expensive but extremely necessary social service.
I don't have a source as I lost access to the information when I finished my degree since access to the information needed my university ID number and password. Private schools get to make up their own standards and the standards they usually make up for themselves are lower than the ones the various state governments set. This way they get to say, "Hey, look, X% of our students achieved an A!" and they're not lying, they did, with their standards. Wouldn't be an A in the public system though.
No, the US doesn't, though I have a theory about how to fix education and make it more efficient by removing the people who are obviously not going anywhere.
The votes are in (sort of), and in favor of "failing but revivable." Post any ideas you might have for a solution. (note that the opinions below the questions below are my own; I strongly encourage you to disagree - it makes life interesting!) Do you think there's a quick and easy way to fix the education crisis, or must the solution be slow and gradual to succeed? It has to be slow and gradual; few changes in history have occurred successfully if it is too quick. Should we follow other countries' lead, or must we Americans blaze another new path as we have for centuries? We should follow other nations - now is not a time for national pride; it's a time for national survival. Which is more useful to the nation as a whole, education or military power? Which is more influential in the short term? in the long run? In order to have the greatest influence, a country has to balance these. If everyone is a scientist, there will be giant antimatter weapons but no one willing (or qualified) to use them in the field. If everyone is a soldier, there will be a massive army with sticks for weapons. Is knowledge or a love of learning more important? "Education would be much more effective if its purpose was to ensure that by the time they leave school every boy and girl should know how much they do not know, and be imbued with a lifelong desire to know it." ~William Haley If one has great amounts of knowledge, but no desire to have more, they will quickly fall behind. If one has great desire to learn, but no existing knowledge, life will be very difficult for that person. Once again, a balance is the best idea. It would be good to have several opinions from public school teachers here - what do you think of the system? Do you agree with the general opinion of "failing but revivable"?
The United States does spend significantly more money per pupil on education than any other major developed nation. What it seems like you're talking about might work and it's one of the things that's been continually suggested which is to stop putting so much emphasis on 'disadvantaged' learners and focus more on gifted students. This is unlikely to happen because of the bureaucratic structure of both the education system and of government itself, and also because I dare say that a number of the more bleeding heart education activists and a good deal of parents of underperforming and disadvantaged kids have a high stake in ensuring that these kinds of programs continue. Another idea is to move compulsory school education so that those students who simply aren't doing anything and are unmotivated can be moved into an environment where they won't disrupt anyone else's education and waste teacher time, but this suggestion has never had that much popular backing.
Just your selection bias. You choose to read it that way. I'm a conservative, and I have a pretty good science background. I see just as much ignorance of BASIC science in the liberals here.
Really? What cuts? Our public education system is using more tax money (adjusted for inflation) per student than ever before.
