> Why is it that schools are failing us in dramatic ways?
Do you have some ideas as to the answer(s)?
Is it simply a matter of adopting a better educational approach that has been shown to work in another country, or would that also fail in the US?
Do you have some ideas as to the answer(s)?
Is it simply a matter of adopting a better educational approach that has been shown to work in another country, or would that also fail in the US?
They do not base changes to the curriculum or teaching methods on evidence. They could roll stuff out at a few schools, measure impact, and only expand the best programs, but instead they make changes based on what is fashionable that year, with predictably bad results.
School funding (at least in California) has been diverted somewhere else. I’m not sure where it goes exactly (education income taxes are supposedly earmarked at the state level, and the education fraction of our local property taxes must be spent outside our district — I’ve seen the district budget, and know how many houses it serves). Anyway, K-12 is embarrassingly underfunded, especially given how rich this state is. As a side effect, there isn’t funding for enrichment programs, and the school mostly just focuses on behavior problems instead of academics. Some of the kids that act out the most are clearly smart and bored.
If a private school did 35 kids in a class paying 35K (that's 1.2 million per class) they'd have teacher aids and amazing everything .
State budget act in CA is 23k per student. Wealthy areas for another 5-10k.
We have an amazing teacher fighting insane classroom ratios and requirements. At 1m a class it shouldn't be like that.
From my perspective, part of the issues is the turning of education into a political battleground. On top of that add the fact that K-12 schools in the US are run by thousands of unionized little kingdoms, each with their own agenda. And, of course, the almost total lack of meritocracy or evolutionary pressure in elevating capable teachers and administrators to what is, perhaps, the most important job in the nation.
Quick example: We live in a fairly nice area. When one of my kids was in middle school, the science teacher was this guy who was a Chiropractor when he wasn't at the school. Let's call him Dr. Z. Dr. Z got angry at kids when they asked questions. He asked them to write them down on a piece of paper and leave them on his desk and never to interrupt him. He would answer the questions next class, or never.
Dr. Z is a moron. I say "is" because he has been in this school district for some 30 years and is likely to milk it for all he can.
Dr. Z taught the kids that the moon does not spin on its axis...it is stationary...because we only see one side of it. Dr. Z, is a moron. I always talk to my kids about school, both to be informed and to undo the damage. After many examples of this I called a meeting with the Principal and Dr. Z and proceeded to read both of them the riot act. They did not give a shit. Not one bit. Neither one could be fired for delivering false and shit education. We were able to undo the damage at home. I am sure lots of families did not and had no clue what was going on.
This is a problem. One of many. Dr. Z, objectively speaking, should not be anywhere near kids or teaching science. Yet, the broken system we have protects him and will pay him a pension for life when he finally retires. And like him, many more.
There's a lot more to unwind there. I don't have the time to do it. The way we vote matters. The consequences of voting for the wrong people can be generational.