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Recently I ran into the following videos [url=http://www.ted.com/talks/ken_robinson_says_schools_kill_creativity.html]
[url=http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/sir_ken_robinson_bring_on_the_revolution.html]
I agree with the points made but wonder how one would go about revolutionizing the current system of education, please share your thoughts.
- 23 Replies
i think it would also make finding a job in times of economic downfall,recession, or depression a nightmare. if you are specifically trained for one field and there are no open jobs in that field, what do you do for work? a minimum wage job? well i know you got to do what you got to do, but especially if you have a college degree i doubt that would support your former needs.
think it would also make finding a job in times of economic downfall,recession, or depression a nightmare
Our current economy is basically trust. It's backed by nothing but you believing the money you have is what it's worth and what you pay for things is what they are worth. If you invest in a company you trust their stock is worth what you paid and you will gain money on it. When you lose trust that's when we get recessions and depressions. To fix this we just have to back our currency by something so people know that their money is worth what it says it is. Also we stop using the stock market to dictate our economic standing. The stock market just shows how much trust people have inside those companies not how well they are doing. By fixing these things we would not have to worry about losing jobs and continue to grow.
Here we go:
Firstly, our education system (in the US) is far behind the curve as far as the quality and quantity of subjects covered by primary education. As a result of our excessive political correctness and the 'no child left behind' philosophy the overall quality of education has greatly decreased.
I propose that we ramp up the quality and quantity of basic studies and drastically increase the amount covered in the 1st through 7th grades. By 7th grade our students should have a firm grasp on algebra, english, history, sciences, and social studies. At this time we would begin to prepare our youth for a career and/or collegiate education by showing them the multitude career options, projected career growth, education requirements, and salary expectations.
From this point onward we should be offering multitude quality courses to prepare students for the general avenue(s) they wish to take and continue increasing their knowledge base in basic studies.
In order to accommodate those that are unable to keep up with the rigorous demands of a more in depth education system we will have specific and well staffed special education services to focus directly on those with learning difficulties to help them get the most from our education system.
In order to pay for the increased cost for this I propose the decriminalization of marijuana. This act alone will free up nearly 3 billion dollars of federal funds and nearly 6 billion spread through the states which can be earmarked to hire more teachers, increase their benefits and pay to attract the highest quality educators, build the necessary schools and expansions to current ones to house these projects. (If anyone has any debate to this please read the thread regarding the Legalization of Marijuana in the WERP forum, I put forth my fiscal and legal case for it's decriminalization very clearly there and don't wish to have to repeat it here.)
The problem that I see with our education system is that it is grossly understaffed and underfunded, and our educators are not receiving the pay and benefits commensurate to their importance in our society. Until we do this we will continue to fall further and further behind the rest of the advanced world nations in terms of education.
By 7th grade our students should have a firm grasp on algebra, english, history, sciences, and social studies
You honestly think children in middle school are capable of understanding algebra at that level? The rest are built up, as the original system has planned out. Everything is a step up and is significantly more challenging than another grade. Cramming too much into a year's worth of curriculum is NOT what we should be doing. There are reasons why we have advanced classes for the select few that have proven themselves to be in the higher-tier of students. They are already apathetic enough to our current level of education. You think heavier amounts of studies will solve this?
You honestly think children in middle school are capable of understanding algebra at that level?
With our current system? It's rare, but I know many 13-14 year olds who have a solid grasp on basic algebra. However if we increase the quality of the educational content as well as that of our educators I think that it could become quite commonplace for early teens to have a solid grasp of mathematics.
The rest are built up, as the original system has planned out. Everything is a step up and is significantly more challenging than another grade.
While this is true, each step has gotten progressively easier over the years. If you compare the content of 7th grade classes today to those of 20 or even 30 years ago you will find that what you are learning today in 11th or 12th grade was what they were teaching in 6th and 7th grade in the 1970s and 1980s. Also, look at the content taught in the Japanese, British, French, and German schools as compared to American schools. Nearly all of our students are
several grades behind in comparison.
They are already apathetic enough to our current level of education. You think heavier amounts of studies will solve this?
It's not only heavier amounts of studies. We must increase the quality of our educators, reduce the student/teacher ratio, and the quality of the content being taught. This doesn't create heavier amounts of studies, only better quality of education which reduces the time spent on each topic and increases the retention of the students which reduces the amount of remedial work done at the beginning of each school year.
I don't think heavier amounts of studies are needed, just more complex. The races that you added as an example are because of traditions and cultures. The Japanese, for instance, has had a history of honor and pride towards their families and places their names above all else, thus the high discipline of their students. They have a higher quantity of schools to attend, not to mention longer, but that is ridiculous. We value the quality of our kids' educations, but we do not need to take their free time and lives away to do that. The key is parental power and influence.
In my county, in NC we have the option of sending our children, starting in middle school to satellite school called magnates. These magnates are all different with different specialties and accomplish most of what you're suggesting, MrWalker. I'll be happy to provide you with links, just ask me on my messenger.
Of course, as Frank has stated the magnate schools are for the advanced learners.
Just one more thing, the more advanced the student is the quicker they finish school and that's been an option since at least the '70's.
I only see one problem with today's economic situation and your suggestion if decrimializing marijuana. Just in my state it took us about 5 months to recieve our state income tax refunds because of the lack of state funds in the budget. It would be too tempting for states to abuse the capital gains of this proposal just like they have for our state lottery, that was to go directly to schools and salaries.
We even considered a toll fee on both I40 and I77 but the voters said no for the same reason.
NC has seen 10-15 years of fraudulent mismanagement of our states budget in several departments so until we can weed out the crooks I think the education system should stay the same.
Unfortunately what this boils down to is more parental volunteerism and other types of free labor and generous gifts for band uniforms, etc.
Sorry, I just thought of something else. My cousin began their own afterschool program that was truly a labor of love and devotion since they kept it up for more than 10 years. Of course it helped that they lived across the street from the high school.
Many of these mom 'n pop afterschool programs are popping up in my area because of the students who aren't advanced learners and need tutoring but can't afford to hire out. Just some food for thought...
They have a higher quantity of schools to attend, not to mention longer, but that is ridiculous. We value the quality of our kids' educations, but we do not need to take their free time and lives away to do that. The key is parental power and influence.
And why shouldn't Americans have higher quality of schools? And the Japanese don't go to school much longer, they just don't have all of their time off in one block, which is proven to increase retention, thus increasing the amount of knowledge gained and increasing the quality of education. A system like this would drastically increase the retention, test scores, and overall quality of education. How is that ridiculous?
I think it's ridiculous that we don't offer our children the highest quality education possible. Oh, and parental influence has NO bearing on education content and quality, unless you are referring to voters electing school board officials that promote funding cuts, teacher layoffs, and inaccurate information in our textbooks.
the magnate schools are for the advanced learners.
Just one more thing, the more advanced the student is the quicker they finish school and that's been an option since at least the '70's.
Yes, magnate schools have been an option for some time now for the advanced placement students. However I firmly believe that if we reduce the length of vacation by splitting it up throughout the year, increase the quality of our educators and the syllabus used in each class we can get many students to 'advanced learner' status through effort and quality education.
Just in my state it took us about 5 months to recieve our state income tax refunds because of the lack of state funds in the budget. It would be too tempting for states to abuse the capital gains of this proposal just like they have for our state lottery
Obviously this is an issue that would have to be addressed. I would think that a congressional bill ratified by the senate and the president which would provide a specific timeline for these funds to be applied as well as stiff and swift punishment for bureaucrats impeding this process would motivate our representatives as well as ease the public's mind in regards to proper application of these funds. Perhaps a specific section of the GAO could be instituted to specifically monitor and enforce the educational budget, both at the federal and state levels, could eliminate this type of mismanagement.
Many of these mom 'n pop afterschool programs are popping up in my area because of the students who aren't advanced learners and need tutoring but can't afford to hire out.
I think these are fantastic thing, and I like that parents are taking an active interest in the quality of the education of our youth. However I don't feel that they should be necessary. I think that it is the government's job to ensure that our citizens are offered the highest quality education in the safest, most productive environment possible. It shocks and disgusts me that the leader of the free world and the most powerful democratic nation in the world allows students to graduate from high school that read at a 5th grade level or don't fully understand the multiplication tables. Yet this IS happening in America and we need to make steps to rectify this or our society is in for a very dismal future.
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