Now, it didn't start out that way. I agreed with almost all of his thoughts. You really should click on the link above and read the entire article, it's not long. If you're short on time, here are some of his points:
"...it is worth noting that [Steve] Jobs got a great secondary education. The school he attended, Homestead High in Cupertino, Calif., was a first-rate public school that gave him a grounding in both the liberal arts and technology. It did the same for Steve Wozniak, the more technically oriented co-founder of Apple Computer, whom Jobs met at that same school. In 1972, the year Jobs graduated, California's public schools were the envy of the world. They were generally rated the finest in the country, well funded and well run, with excellent teachers. These schools were engines of social mobility that took people like Jobs and Wozniak and gave them an educational grounding that helped them rise."
"Today, California's public schools are a disaster, beset by dysfunction and disrepair. They rank at the bottom of the country, just as the U.S. now sits at the bottom of the industrialized world by most measures of educational achievement. The World Economic Forum ranks the U.S.'s educational system 26th in the world, well behind those of countries like Germany, Finland, the Netherlands, Denmark, Canada and Singapore. In science and math, we score even worse."
OK, no surprises here. I'm nodding in agreement. He continues: "....As American education has collapsed, the median wages of the American worker have stagnated, and social mobility—the beating heart of the American dream—has slowed to a standstill. Education is and always has been the fastest way up the socio economic ladder. And the payoff from a good education remains evident even in this weak recovery. The unemployment rate for college graduates is just 4%, but for high school dropouts it is 14%. If you drop out of high school—and the U.S. has a 25% dropout rate—you will have a depressed standard of living for the rest of your life." More nodding from me.
"The need for better education for most Americans has never been more urgent. While we have been sleeping, the rest of the world has been upgrading its skills. Countries in Europe and Asia have worked hard to increase their college-graduation rates, while the U.S.'s — once the world's highest — has flatlined. Other countries have focused on math and science, while in America degrees have proliferated in "fields" like sports exercise and leisure studies." More nodding, and groaning. The groaning is because I watched the Republican debate Wed. night and one of the two things Rick Perry could remember he would do away with as soon as he became president is the Dept. of Education. That'll sure help us catch up with the rest of the world!
Zakaria goes on to say we need to work harder, like they do in South Korea's schools and get better teachers, as in Finland. "Finland has great teachers, who are paid well and treated with the same professional respect that is accorded to doctors and lawyers. They are found and developed through an extremely competitive and rigorous process. All teachers are required to have master's degrees, and only 1 in 10 applicants is accepted to the country's teacher-training programs. The contrast with the U.S. is stark. Half of America's teachers graduated in the bottom third of their college class."
I like that part about being paid and treated well. My head is now bouncing like one of those bobble-head dolls on a dashboard. And then, my head explodes!
"There are many more ideas, many of them worthwhile and worth trying, but you can get lost in the details of the education debate. These two seem simple—work more and get better teachers. Yet implementing them is anything but simple. They bump up against an education system that is deeply resistant to change and teachers' unions that jealously guard their prerogatives. All the specific measures that would allow students to work more and good teachers to be identified and rewarded— more days, longer hours, merit pay—are mostly opposed by the teachers' unions and other guardians of the status quo." [Emphasis mine.]
You almost got it, Fareed, but you bought into the anti-teacher, anti-union BS being spouted by the education "reformers." I've never met a group of people who so desperately want to change the educational system as do teachers. Have a look. Teachers don't control the system! And I will not apologize for my union's position that adding hours, days or weeks to my work load should mean an increase in compensation.
So I reached for my keyboard. And then I stopped. I knew there would be an inservice teacher somewhere in America who would respond. This week's issue of Time proved me correct. Here's the letter that Laurie Floyd of Howell, NJ sent in response to Zakaria's piece. (Note: If you are unfamiliar with the Khan videos she mentions, please read the Zakaria piece.)
"Perhaps I shouldn't have read Zakaria's article after spending the last hour of my 10-hour teaching day looking for a copier that worked and then hand-stapling over 100 tests. I was probably a bit cranky to start. Then again, maybe I am a little tired of people who have never taught a roomful of 34 high school students telling me I am doing it wrong. I too love the Khan Academy model, but how would I get all my students to watch the Khan videos at home, on their own time, when many do not have a working computer and some do little, if any, homework?" (And, by the way, I do not teach at an inner-city or rural school; I teach in a wealthy suburb.) Instead of blaming us teachers, ask us what would actually improve education. Here's my answer: 1) Deal with childhood poverty, 2) hold students partly responsible for their education so they meet us at least halfway, and 3) give teachers more time to prepare and receive professional development. A working copier would help too."
I couldn't have said it better.
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