Who Will Win The Education Race Essay

The American education system has many flaws. It is becoming more and more ineffective. To society, school is a competition especially in colleges and universities. People care so much about the grade they get that they forget the real reason why we even go to school; to learn. All everyone cares about is the grade that we receive. It has become so bad that we have lost sight in what’s really important; our growth as humans. We are taught that we need to get good grades in order to go to a good college, we are constantly judged on how well we do on tests using a grading, and most of the material being taught to us doesn’t even prepare us for what’s in store in the real world.

Unlike the Spartans simple lifestyle, Athens was a modern and open society. Athenian society was divided in three classes: citizens who could participate in politics, the aliens who could participate in the army and the slaves who had no political rights. Children stayed at home until they turned 7 after which time, they attended school to learn how to read and

Although often taken for granted, education is a privilege the U.S. offers to aid in achieving the “American Dream”, in which some define as opportunity and success. The U.S. proves being the “greatest country in the world” by leading other countries in military strength, political strength, plentiful resources and a powerful economy. In order to maintain a mighty military, the “Department of Defense deploys 1.8 million soldiers in active duty and owns 29,819,492 acres of land worldwide.” (military.com/military-trivia-facts.html) Economically, the U.S leads the United Nations in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) with an annual production of $16,768.1

The United States used to be ranked higher amongst other countries when came to education. People came from all over the world to study here. Unfortunately, for the past years it have been ranked in the twenties amongst other countries based on standardized testing. Now its time to revamp our education system, but the question is where we should we look. Based on student performance, the only countries that have proven that most components of their system works is Finland and Korea; Finland being ranked one and Korea ranked two. In order for the U.S. education system to move in a positive direction we must make significant changes in the structure of our system. First we need to raise the qualifications for becoming a teacher because in some states you don’t even have to attend and educational school; all you have to do is pass a test. Secondly, we need to expand the time of school so that teachers have more time to teach the kids and the students can have more interaction with the teachers. Although this is where we need to look, we don’t need to adopt their entire system.

For roughly thirty years, international test scores have shown that the United States is falling behind in the education rankings. Many Asian and European countries have much higher test scores. Professionals have argued for years that these rankings are “Threatening the country’s economic growth”(Carnoy). One test in one year compared to all these countries is very inaccurate and should not be taken so literal. Being that the US is so large, each state is in charge of their own education systems. Many different rules and the way exams are graded could be a variable that is being overlooked year after year. Another variable being overlooked is social class(Carnoy). In many countries, only those who come from middle to upper classes may go to school(Carnoy). Along with that, many there are various regulations that are much

The United States spends more money on education each year than any other country in the world, yet the education system is not thriving. Three decades ago, America was the leader in the quality of high school diplomas, yet, students in the U.S. rate 31st in math literacy and 23rd in science in comparison to the rest of the world. (Federal Reserve Bank of New York) The country that is famous for being the most advanced and innovative country in the world is yielding a generation that is falling behind in the global education race. Public K-12 education is worsening simultaneously with the growing competitiveness of universities. Part of the problem is that teachers are not being paid sufficiently, and many find themselves being laid off. College is getting exponentially more expensive each year. These are only a couple of the issues that the american education system faces today, but the list carries on.

America’s test scores are barely average compared to other countries. 470,000 15-year-old students took the OECD test in math, science, and language arts. The test was scored on a 1,000 point scale. The U.S average score in math was 487 meaning that 24 out of the 34 countries ranked higher. This includes Finland who scored a 541. In science, America scored an average of 502 which placed them at 17th. Once again Finland was a leader on the scoreboard. Finally, in language arts the U.S scored a 500 putting them in 14th place. Finland still ranked higher; they were in the ranks with places like Shanghai. “The brutal fact here is there are many countries that are far ahead of us… this should be a massive wake up call”, says U.S Education Secretary Arnie Duncan (Hechinger). So why is education so important?

Nowadays the United States is not known for their educational system. Countries like South Korea, Japan, and Singapore have surpassed the United States buy large margins, in terms of educational success. While other countries are constantly revolutionising their education system, the United States’ education system has not changed in decades, leaving the U.S. unsuccessful. The U.S. continues to fall behind these same countries that are thriving. Due to the fact that the U.S. education system not developing as time went on, leaving them now with a multitude of flaws. The gap between the educated and non-educated, along with the length of how long students are in elementary and high school, are two consequential problems in the United States’ educational system that need to be addressed.

America’s education system has recently been a concern for many people. A recent international test “shows the U.S. trailing behind educational powerhouses like Korea and Finland.” (The Atlantic) In addition, the U.S. was 26th out of the 34 countries who took the International Student Exam; considering the U.S. has the world’s largest economy, this rank is abysmal. If the U.S. wants to improve their education rankings, they are going to have to look at countries who are currently seeking success. Two of those countries, Finland and Korea, approach education quite differently than the U.S; nevertheless, their methods seem to be working for them.

America: the land of freedom and innovation. For upwards of two hundred years, America has impressed the world with the courage of her people, her ideas, her ingenuity, and her tenacity. Her very name is synonymous with the dream of freedom and the idea that one can make something of oneself regardless of beginning social status if only one works hard. America gives her working citizens, overall, an amazing quality of life compared to most of the world. However, she has her problems: political unrest, social justice issues, issues defining the Constitution, school shootings, police brutality, and many more concerning issues. Some purport that many of America's problems could be solved with education. However, that in and of itself is a problem. America's educational system is corrupt and not her own. It is an age

One of the main reasons schools claim to use standardized testing is to compare performance levels of different students in different locations around the nation, but this is an unreliable way to do so. According to many studies, such tests decrease student motivation and increase their stress and anxiety. Far too much emphasis is put into standardized tests to the point where teachers are teaching to the test rather than making sure real learning is taking place. Students aren’t learning everything that is part of their curriculum. Too much focus is directed to

The United States of America is the world most powerful country in the world, dominating the world’s economic and political system. Millions of foreign students come to America for higher education each year. Ironically enough, America public school system is not so glorious. Indeed, it is not effective where teachers and students lacked motivation and interaction to develop critical thinking and innovation. Michael Moore in the article “Idiot Nation” and John Taylor Gatto in “Against School” argued that the education system in the United States is deeply flawed.

What is it that’s making our country suffer from excelling in education? Very few would argue about the importance of our education system today. Issues such as lazy teachers, lack of parent involvement, and teaching useless information in class may hinder progress in today’s education system. An education plays a crucial role and is an essential tool, unfortunately, with all the jaded judgments; our students are not able to value their education. A proper education can open the doors to many opportunities that would have never been possible if it had not been for the knowledge and preparation that one received while in school. With the growing economy and desperate times, it is more important than ever for our country’s children to receive the proper education and training that is needed to allow them to acquire a good job and produce the revenue needed to live. Today's education system is flawed in many ways, and these flaws should be eliminated to ensure a good education for our future generation.

The U.S., supposed to be the best country in the world, is massively behind in education, and is continuing to fall behind. Schools and educators are not challenging students enough, which results in the students not being where they need to be educationally to succeed.

We have grown up in a culture that has told us that America is number one - that we are the best, the sole superpower, the leader who must take charge. However, America still lags behind in education, a crucial element of a successful nation. How can America lead the world when our youth are taught poorly? This problem is amplified in lower income areas and states where education standards are lackluster. Whether because of lack of interest caused by conformity, feeling of entrapment on the students’ parts or the government’s poor school management, the education system needs improvement.