Education

The Current means of teaching in the United States are old and outdated and must be changed if the American people hope to keep up with other countries by using programs like Khan University or other interactive programs.

http://www.usgovernmentspending.com/spending_chart_2001_2018USr_14s1li111lcn_20f

     In the United States, we have been hearing all about how we have been falling behind other countries in test scores and numbers of scientists and engineers, while our spending on schools over the last couple years has never been higher, according to the federal budget web site. In fact according to Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said we place 23^rd-24^th in most subjects in an interview with the New York Times in 2011. It also seems no matter how much more money we funnel towards our schools with our current system of teaching it makes little to no difference in the quality of education that our students receive and all the while creativity is squandered. Only by reimagining our education system and coming from a completely different angle can we help make the future of America a smarter bunch.

http://recoverynetworktoronto.files.wordpress.com/2012/03/ken-robinson-take-your-pills-and-focus-3.png

     No one tells it like it is quite like Ken Robinson in his TED talk video, he states School Kills Creativity. Not only does he think the way students are taught nowadays is inefficient financially but it also stifles creativity from the time children start school by teaching to be wrong is the worst think you can do. He argues that the entire public school system was developed for the jobs of the early 1900s by university professors of the same timeframe and has evolved to meet modern technology very poorly. He also states that with everyone receiving the same education there has been drastic “Academic Migration” so many jobs that used to not require a degree at all now require an Associates degree and jobs that used to require and Associates Degree now require a Bachelors. That would be great if everyone was cut out for higher education but let’s face it, I know some people that wouldn’t last a day in college and they are now stuck in a menial services job.

     One of the more promising ways of teaching I have heard of recently was developed by a man who makes YouTube videos. Salman Khan has developed a program that he calls Kahn Academy; it uses a more at home approach to teaching students and it has been very successful when implemented in 4 classrooms in the Los Altos School District. According to Kahn, by using the internet as a tool, teachers are able to spend more time one-on-one working with their students from about 5% to essentially 100% of class time. The teachers are also are able to easily track which students need help in specific subjects and areas. There are many other ways that we could change up our education system, this is only one example of something that has worked and I personally believe could be extremely helpful especially in math, science and history settings. Even though it is still not a perfect system it could potentially make children more interested in academics and help make sure that general education has little to no gaps with both talented and challenged students.

http://www.hewlett.org/newsroom/newsletter/can-deeper-learning-improve-american-competitiveness

     I know that not everyone is ready for a complete reformation of the education system but I know many people are sick and tired of not being first anymore, I know I am. We are the United States! Considered by many to be the greatest country in the world, why is it that our own Secretary of Education can say we are not even in the top 20 in the world in education? Education means so much more that status; it is the state of our future. History has shown time and again it is the smartest that survive.

    

    

    

1) http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/27/best-education-in-the-wor_n_2199795.html -- our education rankings

2) http://www.ted.com/talks/salman_khan_let_s_use_video_to_reinvent_education.html -- one solution

3) http://www.ted.com/playlists/24/re_imagining_school.html -- current education suffocates creativity

4) http://www.hewlett.org/newsroom/newsletter/can-deeper-learning-improve-american-competitiveness -- chart of our ranking on PISA tests and NYT

5) http://recoverynetworktoronto.files.wordpress.com/2012/03/ken-robinson-take-your-pills-and-focus-3.png -- Photo for Ken Robinson

6) http://www.usgovernmentspending.com/spending_chart_2001_2018USr_14s1li111lcn_20f -- federal budget web site