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The decline in public education in America began after World War I, and has continued ever since by design.
Progressives like John Dewey placed less emphasis on facts, knowledge, and scholarship, and believed that any child knowing more than another produces low self esteem in the less knowledgeable.
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Today's effort in the "dumbing down of America" is "Common Core;" a ruse that would have us believe that the goal is better education, but it is the same old philosophy of making sure that no child knows more than another, and that none know much of anything. Thus, they can be molded into perfect societal harmony, and easily controlled.
"The Progressives (aka Socialists) said they wanted to transform the society. What was their method? Working through education, they would socially engineer children to be simpler and more cooperative. Remarkably, they ended up keeping the poor in their place. Ignorance was the tool of choice.
Good stuff, but a general answer to the title question - the fact that the first two years of undergrad are now required to teach what you used to learn in high school.
Good stuff, but a general answer to the title question - the fact that the first two years of undergrad are now required to teach what you used to learn in high school.
This is literally true. A UW professor had an op-ed about this is the Seattle Times 10 years ago.
my sad observation, and one seconded by my colleagues in several other departments, is that competency in math and science has declined from roughly the late 1970s until now. Many of us have been forced to "dumb down" our classes, particularly those demanding mathematical skills.
Interestingly, the university gave virtually the same mathematics placement test to all freshmen from the mid-1980s until 2000; students' scores declined during this period, objectively confirming our subjective impressions.
The decline in public education in America began after World War I, and has continued ever since by design.
Progressives like John Dewey placed less emphasis on facts, knowledge, and scholarship, and believed that any child knowing more than another produces low self esteem in the less knowledgeable.
Today's effort in the "dumbing down of America" is "Common Core;" a ruse that would have us believe that the goal is better education, but it is the same old philosophy of making sure that no child knows more than another, and that none know much of anything. Thus, they can be molded into perfect societal harmony, and easily controlled.
"The Progressives (aka Socialists) said they wanted to transform the society. What was their method? Working through education, they would socially engineer children to be simpler and more cooperative. Remarkably, they ended up keeping the poor in their place. Ignorance was the tool of choice."
"One result of this K-12 conspiracy is that the least appropriate people, obsessed with the least helpful ideas, educationally speaking, migrated to education. These were people who valued education not for its own sake, but for social schemes they had in mind. Whether a kid can read, do arithmetic, or knows very much is not a primary concern for these people."
Academic performance is directly correlated with family income.
You started with a valid point of our declining educational performance, especially when compared to other rich nations, but then went off the rails with claims of social engineering. Having worked some in education in the past and having several relatives in the field I can tell you that the parents have a far greater impact on a child's performance than the school itself. Parent's that work long hours at one or more jobs have neither the time, and often not the inclination, to see that Suzy's homework is done, and likely doesn't have the skills to tutor through a math class. Neither does the parent have the money to hire a tutor to help Suzy through that math class. Plus, Suzy doesn't often get a good night's sleep or nutritious meals because fresh food is expensive and her parent(s) don't have time to cook. So now the school is not just in charge of educating Suzy, it has to be food provider and part time social worker.
The decline of two parent household, economic necessity of two income households, and economic decline of the middle and working class is the problem. But keep on seeing conspiracies and ignoring the real causes.
Academic performance is directly correlated with family income.
You started with a valid point of our declining educational performance, especially when compared to other rich nations, but then went off the rails with claims of social engineering. Having worked some in education in the past and having several relatives in the field I can tell you that the parents have a far greater impact on a child's performance than the school itself. Parent's that work long hours at one or more jobs have neither the time, and often not the inclination, to see that Suzy's homework is done, and likely doesn't have the skills to tutor through a math class. Neither does the parent have the money to hire a tutor to help Suzy through that math class. Plus, Suzy doesn't often get a good night's sleep or nutritious meals because fresh food is expensive and her parent(s) don't have time to cook. So now the school is not just in charge of educating Suzy, it has to be food provider and part time social worker.
The decline of two parent household, economic necessity of two income households, and economic decline of the middle and working class is the problem. But keep on seeing conspiracies and ignoring the real causes.
What ? Suzy belongs to several after school clubs and shouldn't even be given homework because there's just no time after school to do that homework.
What ? Suzy belongs to several after school clubs and shouldn't even be given homework because there's just no time after school to do that homework.
True for upper-middle class Suzy, but she'll just take some catch-up courses during her first Semester at Ohio State.
Poor Suzy is going home after school to take care of her younger siblings, or just "hang out."
60% of CC students need remedial classes and 20% of university students need remedial classes.
That should show you the state of K-12 education.
And it's not foreign students signing up for these remedial classes.
Many students of US public schools are NOT college ready.
60% of CC students need remedial classes and 20% of university students need remedial classes.
That should show you the state of K-12 education.
And it's not foreign students signing up for these remedial classes.
Many students of US public schools are NOT college ready.
Academic performance is directly correlated with family income.
You started with a valid point of our declining educational performance, especially when compared to other rich nations, but then went off the rails with claims of social engineering. Having worked some in education in the past and having several relatives in the field I can tell you that the parents have a far greater impact on a child's performance than the school itself. Parent's that work long hours at one or more jobs have neither the time, and often not the inclination, to see that Suzy's homework is done, and likely doesn't have the skills to tutor through a math class. Neither does the parent have the money to hire a tutor to help Suzy through that math class. Plus, Suzy doesn't often get a good night's sleep or nutritious meals because fresh food is expensive and her parent(s) don't have time to cook. So now the school is not just in charge of educating Suzy, it has to be food provider and part time social worker.
The decline of two parent household, economic necessity of two income households, and economic decline of the middle and working class is the problem. But keep on seeing conspiracies and ignoring the real causes.
I bet Suzy's parents watch all their favorite TV programs and don't miss an episode.
Suzy's parents don't prioritize their time and is the reason Suzy is lacking sleep and nutrition. Food isn't as expensive as one may believe if shopping the perimeter of stores only. The healthy stuff isn't on the processed foods aisles. Stay away from the bread and sugars and save money.
What is sad? Too many Suzies exist in American public schools through no fault of their own.
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