Lack of creativity, idealism, structured classes, motivated students, parents, and teachers, and stuck in 20th century thinking=The U.S. educational structure. How do reform our education system and win back the hearts and minds of a whole generation? Since I have been working in the DC school system over the last couple of months I have seen up close and personal the failures of our current education system. A system in which was created for 20th Century thinking that has fell behind miserably to the rest of the world and to our current globalized structure. We all know there are hundreds, if not thousands, of crumbling schools with lack of infrastructure, teaching materials, qualified teachers, and a myriad of other adversities, however this is not the only issue with our current education system.
The thinking in which our school systems across the nation operate are sorely misplaced and perpetuating the problem of creating a future of young people who will be ill prepared for the challenges of the future. Firstly, we have created a student vs. student education system in which every student is for him or herself. The best letter grade wins--no matter how the student got to that point! If you can't keep up, then too bad, its a dog eat dog world. Sure, this way of thinking works in our military vs. an enemy or a political campaign, but it should not be the type of thinking we instill in our children.
Our school system should be functioning in a manner that every student is given an equal opportunity to learn in first-rate classrooms, with caring adults, who try to pull the best ideals out of every student, not just a select few. Students should be challenged to work together in teams, solving problems, creating solutions, and thinking outside of the box. They should be experimenting, getting hands-on learning from professionals across many career fields from science to theater to government.
Our young people deserve an education system that is working for them, not against them. A system that is fighting to raise standards, while simultaneously challenging parents to be actively involved and engaged in their child's education. Our country's future depends on the success or failure of our education system and how our young people are brought up.
Secondly, we cannot expect our children to learn when their school looks like a prison. When a school is mostly white walls, with very little artwork or positive words, without technological advances, or a clean and well-stocked library--we cannot expect our children to WANT to learn. Schools should be breeding grounds for our young peoples ideals, beliefs, culture, and should motivate them to excel to their highest achievements. Learning should not be thought of as a thing for only "nerds", learning is the foundation of civilization as we know it. When students are in a building that resembles the hope and prosperity in which we want to instill in them, we can then challenge them to be successful, to work hard, never give up, and live life to the fullest.
This brings me to a third vital point to re-invigorating our education system--creating a challenging curriculum that is based on a strong core philosophical belief that in order to learn, students must be given the best educational materials, great well-trained and excited teachers, and lessons that tie real-world experiences and learning into their everyday lives. Regardless of what we think--students need to know that what they are learning will benefit them someway or somehow down the road. That they are being challenged, not just because its their teachers job, but because it will better their future. We must be able to tie all of these things together to create a new thinking in which our children are taught and how they learn. Setting tough standards and living up to those standards is vital to the success of a new 21st century education system.
We cannot fail our young people, the stakes are too high and time is running out. We need to promote cooperation, teamwork, creativity, culture, idealism, and remind all Americans that for our nation to stay relevant in the 21st century--starts right in our schools! We have to win back the hearts and minds of our students--it can be done and most importantly it must be done.
Peace,
J. Murphy
Let us think of education as the means of developing our greatest abilities, because in each of us there is a private hope and dream which, fulfilled, can be translated into benefit for everyone and greater strength for our nation.
-President John F. Kennedy
Do not train a child to learn by force or harshness; but direct them to it by what amuses their minds, so that you may be better able to discover with accuracy the peculiar bent of the genius of each.
-Plato
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