Essay 1 Final

 

Phillip Taenzler
Bowman
Rhet1302-018
28 September 2007

Education Reform

 

My twelve years in public school were probably somewhat different for me than for other people. Most importantly, I didn’t attend any US school until my eight grade year because I still lived in Germany until then. The German school system is rather different from the US system. I shall only describe the differences in secondary education in this essay as the differences are most prevalent here. The school I attended following elementary school (first through fourth grade) was reserved for the gifted, and the curriculum, which included everything from Latin/French to economics to ethics, reflected that(“Faecher”). To say the school was brutal is an understatement. Grades are all important as there are only a few tests throughout the year and only slightly more quizzes. Failing one of the core classes, German, foreign languages, math, history and science classes meant having to repeat the grade (“Faecher”). Furthermore, the score on the Abitur, or final exam, restricted the majors a student could choose. I moved to Texas close to the end of my seventh grade year, and middle and high school seemed very different to me. I loved the idea of being able to customize my schedule with advanced classes according to my interests and talents. I also loved the multitude of clubs and student organizations available. The academic differences were astounding however: Students were treated like little children instead of responsible young adults. I also noticed that despite the numerous motivational signs, the teachers didn’t seem to expect much from their students. The most surprising thing was the standardized tests however. I have never heard of or taken a multiple choice test before, so the concept was completely alien to me. Because of my time at different schools, I have gained some experience of what an effective education consist of, and shall therefore discuss possible ways to correct problems in the educational system and make it more efficient.

 

It is obvious that there are problems in the current educational system. The results of the Pisa study and the TIMSS, Trends in International Mathematics and Science Studies,  confirm this, although the overall performance of students has improved from 1999 to 2003 (Comparing NAEP, TIMSS, and PISA in Mathematics and Science). While only the results from the 2003 Pisa study were available, the results still speak for themselves: American schools are behind the rest of the developed world, with the exception of Greece, Italy, Mexico, Portugal and Turkey. Hungary and Poland achieved the same overall average result as the United States (Comparing NAEP, TIMSS, and PISA in Mathematics and Science). The PISA study report states something similar in that at the “other end of the scale, over a quarter of students are not proficient beyond Level 1 in Italy, Portugal and the United States, over a third in Greece and over half in Mexico and Turkey (Top-performer Finland Improves Further in PISA Survey as Gap Between Countries).” The problems I see with the educational system are the standardized tests, the low expectations teachers seem to have of their students, the infantile treatment of students, the projects, which depending on grade level generally involve more work from the parents than from the students themselves, and finally the ever popular “busy work”.

 

These problems need to be looked at individually to come up with possible solutions to each one. The biggest problem I see with public education are standardized tests, like the SAT, ACT and TAKS, to name just a few. These tests do not really measure a student’s ability to understand the subject, but rather their ability to guess and eliminate answers they deem false. The TAKS test is especially problematic as the school’s funding depends on the student’s overall achievement, which means most of the curriculum will be centered around that one test. I think the best solution to this would be to simply eliminate the TAKS test as “standardized tests may penalize students that tend to favor deeper approaches to problem solving (Carter).” Some students, who tend to over think problems will thus be penalized, which poses a problem since this test is a requirement for graduation at public schools in Texas. Furthermore, the funding a school receives should be based on student attendance instead of the school’s overall achievement on the TAKS.

 

The SAT and the ACT present a different problem however. Both tests are voluntary, so they do not take up time in the school’s curriculum. College admittance is heavily based on these tests however, which means a student may do horrible in school but get a good score on the SAT, and they will be admitted to college, whereas a student who does very well in school but not so well on the SAT might be rejected. While the option of retaking the test eliminates the “bad-day” factor, some people either can’t afford to take the test again or it simply will not reflect their true talents and abilities. In addition, it is not uncommon for students to cheat on these tests to improve their scores and thus their chances of attending their dream colleges. I think the best solution to this problem would not be to remove these tests, but to decrease their importance in college applications and consequently increase the importance of class rank, student activities and their application essay.

 

Thirdly, there is the issue of multiple choice tests in the school curriculum. I realize that multiple choice tests cannot be eliminated altogether, since teachers simply do not have the time to grade a hundred short answer tests or quizzes. Instead I think the best solution would be to have tests consisting of multiple choice questions and short answers, each weighing 50% of the total grade. For example, a test in a science class would consist of a set of multiple choice questions about the concept and two or three short answers about the application of the concept. Doing so would force students to not just study for a test, but to truly understand the subject, which would certainly be an advantage in their later lives.

 

The next two issues are the low expectations teachers seem to have of their students and the infantile treatments students receive. These two are related because teachers treat students like little children because they expect so little of them, or vice versa. This is a generalization of course; I have had quite a few teachers who pushed me to my limits, who were, unfortunately, in the minority. I strongly believe that students should be treated according to their age, which enables different teaching methods for each age group. This is not a new idea however. Jean-Jacques Rousseau proposed the idea that educators should rely on a child’s natural curiosity to teach them instead of trying to force their own ideas upon them (Rousseau 15-16). Doing so would make learning more natural to children. Implementing my and Rousseau’s ideas would ensure that students are treated by their teachers according to their age, which would likely improve their overall performance as well as their opinion of school: What they do will matter, what they say will be taken seriously, what they accomplish will make a difference.

 

The next problem is the projects students need to do. I agree that certain projects, like research papers are necessary, however these are significantly fewer than what I consider to be non-useful projects like group projects and presentations. Projects are supposed to give students an example of what work life consists of and build team working skills; however, they are more commonly perceived as a nuisance by the students, especially if a large portion of their grade depends on a single project, and are thusly not taken seriously. They do not enrich the classes in any useful way, except causing stress for the students. After all, what is more stressful, studying for a test or hectically trying to complete a project due in the near future? In my view, a vast reduction of the number of mandatory projects students must complete would leave time for either more instruction or relevant assignments, which would increase the efficiency of the school.

 

The final problem I see is probably the most annoying in the eyes of students: The so called “busy work”. Busy work is homework or in-class assignments that serve no pedagogic purpose other than being, supposedly, an easy A. Busy work takes time away from more important things, like actual classroom instruction. My suggestion to this would be to simply eliminate it altogether, and to give the teachers more freedom when it comes to deciding how and what to teach. Doing so should result in greater flexibility and overall higher achievement as the useless extra work will be eliminated and replaced by work important to the subject.   

 

I have made these suggestions based on my prior experience at the German school. I do not claim that this school system is inherently superior to the US system, but I do know that I personally enjoyed attending it more than the US high school, and some former classmates, who participated in an exchange program with a school from Oregon, agree with me. While the post secondary education system in the United States is most likely the best in the world, the secondary education system doesn’t prepare the students adequately for their time at college and work life, which is why reforms are necessary to prepare the next generation to succeed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Works Cited

 

Carter, Chris. The Case Against Standardized Tests. 10 September

            2007 <http://www.homestead.com/testcritic/files/Standardized_Tests.html>

 

Comparing NAEP, TIMSS, and PISA in Mathematics and Science. National Center for

Educational Statistics (NCES). 10 September 2007 <http://nces.ed.gov/TIMSS/pdf/naep_timss_pisa_comp.pdf>

 

Faecher. Gabelsberger-Gymnasium Mainburg. 10 September 2007

<http://www.gabelsberger-gymnasium.de/01aa01941e0eeaf07/index.html>

 

Rousseau, Jean-Jacques. Emile. 1792. Barnes & Noble Publishing Inc, 2005.

 

Top-performer Finland Improves Further in PISA Survey as Gap Between Countries

Widens. Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development. 6 December 2004 <http://www.oecd.org/document/28/0,2340,en_2649_201185_34010524_1_1_1_1,00.html>