American Education, What Changed?

[psikeyhackr]

twould be MUCH BETTER to place kids in classes based upon EQUAL (relatively) intellectual and maturity levels

So don't these cheap computers provide the means for every kid to work at his own pace on every subject and not even do it at the same time as all o the other kids?

So the entire factory classroom paradigm is obsolete. The computers could monitor how far each kid has progressed and children could go to the teacher of their choice to get explanations when they get stuck. Pay teachers on the basis of how often kids come to them. They will avoid the teachers they don't like for whatever reason.

Separate the testing from the teachers. Give the kids a minimum schedule for passing tests but let them go as fast as they want.

Of course this creates a problem for everyone that knows the real purpose of the schools is psychological conditioning for the Authoritarian Factory.

psik

 

[kiwiman127]

* SAT score decline
For the decade ending in 1962 the mean scores on the Scholastic Aptitude Test varied within about a 10 point range (from 471 to 479 on the verbal section and from 490 to 502 on the math section).
In 1963 these scores commenced a decline which continued for almost 20 years:

                         YEAR    VERBAL       MATH 
                         1962:         478          502 
                         1981:         424          466 
                                        -11%         -7%

From 1981 to 1991 the scores leveled off, holding within a few points of 425 Verbal and 470 Math. Some of this decline can be attributed to the fact that a wider range of students now take the test than took it in the l960s, but the Wirtz Commission concluded that about half of the decline represents an actual decline among students with qualifications similar to those taking the test earlier.
However, in early 1990 a nation-wide scandal came to light: it was revealed that school administrators and teachers, in their attempts to improve their standing in the community and to earn for themselves and their schools "improved student achievement" bonuses offered by the state governments, had been cheating on the achievement tests by providing their students with the answers prior to testing. This makes highly suspect the
"leveling off" of the SAT score decline that was reported in the mid-1980s.

Schooling in America

1962 is about when the first generation of kids who grew up watching a lot of television would have been taking their SATs.

How would we ever get a good objective evaluation of what TV does to kids? I confess I could not imagine growing up without television. But I would often rather read science fiction books than watch TV. But the stuff called SF has become shallow crap.

Oh no, the claim Star Wars is science fiction.

Good SF made science more interesting than most science teachers. Science is usually taught as if it is some abstract never never land and you can't see how it connects to reality. More math than necessary that teachers seem to dish out to make it look difficult rather than interesting. Forget it being FUN!

This is the 1950s perspective:

All Day September, by Roger Kuykendall
The Project Gutenberg eBook of All Day September, by Roger Kuykendall.

The Year When Stardust Fell, by Raymond F. Jones
The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Year When Stardust Fell, by Raymond F. Jones.

Modern SF has more recent scientific ideas like Black Holes and pocket computers but they don't have characters that communicate a scientific perspective of reality they just use cool high tech tools. The well known book Neuromancer is a perfect example.

So called science fiction without SCIENCE.

psik

Regarding the SAT score comparisons between 1962 and 1981 may also have to do with the increases of the single parent and of the households where both parents work.
The lack of parenting has much to do with the decline of educational results in America.
Also, Avatar's response,,,"Too much government, no accountability" blah, blah",,,,,are his standard answers to everything. Man, the guy has his talking points,,,too few but he has his talking points.

 

[Cecilie1200]

I like your thoughts about nation, We should also think about out education and its issue, I watched video many times, The Budget for education should be increase and pay teachers more.

Yeah, let's just throw more money at the problem . . . because that always works SOOOO well.