Why American children are falling behind

[Big_D]

Anyone knows that the children in this nation are far behind our European counterparts, but who is to blame. I know that I am not the first to say this but the teachers and their unions are to blame. Now, I'm aware that the students need to take accountability for their own success but I am sure anyone reading this can thing of a teacher in their past that made such an impression on them that when they took their class they gave 100%. Also, I know that a lot of teachers do not get paid well but I doubt simply increasing their pay will automatically force them to do a better job and the statistics below will show that a higher turnover is needed to ensure better grades.

"The research shows that kids who have two, three, four strong teachers in a row will eventually excel, no matter what their background, while kids who have even two weak teachers in a row will never recover," says Kati Haycock of the Education Trust and coauthor of the 2006 study

Why We Must Fire Bad Teachers - Newsweek.com

When I was in high school, one of my teacher admitted to making $70,000 and he showed us a movie for the entire duration of the class at LEAST once a week. I am not exaggerating. He would show us a movie every Friday and then it was not unusual for him to show us another one or two time more throughout the week. What is sad, is that he was not the only one. I can think of numerous teachers at my high school that show us movies, give us busy work, tell us to read out of our text books, and flat out not teach. As a freshman, one teacher did such a crummy job that in one quarter, the class average was a 64% and at my school a 60% was the absolute lowest a student could obtain and still pass. Another student and I had an A in that quarter so I would like to know how many people failed to bring the class average so far down. This teacher was a really nice guy but it is completely absurd that someone can do so poorly and still keep their job. What is even more pathetic is that my high school is continually ranked one of the top 1,000 in the nation. If my high school was one of the best in the nation, I would really hate to see what is happening at the rest of them.

Here is a couple quotes from two newsweek articles about the subject:

An obvious example: the teachers' unions have fought for protections in contracts and in state laws that make it virtually impossible to get bad teachers out of the classroom. On average it takes two years, $200,000 and 15 percent of the principal's time to get one bad teacher out of the classroom. As a result, principals don't even try.

Are Teachers' Unions the Problem or the Solution? - Newsweek.com

In New York City in 2008, three out of 30,000 tenured teachers were dismissed for cause. The statistics are just as eye-popping in other cities. The percentage of teachers dismissed for poor performance in Chicago between 2005 and 2008 (the most recent figures available) was 0.1 percent. In Akron, Ohio, zero percent. In Toledo, 0.01 percent. In Denver, zero percent. In no other socially significant profession are the workers so insulated from accountability.

Why We Must Fire Bad Teachers - Newsweek.com

The Indianapolis Star reported how Lawrence Township schools had quietly laid off—with generous cash settlements and secrecy agreements—a teacher accused of sexually assaulting a student; another accused of touching students and taking photos of female students; another accused of kissing a high-school student; and a fourth with a 20-year history of complaints about injuring and harassing students, including a 1992 rape allegation. At the time the story ran last summer, all four teachers still held active teaching licenses.

Why We Must Fire Bad Teachers - Newsweek.com

 

[thomas78]

This comes as a shock to me because I'd think US children were one of the brightest groups internationally (I'm not American).

 

[California Girl]

This comes as a shock to me because I'd think US children were one of the brightest groups internationally (I'm not American).

Only those who don't attend public schools.

 

[chanel]

28 percent of my district is classified special ed. Do foreign countries include the handicapped in their stats? Just sayin...

 

[Big_D]

In hindsight, I shouldn't have named this thread what I did. I do not mean to imply that the teachers are the only problem with US schools.

 

[random3434]

28 percent of my district is classified special ed. Do foreign countries include the handicapped in their stats? Just sayin...

everything is your fault chanel, didn't you know?

 

[blu]

I think parent's are the biggest problem. between libraries and the internet there is nothing stopping you from teaching your kid as much as you want. my stepson is in 2nd grade now but was rated at reading above a 5th grade level and will soon be starting algebra with me. we do an hour every night beyond his homework in math, reading, and science. he also reads on his own everyday. don't blame the schools, blame the parents.

 

[Dr Grump]

28 percent of my district is classified special ed. Do foreign countries include the handicapped in their stats? Just sayin...

???? How do they define handicapped? 28 percent of the district? Does America have special districts where handicapped kids go? That seems unusually high......

 

[Mr. H.]

I think parent's are the biggest problem. between libraries and the internet there is nothing stopping you from teaching your kid as much as you want. my stepson is in 2nd grade now but was rated at reading above a 5th grade level and will soon be starting algebra with me. we do an hour every night beyond his homework in math, reading, and science. he also reads on his own everyday. don't blame the schools, blame the parents.

Roger that.

 

[antagon]

This comes as a shock to me because I'd think US children were one of the brightest groups internationally (I'm not American).

Only those who don't attend public schools.

damn.

 

[xsited1]

Why American children are falling behind

Just remove minority students from the overall statistics and America is #1.

 

[antagon]

Why American children are falling behind

Just remove minority students from the overall statistics and America is #1.

too many stupid, delinquent whities out there. you'd be disappointed.

 

[xsited1]

Why American children are falling behind

Just remove minority students from the overall statistics and America is #1.

too many stupid, delinquent whities out there. you'd be disappointed.

Sorry, but you'd be wrong. Check out scores by race:

National Statistics on Education and Equity Issues, By Race and Ethnicity
Fast Facts

In Little Rock, there are racist blacks running the school system. They even admit it. All the good teachers have either left the city or teach in private schools. Even blacks who want a good education send their kids to private schools. (I know plenty.)

Most European countries are much more homogeneous race-wise than the US.

 

[Annie]

This comes as a shock to me because I'd think US children were one of the brightest groups internationally (I'm not American).

For a long time, American children have lagged, especially in math and science. Interestingly enough, up to recently those in universities manage to use creativity across disciplines to excel after graduation. Add to that those that never step inside a university and go onto join the entrepreneurial markets and succeed beyond all projections of teachers and parents.

That history is changing though. It's much easier to fail and survive.

 

[antagon]

Just remove minority students from the overall statistics and America is #1.

too many stupid, delinquent whities out there. you'd be disappointed.

Sorry, but you'd be wrong. Check out scores by race:

National Statistics on Education and Equity Issues, By Race and Ethnicity
Fast Facts

In Little Rock, there are racist blacks running the school system. They even admit it. All the good teachers have either left the city or teach in private schools. Even blacks who want a good education send their kids to private schools. (I know plenty.)

Most European countries are much more homogeneous race-wise than the US.

that white kids out-stat most minorities most of the time is different than presuming they'll propel the country to #1 without the 'burden' of minorities. that's the disappointing stretch youve made.

our history educating minorities plays a role you've also underestimated. europe's got a different history with some different results, despite your homogeneity..

article

 

[rdean]

It's not the teachers, it's the parents.

 

[PoliticalChic]

I think parent's are the biggest problem. between libraries and the internet there is nothing stopping you from teaching your kid as much as you want. my stepson is in 2nd grade now but was rated at reading above a 5th grade level and will soon be starting algebra with me. we do an hour every night beyond his homework in math, reading, and science. he also reads on his own everyday. don't blame the schools, blame the parents.

I can't begin to tell you how exciting it is to find parents working with their children, or step-children in this fashion!

Of course, all parents should act this way to the extent that they are able...

But you are overlooking a major difference between what you are doing, and what is going on in the school system: you are investing your child with a fact-based curriculum, and requiring the incorporation of that body of knowledge by a one-on-one testing process.

“Education Week” researchers found ‘evidence of a consistently positive relationship between achievement gains and the implementation of standards-based policies related to academic-content standards, aligned assessments, and accountability measures. These associations are more robust for achievement in mathematics, compared to reading.’ http://www.edweek.org/media/ew/qc/2006/MakingtheConnection.pdf

This is very different from the regimen practiced in the public schools, where self-esteem is considered more important than content-based curriculum.

"... beyond his homework in math, reading, and science."

In the 1992 Stevenson and Stigler, in “The Learning Gap: Why Our Schools Are Failing, And What We Can Learn From Japanese and Chinese Education,” wrote that Asian parents value effort, and expect their children to work hard, while American parents tend to value their children’s innate abilities, and excuse mediocre academic performance.
You, of course, fit this paradigm.

Many educators believe that external standards threaten to damage children’s fragile self-esteem. They excuse poor performance as the result of some psychic or emotional deficit in the learner, not as a consequence of low expectations, poor instruction, or laziness. A caring, but misguided view.

I don't know what your preparation is for teaching the youngster, but if it is not based on and ed-school background, consider this fact: these teacher-preparers do such a poor job that they are in large measure reponsible for the mess we have today.

a. “…nearly eight in ten teachers believe the public’s approach toward learning is ‘outdated and mistaken,’ and suggest a different path for American education. In sharp contrast to the concerns expressed by typical Americans…small percentages of education professors feel maintaining discipline and order in the classroom (37%), stressing grammar as well as correct spelling and punctuation (19%), and expecting students to be on time and polite (12%) are ‘absolutely essential’ qualities to impart to prospective teachers….Fifty-nine percent, for example, think academic sanctions such as the threat of flunking or being held back are not important to motivating kids to learn.” Professors of Education: It's How You Learn, Not What You Learn That's Most Important | Public Agenda

b. A majority of US teacher-prep programs shun scientific evidence regarding effective instructional method. Education Schools Project

c. Fewer than 15% of ed-school programs that train primary teachers provide even minimal exposure to the ‘science of reading’ and most encourage methods of reading instruction that are apt to leave millions of elementary pupils illiterate. http://www.nctq.org/nctq/images/nctq_reading_study_app.pdf

 

[California Girl]

I like that the teachers are blaming the parents. That's funny. Since I have no dog in the hunt, I say that there is blame for both.... probably more parental responsibility but there are a lot of crap teachers around. That's cuz of the fucking unions.

Easy Answer:

1. Make parents take responsibility for their kids.
2. Fire crap teachers and replace them with good teachers.

Job done.

 

[antagon]

I think parent's are the biggest problem. between libraries and the internet there is nothing stopping you from teaching your kid as much as you want. my stepson is in 2nd grade now but was rated at reading above a 5th grade level and will soon be starting algebra with me. we do an hour every night beyond his homework in math, reading, and science. he also reads on his own everyday. don't blame the schools, blame the parents.

i think everyone but the education system can take this argument. at some point they need to compensate for factors which prevent basic attainment, even to an extent, the parents.

they are responsible for results. in the last 40yrs the education system has worked out ways to accommodate all kinds of bullshit, but has made no inroads on the real issues of discipline and purpose, without which, time and money spent educating is wasted.

 

[PoliticalChic]

Why American children are falling behind

Just remove minority students from the overall statistics and America is #1.

Sorry, my friend, while you and I are usually on the same page, consider the results obtained by KIPP schools or the Pacific Rim Academy, or the Harlem Success Academy, and many similar private and/or charter schools, all of which can be found on Google, and are successful with mainly minority students.


No, the answer is that they have largely jettisoned the progressive approach.