Unfortunately US Citizens continually fail to show geographical awareness, struggle with foreign languages, and seem to have scarce knowledge of international current events. It absolutely boggles my mind that we fail to see the importance of properly educating our children. U.S students, unsurprisingly rank lower than European students in math and science and we continuously put religion above human rights, especially on sexually charged issues such as gay rights, abortion, and obscenity. The U.S media encourages the dumbing down of our nation since both major news outlets fail to provide more than one single perspective.
Americans born after 1980 are lagging their peers in countries ranging from Australia to Estonia, according to a new report from researchers at the Educational Testing Service (ETS). The study looked at scores for literacy and numeracy from a test called the Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies, which tested the abilities of people in 22 countries.
The results are sobering, with dire implications for America. It hints that students may be falling behind not only in their early educational years but at the college level. Even though more Americans between the ages of 20 to 34 are achieving higher levels of education, they’re still falling behind their cohorts in other countries. So much so that an American with a 4 year degree was shown to be performing at the same level as high school students from other countries.
I resided in South Korea for two years and became absolutely fascinated with the pressure of education the country puts on their children. According to the PISA exams South Korea scored second in reading, fourth in math, and sixth in science. This is a HUGE jump from South Korea's not so distant past. After the Korean War in the 1950's only 22% of its population could read. In 1970, the per capita income was $200.00. They decided that the best way to pull South Korea out of the trenches of illiteracy and poverty was through education. SK completely reformed their school systems and committed to an equal-opportunity system promising to educate every child. They conduct a lottery system so that all kids, regardless of where they lived or how much money they had, got access to a great elementary education.
South Korean students study non-stop. A typical school day for a child was school from 8-4, home for a quick meal, then they would attend a hagwon (a private after school program) from 6-9, and then they would self study for two hours before going home to start their day all over again. Their only day off is Sunday. South Korea has very little resources outside of their people so performing well is the only way to succeed. It is an INTENSE childhood to have but it worked, they have become a powerhouse to be reckoned with in two generations.
In fact, they study more than kids from any other country in the world. In South Korea, education is very test-driven. There is a massive entrance exam to get into high school and college and the pressure to succeed on this test starts when kids are three or four-years-old. Many people may argue that South Korea’s schools are too intense, that the pressures on the kids are way too high—and that may be true. But their students are some of the best in the world, so despite our possible objections to their approach, there are some things we can learn from them.
2012 PISA MEAN SCORES
http://www.ncee.org/programs-affiliates/center-on-international-education-benchmarking/top-performing-countries/south-korea-overview/
I do not encourage the strict education cycle the South Korea has because it DOES create intense pressure on their students, however we need to find a happy medium so we are not looked at as a ignorant nation. If our government refuses to reform the education system (or you as a citizen fail to vote people into state/federal jobs who would fight for education reform), then it is up to the parents of our young children to fill in the gaps that the current education system has left out. A child who can speak two or three languages fluently will already be ahead of the learning curve and will have better opportunities in the future. So, what will you as an American citizen do? Continue to be lazy and assume your the best or look at other nations and see what we can do to correct and improve our own failings as a nation?
Please share, comment, and discuss.
Americans born after 1980 are lagging their peers in countries ranging from Australia to Estonia, according to a new report from researchers at the Educational Testing Service (ETS). The study looked at scores for literacy and numeracy from a test called the Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies, which tested the abilities of people in 22 countries.
The results are sobering, with dire implications for America. It hints that students may be falling behind not only in their early educational years but at the college level. Even though more Americans between the ages of 20 to 34 are achieving higher levels of education, they’re still falling behind their cohorts in other countries. So much so that an American with a 4 year degree was shown to be performing at the same level as high school students from other countries.
I resided in South Korea for two years and became absolutely fascinated with the pressure of education the country puts on their children. According to the PISA exams South Korea scored second in reading, fourth in math, and sixth in science. This is a HUGE jump from South Korea's not so distant past. After the Korean War in the 1950's only 22% of its population could read. In 1970, the per capita income was $200.00. They decided that the best way to pull South Korea out of the trenches of illiteracy and poverty was through education. SK completely reformed their school systems and committed to an equal-opportunity system promising to educate every child. They conduct a lottery system so that all kids, regardless of where they lived or how much money they had, got access to a great elementary education.
South Korean students study non-stop. A typical school day for a child was school from 8-4, home for a quick meal, then they would attend a hagwon (a private after school program) from 6-9, and then they would self study for two hours before going home to start their day all over again. Their only day off is Sunday. South Korea has very little resources outside of their people so performing well is the only way to succeed. It is an INTENSE childhood to have but it worked, they have become a powerhouse to be reckoned with in two generations.
In fact, they study more than kids from any other country in the world. In South Korea, education is very test-driven. There is a massive entrance exam to get into high school and college and the pressure to succeed on this test starts when kids are three or four-years-old. Many people may argue that South Korea’s schools are too intense, that the pressures on the kids are way too high—and that may be true. But their students are some of the best in the world, so despite our possible objections to their approach, there are some things we can learn from them.
2012 PISA MEAN SCORES
http://www.ncee.org/programs-affiliates/center-on-international-education-benchmarking/top-performing-countries/south-korea-overview/
I do not encourage the strict education cycle the South Korea has because it DOES create intense pressure on their students, however we need to find a happy medium so we are not looked at as a ignorant nation. If our government refuses to reform the education system (or you as a citizen fail to vote people into state/federal jobs who would fight for education reform), then it is up to the parents of our young children to fill in the gaps that the current education system has left out. A child who can speak two or three languages fluently will already be ahead of the learning curve and will have better opportunities in the future. So, what will you as an American citizen do? Continue to be lazy and assume your the best or look at other nations and see what we can do to correct and improve our own failings as a nation?
Please share, comment, and discuss.
I really enjoy reading these :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for the support G Hursin. :)
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