The Nightmare of Our Current Educational System in America

According to the OECD's Program for International Student Assessment (PISA), based on comparisons with 30 nations around the world, 15-year-old American students are in the bottom half of reading literacy, the bottom third of scientific literacy, and the bottom fifth of mathematics and problem-solving literacy.

As an educator, I am appalled at the aforementioned statistics and what has happen within our educational system.  We, as Americans, have spent billions of dollars on efforts such as No Child Left Behind and Race to the Top, which have proven to be anything but successful.  We have experienced several decades of virtually no improvement or decline in student performance as measured by SAT scores.  The U.S. Department of Education has focused on the "inputs" of  education, such as better schools, better curriculum, and better teachers.  Overall, this focus on educational inputs have not accomplished the goal of raising student achievement, or providing them with the necessary skill-sets to compete in a global economy. 

What needs to been done to reform our educational system?  We need to change our focus from educational inputs to educational outcomes.  That is, student success.  No, I am not recommending that we adopt programs that ensure our students have a high self-esteem of themselves and everyone is given an "A."  No, we need to teach our students the specific study skills that they will need to succeed in life.  In other words, let's get back to teaching the basics, reading, writing, and arithmetic. 

Source: "Greatest Challenge Facing the United States in the Future"