Education

I've seen several commercials lately that say the US is ranked (insert number here) when compared to other countries, especially in the areas of Science and Math.  While I agree something needs to be done, I think many people are going about it in the wrong way. 

1.  We need to create better teachers.  I partly agree with this, but not 100%.  Yes, there are crappy teachers who don't like their job and literally teach nothing in their class.  Students who are under-achievers usually love these teachers because they aren't held accountable in their class and they can be lazy and do whatever they want. Students who want to learn and be better hate these teachers because they realize they are being cheated (ask me how I know this...).   Unfortunately, school systems cannot get rid of these teachers because they are on "tenure".  Education is one of the only businesses I know that cannot fire employees for not doing their job. 

There are AWESOME teachers out there.  Teachers who really care about their students, and who really love their job.  It is evident to everyone who sees them teach that they have a passion for it.  

2.  We need to create harder/more challenging curriculums.  I'm not going to speak for other states (because I don't know what their curriculum is), but I don't think this is a valid argument.  Each student learns differently and to try to hold every 13 year old to the exact same standard is absurd.

3.  We need to incorporate more technology/more hands on/more fun in teaching.  Nope, sorry, if a kid doesn't want to learn, they don't want to learn.  Putting a computer in front of them won't make them magically want to learn, it will, however, make them see how far they can push the limits to use the technology incorrectly.  Previous generations learned without fancy computers. 

Not ONCE have I heard anything about parents holding their kids accountable.  No one does studies about involved parents vs uninvolved parents and how that effects students education.  
In my classroom experience, the students who continually did poorly were the same students whose parents never came to school events, never answered the phone when they saw the school's number pop up, who never emailed teachers, and who never checked their child's grades.  In the district I work in, we use "live" gradebooks that parents can access on-line 24 hours a day.  As soon as a teacher puts in grades, a parent can see them.  There is absoutely no excuse for not knowing what your child's grade is in my class.  
I don't buy the "But I'm a single parent" excuse.  Guess what, so was my mom.  My education was important to her, so she made it a priority.  She made sure she knew what my grades were and there were consequences when my grades weren't where she thought they should be.  I'm sure it wasn't easy for her and I'm sure there were things she would rather do than check on my grades, but it was important to her, and that taught me that education was important.  

There are TONS of parents who are involved in their kids lives, and those are the kids that do well.  Not saying that those kids don't miss deadlines everynow and then, don't fail a quiz every now and then, or forget to do homework sometimes, but on average, they do well.  These arents talk to teachers and ask about how their child is doing.  These parents know their child's teacher and check their grades on line. 

We can change everything we want in the classroom, but if parents don't find education important, chances are, students won't either.  We can have the best teachers, the most up-to-date technology, the most challenging curriculum, but until parents decide to step in and hold their children accountable, nothing is going to change.  No other country takes education for granted as much as the US does, and that's why they will always out rank us.