The rant of a concerned parent, American education system is topsy turvy and sgnificantly Hypocritical

Many years ago (probably 16 or 17 ) during a parent  teacher meeting in  richardson  high school  near Dallas TX  where my daughter graduated from. I heard  a dad  becoming all emotional and  criticising  the  education  our kids are getting from  the school.
As a parent coming from India I did not have a good understanding of the education system in USA at that time ( I am not sure  even today  i really have  a great understanding)

I was greatly impressed by the facilities available in that school.and the air conditioned classrooms. well stocked library. my daughter was conducting PCR experiments ( I as a surgeon coming from  India heard of  PCR but used it only after coming to USA and doing a residency  in internal medicine)

I was not able to understand  why  this dad was so agitated,I see all theses wonderful text books with advanced  concepts which used to be  taught  at college level ,given freely to students, properly equipped labs teachers who seemed eager to teach and  for the first time some one from the  school wanting to hear from a parent about how the school was doing. compared what I had when I was studying back in India.
My wife was always worried that our kids are not getting  proper education and  we  should send them to private schools like the  Reddy, Rao, Patel neighbours were doing. i was not  convinced by the  arguments put forward by her and the neighbours and  being  a non believer in any religion ,I did not want  my children to imbibe christian dogma by going to these Private schools  and  learn nothing but snobbery.

Now after all these years both my  kids have graduated from college, they are finding it tough to decide what they want to do with their life . they are finding it  tough to find a meaningful career which pays a decent living wage.
I have these occasional discussions with my 26 year old son who completed a college degree in advertising  and journalism.He was recently explaining to me why he thinks he did not learn 'Anything" during his  high school after we moved from a lower ranking  ISD of Mesquite to a higher ranking  ISD  in Plano.

Why he admires me for not pushing him in to medicine or engineering as all the other DESI ( Indian immigrant) parents.
I admire and understand  much of what he  discusses and  feels.

what I realize is American education system is topsy turvy and  significantly Hypocritical and  sets up our youngsters for  failure.

where ever  I turn to and  read about a crisis  in American education system  such as the article  given below   there  is so much emphasis  on  inner city  African american kids and  how  high school students are not able to read,write or do math.
What about the above average children who play by the rules, th  highly educated( immigrant)parents who  are excessively involved in the children's academics. They still seem to be  not doing any better either.


"Public can sue Govt officials for inaction

Sana Shakil | Aug 27, 2015, 11.59 PM IST

NEW DELHI: Paving the way for making public servants accountable if they fail to perform their duties, a city court has stated that people can seek damages on account of their "inaction". Currently, no law exists under which government employees can be prosecuted or held liable for inaction. The move of seeking such damages, a first in the country except in defamation cases, if put to use effectively is likely to make public servants more responsible.

"Failure to act is an actionable wrong as much as any malafide action by such public servant for which the aggrieved person can seek damages for all the physical, mental, emotional, psychological, social and financial loss and sufferings caused to him. For this, a public servant would be liable in his personal capacity," Additional District Judge Kamini Lau said.

The judge noted that the general impression about personnel manning public institutions not performing and getting away with it needs to change. "It is this malaise which ails public institutions. Today that needs to be taken care of. It is time that public servants, particularly officers of the government, police, corporations, municipal bodies, etc., are made to answer for the inconvenience, trauma and loss caused to the public due to their failure to act on time and to make them liable for such inaction," the court said.

The court was hearing a civil suit filed by head constable Satish Chand against four other cops, including an inspector and an additional sub-inspector, who allegedly did not register an FIR on his complaint and instead booked him in a false case under Section 107/151 CrPC for breach of peace. Chand sued the four cops and sought a compensation of Rs 1 lakh on grounds of defamation and loss of reputation. His plea, however, was dismissed by a trial court so he appealed before the district court.

On June 2, 2004, the four cops refused to take action on Chand's complaint saying that his minor son was beaten up by some boys. In his plea, he said that instead of inquiring into the matter the cops started beating him and booked him in a false case in which he was later discharged.

 Sec 217 to 219 of IPC provides for punishing public servants under certain conditions. How many have been punished so far? I know every information commissioner under the RTI Act ... Read More

The district court set aside the trial court order and marked the matter to a senior civil judge. "The claims of those aggrieved by action of public servants cannot be thrown out casually. Unfortunately, in the impugned judgment I find no discussion on some important aspects," it said.

The judge also raised concern in the manner senior officials of Delhi Police treat their juniors, observing that "it needs to be checked." "Merely because the appellant is a junior functionary in the same force, it does not mean that his dignity and self-respect or his self-esteem/ reputation can be trampled," the judge said.

‘I have had enough’ – veteran teacher tells school board

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2013/03/10/i-have-had-enough-veteran-teacher-tells-school-board/

“You make us pilot all of these new programs year after year that have been tried already (just under another name), not worked-and tried again. We keep reinventing the wheel! I hear often that teachers don’t teach any more. We don’t!

You have made us information pushers, test givers, and paper passer outers. LET US TEACH!!! You have taken all of this away. You give us a new common core curriculum that is almost impossible to finish in a year, and now you slide in Compass, new evaluations, JPams, and On Course all in a single year, and all which require more time that we just don’t have. You are setting teachers up to fail. Teaching was once a noble and creative profession. Learning was once fun! If you want kids to stay in school, make them want to come!!!

“v Would a doctor lose his job if his diabetic patient didn’t follow their recommendations for losing weight when that patient is hospitalized for his/her choices? Of course not! The educational system is no different. We should not be held responsible for apathy and wrong choices!( No buddy we are in the same boat.

We can  loose  if not  our jobs completely  certain  amount of money  for not making  our  unwilling and  noncompliant   patients  Healthy .

“If you really want to change one thing in our school system-start with discipline: SIMPLE nothing else, just DISCIPLINE. Follow through from first grade on up to twelfth grade. Be consistent, give consequences. Teachers should not be repeating rules to the same students over and over again. If you would listen to experienced teachers who have good discipline, it works and learning is going on. No fancy programs, no bells and whistles, just the teacher in charge. Stop moving students from school to school. This just dilutes other schools!”

You are hiding the problems-NOT solving them! The same students that we saw get away with the “little infractions” over and over, and over again, are the same students that end up in the paper under “local arrests”. We are not here to be popular or please parents, we are here to teach children. Small things like uniforms, gum chewing, and tardies may seem small to you, but to a classroom teacher they are the small things that lead to larger problems like disrespect. If you don’t back us up on these issues, the students know it and lose respect for us. Don’t give in half way through the year, or keep changing things. Follow through. Back your teachers up! You have taken our “power” away. No Discipline=No Teaching-Period!

You want to save one child by not removing them from the classroom or campus because you don’t want THAT child to miss out on learning, but you are doing a TOTAL injustice to the average and above average students who want to learn and know how to behave. The others are NOT learning because teachers are spending their time repeatedly correcting, constantly documenting, meeting one on one, and conferencing with the one child who chooses not to behave. 

All teachers are different and that is what makes public education so special. Students get the affection, nurturing, life lessons, and education from each of them over their twelve years. Some experiences will be good, some not so good, but that is called life!!! Children need to learn to cope! They need this skill for the rest of their lives, so they can become good problem solvers on their own and not have everything catered and changed to their every desire. Having their parents just being able to call the central office and have teachers give in to “solve the problem” to make it easier for the child is not a coping skill. You are doing the students and parents a total injustice.

“There is SO much more to teaching then getting in front of a class and giving a lesson!”

10 Reasons the U.S. Education System Is Failing

By Matthew Lynch on August 27, 2015 9:43 AM | 49 Comments

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Once upon a time, enthusiasts designed a formal education system to meet the economic demands of the industrial revolution. Fast forward to today and, with the current global economic climate, it seems apparent that the now established education system is unable to meet the needs of our hyper-connected society - a society that is in a constant state of evolution. Let's examine 10 problems that prevent the US education system from regaining its former preeminence.

1. Parents are not involved enough. Of all the things out of the control of teachers, this one is perhaps the most frustrating. Time spent in the classroom is simply not enough for teachers to instruct every student, to teach them what they need to know. There must, inevitably, be some interaction outside school hours. Of course, students at a socio-economic disadvantage often struggle in school, particularly if parents lack higher levels of education. But students from middle and upper class families aren't off the hook, either. The demands of careers and an over-dependence on schools put higher-class kids at risk too when it comes to the lack of parental involvement in academics.( Not true!,in most cases)

2. Schools are closing left and right.

3. Our schools are overcrowded. The smaller the class, the better the individual student experience. A study by the National Center for Education Statistics found that 14 percent of U.S. schools exceed capacity. At a time where children need more attention than ever to succeed, overcrowded classrooms are making it even tougher to learn and tougher still for teachers to be effective.

4. Technology comes with its downsides. 

5. There is a lack of diversity in gifted education. The "talented and gifted" label is one bestowed upon the brightest and most advanced students. Beginning in early elementary grades, TAG programs separate student peers for the sake of individualized learning initiatives. Though the ideology is sound, the practice of it is often a monotone, unattractive look at contemporary American public schools. District schools need to find ways to better recognize different types of learning talent and look beyond the typical "gifted" student model. 

6. School spending is stagnant, even in our improving economy. 

7. There is a lack of teacher education innovation..

8. 80 percent of students are graduating high school...yet less than half of these students are ready for what's next.

The U.S. Education Department reports that the high school graduation rate is at an all-time high at 80 percent.  Four out of five students are successful in studies completion and graduate within four years. While these statistics sound like a reason for a standing ovation, they are overshadowed by the crisis that is sweeping the United States. While 80 percent of high school seniors receive a diploma, less than half of those are able to proficiently read or complete math problems.

The problem is that students are being passed on to the next grade when they should be held back, and then they are unable to complete grade-level work and keep up with their classmates.

The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), the largest standardized test administered in the United States, reports that fewer than 40 percent of graduating seniors have mastered reading and math and are poorly equipped for college and real world life.  These students who are passed to the next grade are at a serious disadvantage and have an increased chance of falling behind and dropping out of college.

9. Some students are lost to the school-to-prison pipeline. 

10. There is a nationwide college-gender gap, and surprisingly, we are not focusing on it.

Some of these reasons are well-known and long-standing issues. However, others--such as the emergence of a screen culture--are new and even somewhat unexpected challenges. However, the nature of each issue does not matter. All of them are standing in the way of us becoming globally competitive.

Can you think of any additional reasons why the U.S. education system is failing?