American Ignorance Research Paper

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Courtney Rosenthal Mrs. Crowe AP Lang- Period 3 25 March 2014 American Ignorance American high schools have changed for the worst since the evolution of the education system; initially, it was about actually receiving an education and gaining knowledge. But in today’s society, American high schools have developed into a flawed system that has adverse effects on its students. There are flaws in the inadequate system such as heavy testing and the teaching of irrelevant information. In order to mend these issues the education system needs to be reshaped and refocused to create a more constructive system. Throughout my personal career in high school, as a current eleventh grader in the public school system, I’ve found the testing…show more content…
Edward Koren, cartoonist from the New Yorker magazine, adequately displays the typical American viewpoint on their ideal schooling and education. In his cartoon, it is clear that Koren is referring to Americans because of the American flag present; the cartoon is addressing how test scores and athletics are a prominent factor in high schools. The overall message of his cartoon is that test scores, along with athletics, have become more important to academic institutions than academics themselves. “Test scores became an obsession, ”Ravitch states. In the article Stop the Madness, written by Diane Ravitch, she elaborates on the issue of exceptionally high test taking. Teachers teach towards their test and as a result, are lazy. These faculty members, especially the teachers, worry more about the final test scores their students receive than if their students are grasping and fully understanding the educational topics. This is because the test grades that the students earn is how teachers are judged and ranked in the system. Therefore, in order to achieve these ideal scores, they are using the same tests and classwork every year. These teachers would prefer to teach test taking pointers…show more content…
This is a strong proposal and could be a good recommendation for the education system; high schools should have their students graduate at sixteen opposed to eighteen. This could be accomplished by starting the so-called high school in seventh grade and not ninth grade. This transformation would allow the 16-year-old to venture off and encounter the real world, through an internship or apprenticeship. Students would need to become responsible and more mature as they would be alongside an adult in a professional setting. Our American education system is only postponing these students from entering the real world. These changes would force young adults to work with people of all ages, and no longer be constrained to the typical high school environment (Source 3). American high schools need to step up their game as they are merely falling behind. By abandoning the large emphasis on testing the students will learn the information for good and not just for the test. Incorporating more relevant information into the curriculum, will allow students to become more interested. Of course this will not apply to every student that walks through the classroom doors, because every student is unique, but these modifications will benefit the majority of the student

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