Education: How can we make it better?

One thing (and I know its no panacea) would be to increase parent accountability. Maybe schools should require that kids who are doing poorly attend regular study sessions with the parents? Make sure that the parents are interested in helping? I'm not sure, I don't have kids... but I know that I've met a lot of parents who are just indifferent to their children, I know that there are laws holding parents accountable for truancy, but maybe more should be made including performance? I'm very interested to see other responses!

First of all I thnk you asked exactly the right question in exactly the right way, how can WE make education better?. Parents are still the most important force in education reform. Involve involve involve! Go to school board meetings, force your way in to "closed sessions" talk to teachers, show up in class, chaperone field trips. VOTE VOTE VOTE out usless beurocratic school board members. DEMAND better, more usefull and basic curriculum. Vote for state reps that support local and state control of education. Vote for congressional candidates that support the same. DEMAND the end of the NEA. who's kids are these anyway, the federal government's? or OURS?

We need to get the Bible back in the schools. The Bible teaches basic respect, and that is lacking in schools these days. The Bible teaches right from wrong, it is black and white. The current school system has everything in the grey area and it causes problems. I would also like to see corporal punishment brought back!

I kind of enjoyed going to school until I became high school freshman in Georgia... and my gosh... this discussion just reminds me of my middle school years, and I MISS IT SO MUCH!!!! (cough cough) But by the time kids become high school students, I think the schools should offer the students to take the courses that they are interested in learning.. I really think it's utterly ridiculous that kids have to pass all 4 years of english class, all 4 years of math class, 3 years of social studies and science (in my county) in order to graduate high school. By the time the kids become high school students, they are probably starting to think some stuff like "why do i have to learn this?", "am i really going to use these stuffs im learning in the future" stuff like that. And trust me, I heard those phrases like million times already!! What I really find that is like the most annoying with the education is SAT tests and ACT tests, and I honestly think those tests are just plain waste of money... if you really think about it, SAT tests and ACT tests really don't test you on what you learn at school, they just throw random questions that some of them don't even make sense, or some of those multiple choice questions just don't have any of the correct answers for the students to answer!! On top of that, I read this on the magazine 2 years ago, there are many errors found whenever they grade the SAT and ACT tests!! What's worse is that if you truly think that they made a mistake when grading your SAT and ACT tests, you have to pay them extra $40 or $50 just to fix the mistake -_-;; And then again, most of the colleges require you to take SAT tests in order to get accepted... I honestly think that the education nowadays have become business-based education, the education system and the board of education become too much business based, all it does is just take our money to fill their pockets with our money, and does not do anything effective... that's my opinion there. I am truly curious about what other people think :)

As a recent high school graduate, I was relieved to finally be done with the pointless education. My biggest problem with the system is the requiring of certain classes or certain types of classes. I know it's important to have knowledge from all fields, but requiring four years of language in high school really aggravated me. The main focus in these language classes was writing. Now, in my opinion, it would make more sense to incorporate writing into every class, rather than require writing in a single one. By high school, I think students are ready to diverge in a selected field or interest. The educational system, with its requirements, prevents students from truly getting a head start on what they know they would like to do! Another problem I have is that learning goes at a fixed pace. I know it is unreasonable to think that each individual student should have a different workload, but it would deliver ready students to the world more quickly. Some students just learn at an accelerated pace and I often saw it over looked. Overall, it seems to me that those in charge of the school system is a bunch of old fogies that have no idea how students feel about their education. I think if there was more student input, then education could be better.

I think we can do it better all time, just make more shcools is not the best way, we need people to teach childrens. But the most important is to get free of wars, so the childrens will start her life in a pacific mode. Have fun!

Im in my college and in my place the education system is good but i just want to make the system to be more advanced by teaching and training the students theoretically as well as practically and while we are seeing and doing something practically will make us remember things much easier.. and in my college level im satisfied with the syllabus and things

I believe that education systems in all countries and parents everywhere generally underestimate children and adolescents. And that is, in my humble opinion, the basic flaw everywhere. When I look at us adults, and the state we find this world in, how can we possibly assume that we actually know more than our children? We've been around longer, and have aqcuired 'maturity', which I translate as arrogance.

i think education shoul dbe holistic ...it should be a startegy to figure out the potential in the child by following the childs passion...and then i think everything will be successfulll and ofcourse ....diversity makes the unity strong ... Regards Harry

Good day... Your correct in saying education differs depending where you live or what country your residing. In here, our education system sucks. One can only have a quality education when you have the means, if one is rich that is and that accounts to roughly 10% of our population. Our public education system is so poor that not only the system is inefficient but defective altogether like, they don't have enough teachers, the ratio is like 1:60 and they don't have enough classrooms that students need to study under the trees and things like that. I mean what the heck? These are the future generations we're sacrificing. I don't know where our country is headed.

the present education system is seriously flawed because of commercialisation of education. everything is based on the money. profit is the motive behind starting every school. all that is taught in schools are irrelevant for the overall growth of the students. this education system sows the seeds competition while disregarding co-operation and collaboration. they want evry one to be follwing the herd rather than charting ones individual pursuits. half baked teachers are the culprits. the education system is not designed to make man a better living being.

We can improve education by extending support to commonly spoken languages, educating students in subjects of their interest, and one can only excel in subject of his choice, because he will have all potential in him for that subject and he automatically succeeds in it. Unless students are given to think what they like, we will see dropping outs only. These education board are not bothered at all, they just need publicity and crap, enjoy money. People are suffering due to poor education system, parents wasting money, low paid teachers, unhealthy conditions in developing countires, no national support, the board members don't know what's happening, just frame rules and are not bothered to see whether they are followed and obeyed. Teachers themselves are not educated properly, they enjoy more than students, come to school have a chat, waste government's resources, teach like radios and move, not bothered whether students understood or not; its a large scal degradation of education, ppl must resolve it or atleast start resolving it. Hope for a better tomorrow.

why don't just quit study? its easy...

Here is an idea: How about we actually start paying the teachers that want to teach a decent salary. Instead of spending a Billion on a War that shouldn't exist maybe we should try to spend that Billion towards education. Think of the kids that have struggling parents that could go to college if the politicians would focus its money spending on something positive. We live in a country were it makes no sense for our youth not to have the opportunity for a positive education. Same goes for people that are homeless but that is a discussion for another time.

Well, more parent involvement for sure. I think that most children learn by doing, so more activities and hands on actions would benefit them greatly. After school tutoring because most children to not catch everything that they are taught, and more physical activities (believe it or not, most children learn well when they are well fed and in great physical shape). Making education fun works very well for most students.

yeah it is a complicated problem that need the whole society to try their best to help

Education must first be learned at home where the parents or guardian acts as a teacher in a family setting. Parents are responsible to nurture their children at an early age, so their children will find it interesting to go to school someday.It is said that the child is the father of a man. That whatever the child will become when he grows up is a product of his childhood experience. Childhood development is the most vital element in a persons life. When you can instill you child with good values thus, education will follow. It is not something that he can just acquire, he also needs guidance, and it is something that he must earn. The school is a child's second home, and that whatever he learns at home will be applied at school.

yeah... I agree with you....

In my country,education is put to the first place in a person's life.when you are very young ,you are eagerly expected to be well-learned learner,if not ,you won't get some respect from your peers!so almost every children takes advantage of any time to study to get a high mark,to get the reward or praise from your teachers or your parents!And it makes so many near-sighted students!It only improves their abilities to get high points ,not the abilities to live in this world!