WilsonMatrix2Post

The Quality of Education, Standardized Tests, and how that Translates in Society

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 * //Caption: The American education system is an indictment against sustainability because it subjects people to be engrossed in a system that is run in the same unsustainable manner as corrupt corporate strategies and interests.//

The World Bank states that education is universally recognized as one of the most fundamental building blocks for human development and poverty reduction ** [001]. ** In the United States of America, the education of children in is compulsory. However, the current education system does not necessarily mandate proficiency or exemplify quality. While it is easier to analyze the data statistically on a much broader level, in the end the US Board of Education is dealing with individuals, not a collective of test scores. “We are getting exactly what the school system was designed to produce - a uniformly dumbed down product of compliant, lackluster people who have had their individuality crushed out of them by a system that rewards mediocrity,” says John Ross, an aerospace engineer commenting on the cancellation of NASA’s space shuttle program ** [002]. **These problems also happen to be, in many cases, an implied and hidden sustainability issue.

The standardization of American education is an indictment to sustainability. First of all, teachers are stressed to pass standardized tests and to reach quotas of certain scores meaning that they’re not necessarily proactive in what the kids are learning and what the kids can accomplish. It’s not exactly a nurturing environment. Secondly, the teachers themselves are often unqualified and are meagerly paid. This could be easily fixed if teaching jobs were much more competitive and if they pay was a lot better. Teachers are one of the most influential figures in a child’s life. Why would a parent want someone incompetent for the job? Third, the subjects being taught in school have little to no value but are often times used as propaganda to foster national pride. In some cases **[003]** American history textbooks have been known to make facts up! Fourth, the pressure for people to attend college is unnecessary and actually harmful to the economy. Apprenticeships and vocation schools need individuals as well, and we could be living in a much more happier and skill-diverse society if all the English majors competing for jobs at Starbucks were instead trained in other trades and crafts (possibly in subjects they might even prefer). Fifth, the skills that are taught in schools have been translated in an almost harmful and self-destructive way to the workplace and to society. This is due to concepts like deadlines, which, under pressure, have turned into this massive craze and thirst for production. There is also no real commitment due to just getting the job done in the allotted time. In this way visionaries are rendered into people who talk big but do nothing, and visions of sustainability are either lost or just used as buzz words, thrown out to get applause or positive feedback. Sixth, due to what the education system has allowed society to become, with less time for family and leisure (see reason number 5), people are learning morals and social graces from peers. This has made some power hungry, corrupt, or even crazy. In fact, adults today could probably be considered children (who don’t know any better) with bigger toys to play with. All of these reasons are related to sustainability in that they helped parent a system that reflects unsustainable habitats such as the abuse of natural resource allocation, the lack of empathy when it comes to only seeing numbers and not people, a lack of understanding each other, skewed perceptions and complete misconceptions of what happens outside the country or even within the nation, an uneven distribution of wealth, and finally, the establishment and embodiment of these behaviours as the norm to be passed down to future generations.

Bibliography and Annotations:


 * __ 001 __** "Education." // World Bank Group // . Web. 11 Nov. 2011. .

2. The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loansto developing countries for capital programs. The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty.

3. The main argument of the text is that “ by investing in people, education is a powerful driver of development and one of the strongest instruments for reducing poverty and improving health, gender equality, peace, and stability. ”

4.A) Education is an instrument for reducing poverty B) The Millennium Development Goals for education C) Education strategies D) Global Partnerships

5. A) “By investing in people, education is a powerful driver of development and one of the strongest instruments for reducing poverty and improving health, gender equality, peace, and stability.” B) “Through financing, analytic work, and policy advice, the Bank helps integrate education into national economic strategies and develop more effective education systems ” C)” Learning for all means giving all people equitable opportunities to acquire the knowledge and skills they need to have healthy and satisfying lives, to be good citizens, and to be productive contributors to their countries’ economic development. The driver of development will ultimately be what young people learn. This applies to learning both in and out of school, from preschool to the labor market, across low-income countries, fragile states, and middle-income countries. ”

6. The evidence in the text suggests that countries with lower quality educational programs may also be experiencing worse (or more) environmental problems.

7. Two details or references from the text that I have used are that education is the most fundamental building blocks for human development and poverty reduction and that it is compulsory for American children to go through the US education system.


 * __ 002 __** Mannion, Patrick. "EDN." //Homepage | EDN//. Web. 11 Nov. 2011. .

2. Patrick Mannion is the director of content at EDN: Information, News, & Business Strategy for Electronics Design Engineers. He has recently written very technical pieces regarding cloud computing.

3. The main topic of the article was that American educational rankings had dropped in its place in the world. “Although I grew up on dreams of space travel, moon landings, and the engineers who got us there, I’m now more concerned about projects here on earth, Patrick Mannion writes.

4. A) Why do people think humanity’s sense of purpose will be found in outer space when we don’t even understand our own planet yet? B) American education standards have dropped and many Americans don’t have more than an 8th grade education. C) Priorities of America vs. the rest of the world

5. A) “Only 60% of students in Oakland, CA, graduate from high school and that most of those students have only an eighth-grade-level education. I know it’s anecdotal, but don’t tell me that our education system isn’t in trouble.” B) “We are getting exactly what the school system was designed to produce...a uniformly dumbed down product of compliant lackluster people who have had their individuality crushed out of them by a system that rewards mediocrity. ” (John Ross) C) “Although I grew up on dreams of space travel, moon landings, and the engineers who got us there, I’m now more concerned about projects here on earth. ”

6. The quote on the failures on the American education system was what supported the thesis of my report.

7. The relationships between the standardized system and poor educational results, as well as the effects of the priorities that the American government has (instead of what it should) are two references that I used.


 * __ 003 __** Loewen, James W. //Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong//. New York: New, 1995. Print.

2. James Loewen is a sociologist, historian, and author. He has also written //Lies Across America: What Our Historic Markers and Monuments Get Wrong//.

3. The main topic of the book was that modern American history textbooks for containing inaccurate depictions of historical figures and events such as Christopher Columbus and slavery. He further criticizes the texts for a tendency to avoid controversy and for their "bland" and simplistic style. He proposes that when American history textbooks elevate American historical figures to the status of heroes, they unintentionally give students the impression that these figures are part of an unattainable past.

4. A) Handicapped by History: The Process of Hero-making. B) Why Is History Taught Like This? C) Progress Is Our Most Important Product. D) What Is the Result Of Teaching History Like This?

5. A) "..the teaching of history, more than any other discipline, is dominated by textbooks... the books are boring... [they] exclude conflict or real suspense. They leave out anything that might reflect badly upon our national character". B) "Why don't textbooks mention arms as a facilitator of exploration and domination? Why don't they treat // any // of the foregoing factors? If crude factors such as military power or religiously sanctioned greed are perceived as reflecting badly on us, who exactly is 'us'? Who are the textbooks written for (and by)? Plainly, descendants of Europeans." C) ” ... education . . . operates to replicate that [class] structure in the next generation.”

6. The example of how history textbooks in America have false information in them and are used to spread nationalist propaganda was used to support my thesis of how the current education system is flawed and contribute to an unsustainable lifestyle.

7. Two references I used was how wrong history textbooks are in educating children anyway and how they pass down these lies, behaviours, and misconceptions to future generations.