Creativity On The Brink Analysis
America: Educating the Stupid The American education system is considered by many to be broken and underperforming when compared to the rest of the world (Zhao). Many political leaders and business tycoons would have us believe that the American education system is obsolete and in crisis. “American teachers are complacent, unmotivated, and ill-prepared, while teachers in other countries are of ‘higher cognitive ability,’ better prepared, and held to more rigorous accountability standards” (Zhao).
According to the director of the Northern Studies program at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, Judith Kleinfeld believes that “The quality of American teachers does not stack up when compared to countries that outperform the United States on …show more content…
international achievement tests.” In her report The United States Must Produce Better Teachers to Compete Globally, Judith compares three countries that produce students who score at the top of international tests – Finland, Singapore, and South Korea. She found that all three high achieving countries share four common factors. Each country has a selective admission to teacher training; for instance, only the top 20% of high school graduates are accepted into a five-year program where teachers are then required to obtain their masters degree. Additionally, teaching has enormous social prestige, due to pay, selectivity, and tradition. “Teaching is the most popular career choice and the most admired profession among students, outpolling law and medicine” (Kleinfeld). Competitive compensation and a professional working environment are also among the factors that contribute to these three high achieving countries. Judith Kleinfeld states, “to create such conditions, each country has a high degree of government regulation on the national level. The United States, in contrast, has a complex, decentralize school system with educational control fragmented between national, state, and local organizations” (Kleinfeld). To paraphrase Sir Winston Churchill, is the worst form of education except for all other that have been tried. Yong Zhao, Associate Dean for Global Education, College of Education at the University of Oregon agrees that American education has many problems; however, he states, “the decentralized system with local governance is a fundamentally sound framework that has evolved within the American contexts, that has led to America’s economic prosperity and scientific preeminence so far, and that is being studied and copied by others.”
In the article Creativity on the Brink, Alane Starko, a professor in the Department of Teacher Education at Eastern Michigan University, wrote about her opportunity to visit schools in China and speak to Chinese educators.
According to her personal experience, Starko was presented with the question of how could we help our students become more flexible, creative thinkers? Chinese educators were interested in learning more about the kind of education that has fueled United States traditional strength in innovation and creativity. “The Chinese recognize that their students limited ability to question, solve problems, and innovate is a serious challenge; and they are working diligently to learn about the kinds of education that have supported the United States traditional strength in innovation” (Starko). She continues to say that the path to advancement in Chinese society has been through high scores on national tests. Of course, not all tests are bad. “We want to ensure that students are learning valuable content. But if schools focus all their efforts on preparing students for tests, they will not be successful in preparing students for life” …show more content…
(Starko).
To say that one method of education is superior to another is a matter of one’s own opinion. Frances C. Fowler, an assistant professor in the Department of Educational Leadership, Miami University, Oxford, Ohio, believes that the principles that guide European educators are more important than the details of how they apply those principles. In his article What They Don’t Tell Us About European Schools, Fowler argues that there are a number of European practices from which American teachers, administrators, and policymakers could learn (Fowler). He continues to say that the broad principles behind these practices could help make changes appropriate for schools in the United States.
Among these practices are emphasis on personal relationships, intelligent use of time, and teacher working conditions. American schools are often impersonal due to large enrollments, building design and scheduling practices that make it hard for teachers to build relationships with colleagues (Fowler). In contrast, many European practices foster personal relationship through smaller enrollment, ‘fixed class system,’ and ‘class council’ consisting of the principal and all the teachers who work with it (Fowler).
During his trip to a German high school, Fowler observed what he calls intelligent use of time. The school day started at 8:00 A.M. and after fifty minutes, a bell rang and all the students left the building. They returned inside after 10 minutes and continued their day for another fifty minutes where the bell rang again and the students took another break. This process happened five times throughout the day. The principal explained their schedule, “young people are restless and full of energy. For good learning to occur, they must have a short day and a break every hour” (Fowler).
Teacher working conditions are different from American colleagues. According to Fowler, European teachers have more space of their own in school buildings and more time to spend there. They also have long, duty-free lunch periods. Europeans understand that teaching is a job with several components- preparing lessons, providing feedback on written work, completing required paperwork, meeting with colleagues, and meeting with parents (Fowler). These components determine how many hours a week teachers should spend in the classroom and how many hours on the other parts of their job. Fowler concludes his article by restating, “he is not arguing that we should redesign our schools to make them like European ones, but that the principles that guide European educators are more important than the details of how they apply those principles” (Fowler).
In the 2012 State of the Union address President Barack Obama states, “Teachers matter.
So instead of bashing them, or defending the status quo, let’s offer schools a deal. Give them the resources to keep good teachers on the job, and reward the best ones. And in return, grant schools flexibility: to teach with creativity and passion; to stop teaching to the test; and to replace teachers who just aren’t helping kids learn” (Barack). To sum it up, Yong Zhao concludes in his article American Schools Possess Strengths Other Countries Want to Emulate, a distributed global learning network of teachers, students, school leaders, and parents can truly help move education foreword because these are the people who deal with concrete problems, face daily challenges, and doesn’t know what they can borrow and what they can contribute to
others.
5
Works Cited
Barack, Obama H. "Remarks by the President in State of the Union Address.” Speech. State of Union Address 2012. White House, Washington D.C. 24 Jan. 2012. Remarks by the President in State of the Union Address. Office of the Press Secretary. Web. 24 Sept. 2013.
Fowler, Frances C. "What They Don 't Tell Us About European Schools." Clearing House 70.1 (1996): 13. Academic Search Complete. Web. 24 Sept. 2013.
Kleinfeld, Judith. “The United States Must Produce Better Teachers to Compete Globally.” Do Schools Prepare Students for a Global Economy? Ed. Judeen Bardos. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2012. At Issue. Rpt. From “Us Needs to Produce Better Teacher.” Anchorage Daily News 15 Sept. 2011. Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 15 Sept. 2013.
Starko, Alane. "Creativity On The Brink." Educational Leadership 70.5 (2013): 54-56. Academic Search Complete. Web. 24 Sept. 2013.
Zhao, Young. “American Schools Possess Strengths Other Countries Want to Emulate.” Do Schools Prepare Students for a Global Economy? Ed. Judeen Bardos. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2012. At Issue. Rpt. From “The Grass Is Greener: Learning from Other Countries.” Zhaolearning. 2011. Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 15 Sept. 2013.
According to the director of the Northern Studies program at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, Judith Kleinfeld believes that “The quality of American teachers does not stack up when compared to countries that outperform the United States on …show more content…
international achievement tests.” In her report The United States Must Produce Better Teachers to Compete Globally, Judith compares three countries that produce students who score at the top of international tests – Finland, Singapore, and South Korea. She found that all three high achieving countries share four common factors. Each country has a selective admission to teacher training; for instance, only the top 20% of high school graduates are accepted into a five-year program where teachers are then required to obtain their masters degree. Additionally, teaching has enormous social prestige, due to pay, selectivity, and tradition. “Teaching is the most popular career choice and the most admired profession among students, outpolling law and medicine” (Kleinfeld). Competitive compensation and a professional working environment are also among the factors that contribute to these three high achieving countries. Judith Kleinfeld states, “to create such conditions, each country has a high degree of government regulation on the national level. The United States, in contrast, has a complex, decentralize school system with educational control fragmented between national, state, and local organizations” (Kleinfeld). To paraphrase Sir Winston Churchill, is the worst form of education except for all other that have been tried. Yong Zhao, Associate Dean for Global Education, College of Education at the University of Oregon agrees that American education has many problems; however, he states, “the decentralized system with local governance is a fundamentally sound framework that has evolved within the American contexts, that has led to America’s economic prosperity and scientific preeminence so far, and that is being studied and copied by others.”
In the article Creativity on the Brink, Alane Starko, a professor in the Department of Teacher Education at Eastern Michigan University, wrote about her opportunity to visit schools in China and speak to Chinese educators.
According to her personal experience, Starko was presented with the question of how could we help our students become more flexible, creative thinkers? Chinese educators were interested in learning more about the kind of education that has fueled United States traditional strength in innovation and creativity. “The Chinese recognize that their students limited ability to question, solve problems, and innovate is a serious challenge; and they are working diligently to learn about the kinds of education that have supported the United States traditional strength in innovation” (Starko). She continues to say that the path to advancement in Chinese society has been through high scores on national tests. Of course, not all tests are bad. “We want to ensure that students are learning valuable content. But if schools focus all their efforts on preparing students for tests, they will not be successful in preparing students for life” …show more content…
(Starko).
To say that one method of education is superior to another is a matter of one’s own opinion. Frances C. Fowler, an assistant professor in the Department of Educational Leadership, Miami University, Oxford, Ohio, believes that the principles that guide European educators are more important than the details of how they apply those principles. In his article What They Don’t Tell Us About European Schools, Fowler argues that there are a number of European practices from which American teachers, administrators, and policymakers could learn (Fowler). He continues to say that the broad principles behind these practices could help make changes appropriate for schools in the United States.
Among these practices are emphasis on personal relationships, intelligent use of time, and teacher working conditions. American schools are often impersonal due to large enrollments, building design and scheduling practices that make it hard for teachers to build relationships with colleagues (Fowler). In contrast, many European practices foster personal relationship through smaller enrollment, ‘fixed class system,’ and ‘class council’ consisting of the principal and all the teachers who work with it (Fowler).
During his trip to a German high school, Fowler observed what he calls intelligent use of time. The school day started at 8:00 A.M. and after fifty minutes, a bell rang and all the students left the building. They returned inside after 10 minutes and continued their day for another fifty minutes where the bell rang again and the students took another break. This process happened five times throughout the day. The principal explained their schedule, “young people are restless and full of energy. For good learning to occur, they must have a short day and a break every hour” (Fowler).
Teacher working conditions are different from American colleagues. According to Fowler, European teachers have more space of their own in school buildings and more time to spend there. They also have long, duty-free lunch periods. Europeans understand that teaching is a job with several components- preparing lessons, providing feedback on written work, completing required paperwork, meeting with colleagues, and meeting with parents (Fowler). These components determine how many hours a week teachers should spend in the classroom and how many hours on the other parts of their job. Fowler concludes his article by restating, “he is not arguing that we should redesign our schools to make them like European ones, but that the principles that guide European educators are more important than the details of how they apply those principles” (Fowler).
In the 2012 State of the Union address President Barack Obama states, “Teachers matter.
So instead of bashing them, or defending the status quo, let’s offer schools a deal. Give them the resources to keep good teachers on the job, and reward the best ones. And in return, grant schools flexibility: to teach with creativity and passion; to stop teaching to the test; and to replace teachers who just aren’t helping kids learn” (Barack). To sum it up, Yong Zhao concludes in his article American Schools Possess Strengths Other Countries Want to Emulate, a distributed global learning network of teachers, students, school leaders, and parents can truly help move education foreword because these are the people who deal with concrete problems, face daily challenges, and doesn’t know what they can borrow and what they can contribute to
others.
5
Works Cited
Barack, Obama H. "Remarks by the President in State of the Union Address.” Speech. State of Union Address 2012. White House, Washington D.C. 24 Jan. 2012. Remarks by the President in State of the Union Address. Office of the Press Secretary. Web. 24 Sept. 2013.
Fowler, Frances C. "What They Don 't Tell Us About European Schools." Clearing House 70.1 (1996): 13. Academic Search Complete. Web. 24 Sept. 2013.
Kleinfeld, Judith. “The United States Must Produce Better Teachers to Compete Globally.” Do Schools Prepare Students for a Global Economy? Ed. Judeen Bardos. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2012. At Issue. Rpt. From “Us Needs to Produce Better Teacher.” Anchorage Daily News 15 Sept. 2011. Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 15 Sept. 2013.
Starko, Alane. "Creativity On The Brink." Educational Leadership 70.5 (2013): 54-56. Academic Search Complete. Web. 24 Sept. 2013.
Zhao, Young. “American Schools Possess Strengths Other Countries Want to Emulate.” Do Schools Prepare Students for a Global Economy? Ed. Judeen Bardos. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2012. At Issue. Rpt. From “The Grass Is Greener: Learning from Other Countries.” Zhaolearning. 2011. Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 15 Sept. 2013.