A Bad Future for Education

I think that Rose brings up an interesting conversation about the welfare of America's schooling system. He makes the point that education is not judged by a particular standard, but that assessments of literary and scholastic acheivement involve cultural fears. I fear he has not stepped back from the situation. I think that education is the most important aspect of any society because without it, the future of society and the next generation would fall apart. America has the problem that it cannot decide what direction is best for education. Every year millions of kids graduate from schools that have not prepared or taught them enough to continue education or survive on their own. I think the reason for this is that culture on one hand has emphasized higher education and on the other hand dismissed it completely. Oprah had to travel all the way to Africa before she found children that actually wanted to learn. I think if they really wanted kids to continue schooling they would add classes that have practical value in the real world. Chemistry class is not going to help you with a flat tire or keep you safe in inner-city New York. Going to a job instead of school to support yourself is really a much more practical thing to do with the state of most schools today. I think the high school dropout rate is more a reflection of the schooling than on the individual student. I think the question that needs to be asked is not what needs to be done to teach kids, but what kind of generation do you want to leave for the future.