How come our education has become stagnant?

We haven't progressed in our standards of primary education in 60 years? We're still learning things in the same order, in the same grade. How come we're not learning things quicker and quicker as the years go on? How come children aren't learning Algebra 1 in the 4 grade? Many think money is the answer, but that obviously isn't the answer because we pump more and more into the system every year. Our kids are becoming stupider and stupider as the years goes on. One reason we aren't advancing is because teacher unions refuse to release their choke hold on the education system.

Our horizon should be expanding, not shrinking. Our ingenuity is disappearing. We're stopping our thoughts on how we can we improve things. These thoughts are changing into how can we please our senses. Seriously, why do you think new iPhones come out every year? Yes, those are great advances, but if we were advancing how we should, we would already have hovering if not flying cars. I'm serious, though.

The reason we're not advancing as we should is because of many choke holds on our market and education systems. Why do you think our education, ingenuity, and advancement have become stagnant? Is it not convenient how this retrogression has come on the dawn of big and controlling government?

The great age of Learned Men is well over has been for some time.

They are taught to not think. Just react to something that has been taken at face value. Maybe some kind of philosophy class at a certain age would help.

Try teaching physics to a 6 year-old and get back to us on the real answer to that question.

Ah! But we're paying 53 times more for it than we did 60 years ago.

Liberal "educators"

Curriculum leaves much to be desired.

ROFLMAO!

yes, teachers unions are clearly the reason there are no flying cars. Paying teachers even less will doubtlessly result in huge technological advances

We keep cutting spending on education. We need to increase spending - but not just throwing money away. We should increase the length of the school day (so yes, we will have to pay teachers more), bring back enrichment courses, art, music, PE, etc., and feed the children healthy meals.

We need to get rid of No Child Left Behind, where children are taught that there's one "right" answer. They need to learn to write well, research, and think critically.

Well look at who is teaching

LA schools issued ipads to every student

of course the students then used them to play games all day, not to do school work

the administrators and teachers were like," but but we thought they would only do school work on them, we didn't know they would play games "

2. Then we do things backwards from how it should be done

we teach foreign languages in high school, after most of the brain hard connections have been wired already -- which makes learning a new language very hard

where if we taught foreign languages in 1st grade, most students would learn the language in a year with almost no effort at all -- and then it would make picking up other languages, so much easier, later on

3. But our teachers would rather teach about the history of hip hop, than teach actual science like the moon landings

I have met several highly-educated folks from both Europe and Asia… And I found it interesting that they all made a similar comment about the American education system.

Compared to their native countries, they said the American system was "upside down."… In other words, we focus on SOCIALIZATION in primary school and leave EDUCATION for college & university-level studies.

In Europe and Asia, the first 10-12 years of schooling is based on a rigid core curriculum with heavy emphasis on math, science and languge skills (not just speaking other languages, but being proficient in basic grammar and writing skills).

In those systems, university is more for socialization… Or the development of inter-personal and rhetorical skills. Academics are, of course, stressed, but university is seen as a time when "students" develop into "citizens" (which is why European students have a much richer history of political/social activism than American students).

In America, we stress social skills and self esteem in primary school… Where conformity is the rule in Europe & Asia, we teach kids as young as 5 that they are the most special people in the world. The result is young adults who have strong feelings and self images… But lack the tools to compete academically and practically in the real world.

This is also why American university students are under so much pressure in college… They are not only catching up academically to the rest of the world, but they see their university time as the key to their future employment. For many American students… The "rat race" begins their first week in college.