Education and... Stuff

This post will most likely end up being extremely disjointed and won’t really seem like it makes sense, but sadly I 1) do not know much on the topic and 2) have become extremely busy all of the sudden for no real reason. This being said, I’m going to throw in my two cents from the high school perspective.

I am going to touch on three of the topics that others this week have already mentioned. Hopefully my 

opinion will vary some; however, I’m not quite sure that it will.

Let’s start off with the teacher: To be a successful teacher in my opinion, means doing everything you can to give your student the ability to be prosperous. Now, when I say give them the ability, I mean you need to supply them with things like this: all the knowledge they need to pass your class, how to use the things they learn in your class to their advantage in “the real world”, and every option to be a successful student within your class. As a teacher, you should help me if I need help (within reasonable hours for us both). If you have tried everything and can’t help me, then you should point me in the direction of someone/something that can. And finally, if I am failing you’re class then I really do find it your responsibility to at least try to do something about it, to some extent. That being said, I think as a teacher, you are not responsible for a student’s grade completely. I think the line between whether it’s the student’s job or the teachers to make sure you passes is a bit gray for most people.

Next, I’ll talk about that fine line between when it’s a problem with the teacher and when it’s a problem with the student. As a student, you have responsibilities too. You have to show up, you have to give it all you’ve got to get through every class (whether you like the class/think you’ll use it or not), and you have to speak up if you are struggling. You don’t need to be excited about school or even want to be there, you just have to accept that you are there and you need to take advantage of the free education. If you aren’t motivated by something/someone, then motivate yourself. Think of all the things you can accomplish if you actually tried. It’s insane, isn’t it!? Well, I think that’s where to draw the line. If the student is being given every chance at success by the teacher and still will not complete the work or try, then it is the students fault. But, when teachers say things like, “It really isn’t my problem if you fail” it’s all bullshit. Not only do your grades reflect you, but they are going to affect that teacher’s job standing. Maybe it won’t affect it a lot, but it will affect it somewhat. As a student you need to try, you need to know when to ask for help, and you will have to stay up extra late to do all those projects/study for finals. It’s a part of the “we’ll provide you with education” deal. You have to want to use that education to be successful.

Lastly, I’ll touch on the problem with teacher’s salaries. I agree a lot with John on this topic, so I won’t go too in depth. But, the way I see it (and I know people who agree with my opinion on this) is simple: raising the salary of a teacher will only improve our teachers. If the salary for teachers was higher, the demand would go down, and the qualifications would go up drastically. Because more is at stake for the school system, then they will try harder to find the best people to do the job. I think the lack of a decent incentive for teachers going into the field is extremely discouraging. The fact that, because of how much they make, teachers are still looked down upon because of their career choices is extremely annoying. Teachers make or break a child’s ability to succeed in most cases. If you have extremely bad teachers in one subject your entire education career, what are the chances you’re going to want to have anything to do with it? Zero. If we were paying the teachers more, they would want to do better and would want to be better. That simple.

“Out of 34 countries, the U.S. ranked 14th in reading, 17th in science and 25th in math.” (USA Today) That is sad. And it’s not all the teachers OR students fault. It’s not society or the media, either. It’s the people in change of herding us all around and making sure everyone passes the state standards. We need intervention from the school boards and government, now. We need to worry more about the future adults we’re producing because one day everyone in charge now will be dead and this generation will be in charge. What they teach us and how is vital. Right now, it’s looking like we’re going to be royally screwed.

Basically, everyone needs to do their part to make this countries education worthwhile. This post wasn’t really about education reform, I would say. But, it’s what I feel about the matters that have been presented previously this week. So, yeah. Can’t wait to see what Kathleen has to say in this week’s wrap up. Thank God it’s Friday.