I once watched a video based out of Baltimore where a young black teen who graduated with excellent grades later realized that her high school didn’t prepare her well for college. While she was in college, she was placed on academic probation and the college created a remedial program in math to help her catch up. What does this say about our modern school system? Grade inflation may be one factor in why situations like this happen, but I think this is reflective of how bad things are in our modern school system. Let’s talk about why modern education is becoming a joke.
Lack of Parental Involvement and Concern
We can’t blame all the problems of education on the schools and teachers. There has been an increase in the lack of parental involvement and concern for their children’s academic success. Parents are more stressed out these days with the demands of work and other obligations and when this happens, they may struggle to help their kids with homework and special school projects. They’re also less likely to attend parent-teacher conferences. However, some parents don’t seem too concerned that their kids are falling behind and need help. They may not set high expectations for their kids’ success and this hurts the kids’ confidence in many areas of life. As parents, we must be more involved in our kids’ education and advocate for them.
It’s Not Designed For Students With Learning Differences
The modern school system expects all students to learn at a fixed rate and at a designated pace. The problem with this is that it leaves out people with learning differences, neurodivergent students, and those who get easily bored with traditional modes of learning such as textbooks, novels, and dry math worksheets or workbooks with endless practice problems. My daughter is neurodivergent and is more of a visual and hands-on learner. Not all students learn at the same pace and when they’re forced to do this every year, it causes discouragement and problems with achievement.
There Is Too Much Focus On College Preparation
I understand that we’ve been told that a college degree is the key to financial success for decades, but what if this narrative doesn’t work for all people? You don’t need college to succeed in the workplace in general although it is needed for certain fields such as law, education, and healthcare specialist positions. There was a time when vocational schools were just as numerous as colleges, and we turned our back on them to focus heavily on four-year college preparation in secondary schools. The high schools should include more skilled trades courses as another option for those who will not attend college.
Teaching To The Test Doesn’t Promote A Love of Learning
In recent years, schools adopted a teach-to-the-test method of instruction and this was done mainly to prepare students for grueling standardized tests. This approach to education chokes the love of learning out of children and it hurts their desire to engage in lifelong learning as adults. Another problem with the teach-to-the-test method is that it only focuses on getting the right answers and memorization of facts as a measure of whether students understand the material or not. But as the example in the introduction shows, you can excel on standardized tests and still not be academically prepared for college or the workforce.
A Lot of The Good Teachers Are Quitting
Thanks to factors such as a lack of support from school leadership, a lack of autonomy in teaching, students’ bad behavior, and clashes with parents, many quality teachers are leaving the profession. In addition, school districts are struggling to attract new teachers. Former teacher Zachary Long of Florida stated that student misbehavior was one of the main reasons for his departure. Long also mentioned that fellow former teachers weren’t happy with the relationships they had with school administrators. Other teachers in an article on EdWeek.org talked about an outdated education system that cared more about how many students passed to the next grade than retention of the material.
There Is Cultural Bias in Education
We also need to talk about the cultural bias that exists in the modern school system. The U.S. Department of Education stated that school districts in communities of color with high poverty rates often receive less funding than schools in white neighborhoods. Many parents of color also complain that teachers tend to have lower expectations of their children than their white counterparts. It’s also troubling that minority students are more likely to be placed in special education than their white counterparts. If we want a more equitable education system, then we must consider the needs of students of all backgrounds.
Schools Struggle To Compete With Online Education Alternatives
Artificial intelligence is invading every aspect of society, including education. Platforms such as Chat GPT and Google’s Gemini are making it much easier for students to not only do work efficiently but also to take shortcuts at the expense of the quality of their work. Numerous online public and private schools offer a more self-paced approach to learning that traditional schools don’t provide. This will play a role in how effective the modern school system will be in the future.
The Modern School System Is Politicized
School is no longer about offering a genuine education to students. In the years after the 2020 pandemic, there is more debate about which materials or social issues belong in classrooms than about how we can revamp the education system overall to assist future generations in preparing for the changing workforce. We’re spending too much time indoctrinating students and not enough time teaching them real-world concepts and practical skills. This is happening on the left and right side of politics. It’s the students who suffer as a result.
With all of these issues, it’s no wonder that parents are growing wary of the modern school system. This is also why more families of color and special needs families are homeschooling their children. The current education system no longer works, and it needs an overhaul.
