What Ruins Education System Essay Example

📌Category: Education, Higher Education
📌Words: 973
📌Pages: 4
📌Published: 03 November 2020

From kindergarten to twelfth grade, school is a place that will mold you and your future. If it molds you for the better or for the worst is not always too predictable. Over your twelve years of schooling you will be in competition with other students. During these twelve years, students will realize that actually understanding a lesson is not important but instead knowing how to memorize it well enough that you can pass by is all that matters for a grade. In the American schooling system you will become obsessed with grades. This is the tragic reality of our American school system. Our system is broken, and has left thousands of students stranded and desperate in need for a change.

“Are you learning or are you memorizing”

Students are placed in fifty minute classes cramming in as much unnecessary knowledge as they possibly can. Eight hours a day, five days a week. Students are forced to learn information that will not even be mentioned in their day to day adult lives. Students are aware of this and feel as if there is no point in actually taking the time to learn the subject and instead try to memorize just to pass by. You are able to memorize the equation for y=mx+b, you are able to memorize your vocabulary words for your test that is coming up but have you actually learned how to? Would you be able to teach someone else how to do it? If not you have only memorized a pattern instead of learning the topic. Most students will only memorize a lesson plan for the test then completely forget about everything as soon as the bell rings for the next class. Memorization is also the reason why students prefer multiple choice quizzes instead of hand written tests. Students are able to remember the format from the study guide and copy it to the actual test with no learning required. 

From personal experience, throughout my Kindergarten  through fifth grade years I was bright and eager to learn. I loved to learn anything that I was told. And after a fun day of school I would have enough time to play, spend time with family and do anything I wanted to with my time. Time wasn't an issue, I had no worries about how long I should be studying for. But by middle school that all changed. I was no longer that ‘gifted child’ that I was in elementary school. I was no longer able to have a decent amount of free time. And stable mental health? No such thing. I was studying and doing homework from 3pm to 8pm not having any time to do the activities that I used to enjoy the most. So after eating dinner and doing chores it was 9pm. And I had to wake up at 5am to get ready. And ever since my sixth grade year, me and along with thousands of other students lost our spark, motivation and everything in between for school. 

Unequal Opportunities And Institutional Racism 

Racism doesn’t just affect adults, it also impacts poc in schools. Poc (people of color) especially Hispanics and African Americans have a greater chance of being biased solely based on their origins. For example they are given harsher punishments at schools,  lack of representation, and less likely to be placed in an advanced or ‘talented’ class. Black students are three times more likely to be suspended or expelled than their white classmates, according to the U.S. Department of Education. Although in most public schools poc are only 18% of a school’s population, they also make up 35% of the suspensions. Most of the suspensions are ‘petty’ acts and had little reasoning to be given a suspension. This is what we call unequal treatment, certain groups of students are less represented than others. Which gives fewer opportunities, and lack of motivation in doing well in school. It is not only minorities who have an unequal opportunity in the education system but also people who have home issues. Examples are people who are in poverty or homeless, have no access to internet connection and also the over pricement of a decent education. For people who do not have certain accesses such as wifi or enough money to afford a chromebook or the insurance for it this causes students with the disprivilege to suffer further and further throughout their education as more privileged kids flourish. 

Lack of Motivation

By the time you are in highschool, chances are you will feel defeated, stressed, and not wanting to do any work. Students are no longer motivated, which is quite understandable. Waking up at six am then going to school for eight hours a day will make nearly anyone drained. Students are bored in classes due to having to do assignments that don't peak interests nor find the value or purpose in completing it. The most common phrase in a school is ‘When will we ever need to know this in the real world’ that phrase encourages students to not care for the work. 

Some may say that the education system is doing just fine and that our generation is just quote on quote ‘lazy’ this is not the case. You can ask a class by a show of hands how many students feel as if the system is failing and you would be surprised. The education structure was made to produce obedient factory workers, times have changed but the system has not. Is that not a concern? That is like getting a computer from the 70’s and expecting it to be just like a computer from our current generation. Will that old computer be the same, of course not. Why? Because it is highly outdated and times have changed, just like our education system.

How can we stop this? Destroy our current system and rebuild a completely new one. School should start later, tests should not be as frequent, lesson plans should spark creativity instead of sparking a yawn in the classroom(s), Reward creativity instead of breaking it down and take notice , understand mental health issues and so much more. If the government takes that into notice those five reasons can be a recipe for a better education system with many years to come. 


Works Cited 

https://medium.com/age-of-awareness/the-american-education-system-is-broken-4-30-263fbca64837

 

 

 

+
x
Remember! This is just a sample.

You can order a custom paper by our expert writers

Order now
By clicking “Receive Essay”, you agree to our Terms of service and Privacy statement. We will occasionally send you account related emails.