Time for a Change

In schools across the US, there seems to be a common theme in the teaching structure. There is a lecture given, then homework, followed by a test. If you get the information great, if not, tough luck. This way of teaching has been going on for years without a change. In a Ted Talk given by Dr. Geoffrey Canada, he talks about his experience in school and how it's similar if not the same as teaching today.

Dr. Canada speaks about how there needs to be a change in the education system as students are struggling. In another Ted Talk by Sal Khan, the founder of Khan Academy, he gives ways to fix teaching and how students need to master every topic. He gives an example of a student getting an 80% on a test which is a passing grade yet there is still 20% of the information that student doesn't understand. 

The problem is gaps in learning. This student doesn't understand 20% of the information but the class moves on building on that information that student doesn't understand. Khan's solution to this would be changing the teaching mastery instead of teaching for good test scores. 

Some schools in California have changed their teaching from lectures at school to lectures at home through videos and doing problems in class so students can ask their teachers questions. This way students can pause and learn at their own pace. Khan calls this method flipping the classroom. 

Last year in my Spanish 3 class, my teacher used this method. We would watch videos at home learning different grammar tenses and would come into class the next day and practice with the help of our teacher. Personally, I like this method a lot more than how most schools are teaching their students these days. My grades also improved from Spanish 2 to Spanish 3. 

Suzanne Dikker did a study where students were taught by a lecture and then learning from videos and group work. The results showed that students were more successful and preferred learning from videos and working together rather than the teacher giving a long lecture (Brookshire). 

Unlike in the past, we have the technology today to fix education so why don't we?

Works Cited

Brookshire, Bethany. "Brains Learning Together Act the Same." ScienceNews for Students, 30 June 2017, www.sciencenewsforstudents.org/article/brains-learning-together-act-same. Accessed 22 Nov. 2019.

"Let's teach for mastery - Not test scores." Ted, uploaded by Sal Khan, Nov. 2015, www.ted.com/talks/sal_khan_let_s_teach_for_mastery_not_test_scores. Accessed 22 Nov. 2019.

"Our failing schools. Enough is enough!" Ted, uploaded by Geoffrey Canada, May 2013, www.ted.com/talks/geoffrey_canada_our_failing_schools_enough_is_enough. Accessed 22 Nov. 2019.

Mental Health of Students and Teachers

One of the 10 challenges with education in the article "10 Challenges Facing Public Education Today", is the mental health of students as well as teachers. Over the years, the mental health of students has gotten worse with an increase in anxiety and depression. 

A high school counselor at La Plata High School in Maryland reports that "Honestly, I've had more students this year hospitalized  for anxiety, depression, and other mental-health issues than ever." This shows that the stress and pressure of school is really getting to students. A study done in 2014 by the American Psychological Association  reports that teens are more stressed than adults. With all the homework, tests, sports, and family events students are the most stressed they have been (Litvinov). There is pressure to fit in as well as succeed. 






The pressure and stress students are under have a negative effect on their mental health as 30% of students reported that they feel depressed due to stress. Another 31% feel overwhelmed while 36% feel that stress is making them tired (Walker). These feelings can and have negatively impacted students' performance in school which leads to even more stress. An 18 year old high school student believes that “Every grade we get, every test we take, becomes a permanent number on a transcript that gets dissected by a college. Throughout high school, our names are constantly represented by numbers and statistics (Walker)." This shows how much pressure there is to succeed in school because it will all impact our future and nobody wants to fail in the future. 

This pressure and stress isn't just with students though as it is getting to teachers as well. A study done by the University of Missouri in 2018 shows reports that 93% of elementary school teachers are highly stressed (Litvinov). I was surprised by this number and began to wonder how stressed high school teachers are? Many of my teachers have taken a personal day to catch up on grading while others have stayed up until 3 am grading papers and tests. 

The stress that students and teachers are under today is not healthy for anyone. This creates a negative environment where it can be difficult to focus and succeed which has a negative impact on education today. 

Works Cited

Litvinov, Amanda, et al. "10 Challenges Facing Public Education Today." NeaToday, 3 Aug. 2018, neatoday.org/2018/08/03/10-challenges-facing-public-education-today/. Accessed 14 Nov. 2019.

Walker, Tim. "Educators Look to Parents and Communities to Help Reduce Student Stress." NeaToday, 16 Sept. 2016, neatoday.org/2016/09/16/reducing-student-stress/. Accessed 14 Nov. 2019.