The Flat World and Education 9/16/16 My initial reaction to the first 3 chapters of The Flat World And Education was one of sadness, dismay and frustration that our education system is in such disarray. From my reading I reflected on how Linda Darling-Hammond states that Tom Friedman has demonstrated, our world is increasingly flat. Globalization is changing everything about how we work, how we communicate, and, ultimately, how we live. As I think about this I am in agreement that our schools in the United States must teach central concepts and help students learn how to think critically and learn to problem solve. One of the many problems I read about were dysfunctional learning environments in schools. Dysfunctional practices are inherited from a century ago. As a result, many students move from teacher to teacher and have little opportunity to become well known over a sustained period of time by adults who consider them as whole people or developing intellects. I thought it was interesting how students in U.S. schools have twice as many teachers over the course of their careers than children from other countries. Close connections with teachers are important for student success and learning. It was sad to me how many low income schools in urban areas suffered the most with dysfunctional learning environments. There is high teacher turn over and little funding and safe environment for the students to learn and grow in. Schools in suburban areas have better access to curriculum and more experienced teachers with less turnover. I can understand both sides. The problem needs to be addressed in the political realm and district levels. I think more funding should go to schools with a high needs population. Parent education is also important. There also should be better incentives for teacher retention in urban schools. I believe some of those types of improvements can help close the achievement gap that exists. I think it's at least a start. Extra funding for teacher training and standards based curriculum should always be a priority for every school. I work in a Title I school and I feel like my district has done a great job funding these type of schools and making sure funds go for important things such as teacher training, great standards based curriculum and parent communication. I believe our country can do better as a whole in this area, we just need a lot of support from everyone. Our future depends on our education.
0 Comments
|
AuthorDiane Williams ArchivesCategories |