The Problem with the Education System and How to Fix It

Photo by CDC on Unsplash

Have you ever noticed how a child who is thrilled to be at the children’s museum or the playground drags himself to school? Why have schools become burdensome for children — even for those that love the aspect of learning? Have you heard kids call school ‘a waste of time’?

School today has come to symbolize a place that takes the joy out of learning and turns it into a set of routine tasks that need to be completed and rules that need to be followed.

An ideal education system has the student at the center. Everything else we do or provide serves and supports the students and their unique needs. It means that a child’s potential, aptitude, goals, dreams, and uniqueness is at the core of education — not the grades as represented by a number or a letter.

Our job is to teach our children how to learn and to encourage the love of learning at every stage of life.

Let’s start with what we know about the two pillars of education — our children and our teachers.

Children are natural learners

Children are inherently excellent at learning by themselves — just watch a child on the playground! Even babies learn language skills and body language just by listening and observing. Do we have to teach a child to speak, crawl, walk, or run? These are all skills that are self-taught.

All a child really needs to blossom is a loving, caring, accepting, encouraging, and invigorating environment along with the permission to explore and ask questions.

Children are individuals

When children are treated as individuals, with individualized learning opportunities offered within the defined broader curriculum, it will instill self-confidence and encourage curiosity. Wouldn’t it be fascinating if we could identify and support the strengths of each student while helping them work through their shortcomings?

Children are unique individuals and their differences must be honed and celebrated — not only for their individual success but for a balanced society. Imagine a society where all the kids only pursue careers in STEM!

Also, would we admire Einstein, Picasso, or Newton if everyone was like them?

It doesn’t matter what you do. When we enjoy the work, and immerse ourselves in the task at hand, the work becomes a demonstration of our dedication, skill, and talent. And it does not go unnoticed.

Children are unique

Labeling kids as hopeless or failures because of the number on a test, or worse, noncompliance, implies that we have not just failed the child but we have failed the job we are assigned to do as responsible adults — teachers, parents, and administrators —to create spaces where our children can feel nurtured, cared for, and valued.

Our children are not the small parts used to make finished goods in a factory, where every part is expected to be uniform, or else it is labelled a defect and set aside.

Accomplishments like grades, marks, and awards must be celebrated but should never become the benchmark to decide the future of a child or the respect he/she deserves as an individual.

Unfortunately, we have reduced our children and their learning to a set of data points and think that it accurately captures their abilities and potential for success. Tests alone cannot determine the understanding of the subject matter — they are merely a baseline assessment.

Should we be satisfied with the basic minimum or do we want the very best outcomes for our children?

“If you only measure the statistics, you miss the human aspect.”- Timo Heikkinen, a Helsinki principal with 24 years of teaching experience.

A student’s performance in class depends upon a host of factors —student teacher relationship, teacher quality, the approach towards learning, the environment at school and home, and the resources available to the child, not to mention the community they live in.

Most of us know children who were straight A students, but never really flourished in their chosen career paths.

Because, success in the real world doesn’t depend on grades or the understanding of a concept alone. Success depends on the expression and usage of the conceptual knowledge to improve, redefine, or create something totally new. That is how we could define innovation.

The question then becomes, through our emphasis on conformity and grades, are we truly encouraging the qualities required for success or innovation? What is required to nurture those qualities in our children?

In many Eastern cultures, the teacher is often referred to as the ‘guru,’ meaning the dispeller of darkness in Sanskrit. A teacher is revered because he/she dispels the darkness of ignorance with knowledge and shines a light on one’s potential.

Teachers are a valuable and indispensable part of society. They play a crucial role in shaping a student, their abilities and their dreams, and thereby the future of the world.

Most of us wouldn’t be who we are without our teachers. While most of them have been inspiring and exemplary, I believe that even those we don’t remember fondly have taught us something valuable — how not to be.

This table shows how we are failing our teachers in the United States, when compared to teachers in Singapore and Finland, while expecting a whole lot from them.

So what can we do to help our teachers so they can do their job more effectively and efficiently?

Understand the motivation for choosing the profession

Teachers do not enter the profession for the money — they want to make a difference. It is never enough to say that we appreciate them.

It seems like a no brainer that the best way to show our appreciation (as a start) is by offering them a competitive wage. This will ensure that they can stay on in the classrooms where our children need them.

Equal distribution of resources

When schools are allocated funds based on their affluence, a system is created where the richer parts of town have schools that are well-funded while the poorer areas with less tax collections lack even the basic facilities. This increases disparity and creates a vicious cycle of poverty and helplessness.

We must remember that we are living in an increasingly interconnected world and are no longer immune to anything that happens around us — whether across the freeway or around the world.

Provide professional development

In any profession, clearly defined career pathways and opportunities to improve are critical elements of job satisfaction.

Evidence shows that teachers need mentorship, collaborations, professional development opportunities like peer support groups, courses at universities for advanced learning, and the space and time to study, reflect, discuss, and prepare for classes. These methods have proven to be effective and are valued by teachers.

Student:teacher ratio

The number of students per teacher is important as it often helps the teacher build a relationship with each child. That is how the child feels valued. It also allows the teacher to provide a unique learning experience by identifying and harnessing each child’s strengths within the broader accepted guidelines.

Learn from the success models

There has been a lot of research done in the U.S., the findings of which have been adopted by countries worldwide. When implemented, these findings have benefited students in other countries like Finland and Singapore — even without an emphasis on standardized testing.

It is only rational to leverage the lessons learned from such research and integrate them into our education policy. What is the purpose of investing in research if we are not going to use the findings and recommendations?

We visitors to the United States often wonder why innovations that have brought improvement to all successful education systems have not been embedded in the U.S. school system. — Pasi Sahlberg, Finnish educator, author, scholar and policy advisor

(Video by christine mccartney)

Make teaching a lucrative profession

Teachers are leaving the profession and the pipeline of potential teachers is shrinking rapidly. There is a real shortage of teachers and it is only getting worse. Low pay for teachers, along with the lack of training, early career support, professional development opportunities, or concern for their safety, are some factors negatively impacting the profession.

Value the teacher’s point of view

When formulating education policy, you would think that the people who are actually doing the job would have a considerable voice in the process. It would be encouraging to see teachers and administrators, coupled with researchers in the field, help formulate policies on schools and education.

It might be helpful to form a task force of the ‘teacher of the year’ award recipients and ask them to come up with recommendations.

A lot of varied and well intentioned policy initiatives have been put in place over the years. But they haven’t led to the ‘desired outcomes.’

We have focused our attention and resources on the ‘desirable outcomes’ and neglected the inputs required to make those outcomes possible.

In our quest for the desired outcomes, standards have been lowered, methods of teaching have changed, competition has become the norm, and yet the results are elusive.

It is time to focus on the research, the effects of the implementation of such findings and prioritize the most important aspects — our children and our teachers. When we nurture and support these two pillars of education, learning and teaching will once again become a joyful process.

There is a subtle difference between education and learning:

Education is defined as “the process of receiving or giving systematic instruction” while

Learning is “the acquisition of knowledge or skills through experience, study, or by being taught”

In the name of education, we are diminishing the aspect of learning. Instead of being facilitators we are often altering the very nature of a child’s inherent attitude towards learning.

I am hopeful that sooner rather than later, we will find the willingness and the courage to do the right thing — to focus on the students and support our teachers to make a difference. We owe it to our children and to their future.