It's really THAT bad, huh?!?!?!

The question of the day: Why do you think US students perform relatively poorly on international tests of academic achievement, relative to other countries? Is this a problem? What would YOU do (if you were in charge of American schools) to improve the schools? Would raising US performance on international tests be a high priority for you? Why or why not?

I must admit to my own ignorance. I have heard that the United States education system was not as great as other counties. I actually was unsure how to answer this question because I really did not have any concrete facts to compare and contrast the US with other countries. Unfortunately, it did not take me long to find out just how bad it is for children in the United States.

I came across an infographic that really shed light on how bad it really is in the US. The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) is administered to 15 year olds in participating countries. The results of US students compared to other countries is dismal. According to this assessment, US students rank 17th in reading, 31st in math, and 23rd in science.

Now, these scores may bring forth the question...Why are students in the United States performing so poorly compared to other countries? One might respond that the recent state of our economy could negatively affect student performance. However, according to the infographic, Finland is the only country out of the top 5 whose socioeconomic profile is above the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's average. Another excuse could be that maybe these other countries invest more in education spending. Well, that is the exact opposite of what happens. According to the infographic, Shanghai, China is ranked #1 in reading, math, and science and spends roughly $42,000 per student. The US spends roughly $106,000. So how did the US fail its youth?

In my opinion, I believe that the US is more focused on the political aspect of education, rather than the children. Schools have become businesses rather than institutions of learning. There are too many underperforming schools and the "good" ones are tight knit with extremely selective enrollment, practically impossible for students to get into. We must find a way to transform our schools so that every school is a "good" one.

I also believe that it is our duty as educators to become actively involved in the whole child. I am aware that there are some things about a child's life that we simply have no control over. However, studies have shown that students perform better when there is a working relationship between the teacher, students, and parents. We all play for the same team, so it is important to work together to maximize the child's potential.

Now, I'm no fool! These things are easier said than done! I get that! Quite frankly, I'm not sure if the United States will ever get to a point where the education systems can compete with international greats. We owe it to our students to what we can, whenever we can to ensure that we are doing our part by providing effective learning environments and offering as much support as possible.

Check out the graphic below for more info on PISA:


Courtesy of: Online Schools