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| Grade Inflation: The American Education System in Crisis |
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A 93-100 (Excellent), B 85-92 (Above Average), C 77-84 (Average), D 70-76 (Below Average), F below 70 (Unsatisfactory)  Our American Education is in serious trouble on many fronts. We are falling farther and farther behind other countries, notably in science and math, and consistently in geography, world cultures, and languages. Our teachers are being forced to forego innovative and motivational teaching strategies in order to meet the government testing mandates. Students (and teachers) are now being evaluated on how well they can answer test questions rather than being nurtured toward critical thinking and developing interest and passion for their studies. At the high school level, there is more administrative interest in lowering the drop-out rate than in preparing our top students for greatness on our competitive world scene. America, the land of opportunity, a top player in world politics, is destined to lose our ground as our educational values are changed and mandated through a flawed bureaucracy. As other nations are strengthening their educational systems, ours is being watered down so every student can “be successful.”
 Studies have noted that educational degrees in America are going backward one degree about every 20 years. That is to say, a university degree today is the equivalent of a high school diploma in 1988 or an 8th grade education in 1968. A PhD today is the equivalent of a Masters degree in 1988 or a Bachelors degree in 1968. That explains why, even though your grandmother only went to school through grade 11, she may be better educated than you are! And there is no sign of this trend turning around. In our present technological age, for example, the education system is scrambling to keep up. With universities teaching on-line courses, and some offering complete on-line degrees, we are about to begin dealing with “qualified” employees entering the workplace, whose spouses did all their degree work, and thus they know nothing at all about their field.
We are living in a generation that wants every child to feel good about himself. We want every child to have equal playing time on the soccer field. We want every child to feel good about his grades. Not a bad thing. But what is the price we are paying for this as a society? We are not realistically preparing them for adult success. We live in a competitive culture. Employers are not interested in coddling or nurturing. The person who discovers a cure for cancer, or who becomes the president of the U.S. in 2020, will be an overcomer, one who has developed an inner compass and who has been taught to analyze and synthesize, not just to answer test questions.  The traditional grade distribution at the beginning of this blog is becoming meaningless. Many teachers are giving most students A’s, and are being encouraged to pass even the students who do nothing at all, so they won’t get discouraged and drop out. The grade distribution, when it was used appropriately, actually told us something about the student. “Average” means within the range of most students. Thus, by definition, most students should be making C’s, not A’s. What is happening instead is that most students are being given A’s (i.e. excellent), making it useless for the truly “excellent” students to give their best, because they can make top marks with very little effort. We have become a society that rewards mediocrity, not excellence.
Throughout my 22 years of teaching (12 years high school, 10 years college), I have noted the marked differences between our students and the occasional foreign exchange students who study with us, or those who move here from other countries. We are in trouble educationally. We don’t need better tests. We don’t need new rewards for keeping everyone in school. We need a new system. We need to study what other countries are doing. We need to offer occupational training for those who would choose not to continue their education and look at alternative solutions for those whose behavior is a deterrent to those who want to learn. We need to make the privilege of education its own reward and return significance to our educational degrees.
A nation’s future is only as strong as its system of education. Our philosophy and structure are failing. Our culture has many problems, some of which need to be addressed outside the education system, not within it. It’s time for America’s schools to get back into the business of education.
24:13 My son, eat honey, for it is good, and the drippings of the honeycomb are sweet to your taste. 24:14 Know that wisdom is such to your soul; if you find it, there will be a future, and your hope will not be cut off.
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| To add a comment to "Grade Inflation: The American Education System in Crisis" |
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| November 01, 2008 |
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| I agree with you there hon..It bothers me how schools are lacking on students education, what is up with that anyways? |
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| November 01, 2008 |
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| Great blog Kathy! I agree with you that the education system is in trouble. Why is in trouble though? The US government focuses on a band-aid for everything instead of finding a solution. This is because our governing principle is no longer "serving the people" but serving themselves. Until their is a fundamental philosophical change in how we govern, I do not believe their will be any change in our culture. |
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| November 01, 2008 |
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| I don't understand the purpose of lowering the bar so that everyone passes. I don't know why we don't put so money into tech schools to teach kids trades that will help them in life if they are not motivated academically. I think everyone would benefit. The thinkers would be challenged more and the doers would be given an opportunity to excell in their craft and feild. |
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| November 01, 2008 |
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Even back in the 1970s and 1980s when I was teaching in Christian private schools, I lost some jobs because I didn't give the grades that some of the parents thought they were paying for. I usually graded with grace, so I was shocked. Also, I was shocked that students who didn't pass the year-end achievement tests were promoted. In 1976, two that I were in my 4th grade class tested low third grade level in the Achievement Test and I recommended that they be help back, but they were promoted to 5th grade. And what about this? Retired Teacher Reveals He Was Illiterate Until Age 48 POSTED: 1:49 pm PST February 11, 2008 OCEANSIDE, Calif. -- John Corcoran graduated from college and taught high school for 17 years without being able to read, write or spell. Corcoran's life of secrecy started at a young age. He said his teachers moved him up from grade to grade. Often placed in what he calls the “dumb row”, the images of his tribulations in the classroom are still vividly clear. “I can remember when I was 8 years old saying my prayers at night saying, 'please, God, tomorrow when it's my turn to read please let me read.' You just pretend that you are invisible and when the teacher says, 'Johnnie read,' you just wait the teacher out because you know the teacher has to go away at some point”, said Corcoran. Corcoran eventually started acting up to hide his illiteracy. From fifth through seventh grade he was expelled, suspended and spent most of his days at the principal's office. The former teacher said he came from a loving family that always supported him. “My parents came to school and it no longer was a problem for me reading because this boy Johnnie the -- native alien I call him -- he didn't have a reading problem as far as the teachers were concerned. He had an emotional problem. He had a psychological problem. He had a behavioral problem”, said Corcoran. Corcoran later attended Palo Verde High School in Blythe, Calif. He cheated his way through high school, receiving his diploma in June 1956. “When I was a child I was just sort of just moved along when I got to high school I wanted to participate in athletics. At that time in high school I went underground. I decided to behave myself and do what it took. I started cheating by turning in other peoples' paper, dated the valedictorian, and ran around with college prep kids”, said Corcoran. “I couldn't read words but I could read the system and I could read people”, adds Corcoran. He stole tests and pursuaded friends to complete his assignments. Corcoran earned an athletic scholarship to Texas Western College. He said his cheating intensified, claiming he cheated in every class. “I passed a bluebook out the window to a friend I painstakingly copied four essay questions off the board in U.S. government class that was required, and hoped my friend would get it back to me with the right answers”, Corcoran said. In 1961, Corcoran graduated with a bachelor's degree in education, while still illiterate he contends. He then went on to become a teacher during a teacher shortage. “When I graduated from the university, the school district in El Paso, where I went to school, gave almost all the college education graduates a job”, said Corcoran. For 17 years Corcoran taught high school for the Oceanside School District. Relying on teacher's assistants for help and oral lesson plans, he said he did a great job at teaching his students. “What I did was I created an oral and visual environment. There wasn't the written word in there. I always had two or three teacher's assistants in each class to do board work or read the bulletin”, said Corcoran. In retrospect, Corcoran said, his deceit took him a long time to accept. “As a teacher it really made me sick to think that I was a teacher who couldn't read. It is embarrassing for me, and it's embarrassing for this nation and it's embarrassing for schools that we're failing to teach our children how to read, write and spell!” While still teaching, Corcoran dabbled in real estate. He was granted a leave of absence, eventually becoming a successful real estate developer. It wasn't until he was 48 years old that he gave reading and writing another chance. He drove to an inconspicuous office with a sign he couldn't read. He studied and worked with a tutor at the Literacy Center of Carlsbad. Assigned to a 65-year-old volunteer tutor, Eleanor Condit, he was able to read at a sixth-grade level within a year. “I'm just an optimistic hopeful person that believes in the impossible and miracles”, said Corcoran. Carlsbad City Library literacy coordinator Carrie Scott said people of all walks of life go through the reading program, including teachers. Corcoran is now an education advocate. “I believe that illiteracy in America is a form of child neglect and child abuse and the child is blamed and they carry the shame, if we just teach our people how to read we'd give them a fair chance”, Corcoran said. He has written two books, “The Teacher Who Couldn't Read” and “Bridge to Literacy.” He is also the founder of the John Corcoran Foundation. The foundation is state-approved as a supplemental service provider for literacy in Colorado and California – providing tutoring programs for over 600 students in small group settings, and individually in homes through an online program. Find out more about John Corcoran at his Web site: johncorcoranfoundation.com And I don't think either Obama or McCain would do what it takes to improve the USA Education system as President. |
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| November 01, 2008 |
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Hi Megan! Thanks for reading!
Pastor Dave, there are certainly many band-aids at every level, from single corporations to the federal government. And if we don't find a better way to educate our population, there will be less and less people able to find root causes, anticipate probable consequences, and rebuild structures from the bottom.
Amen, Todd!!!
Dan, this kind of change will definitely have to involve the top!
Bill, the story you posted is pertinent on two issues: First, an example of how students make it through the system without an education. Many teachers do not even check work for accuracy anymore, but give credit for "trying." I have even worked with teachers who "allow" their students to cheat, saying "they are only hurting themselves." Cheating has become so commonplace in the education system that many students are dumbfounded at the suggestion that cheating is "wrong." Furthermore when the semester is coming to an end, and the student is failing, the teacher will give him an "extra credit" report to make up for an entire semester of failure. Go on-line, download report, presto! Another successful student! Second, with such a teacher shortage in some of our states, teachers are not being properly screened. Rather, anyone who is willing to teach is embraced and placed in authority and leadership over our children. Often this is done through what is called "lateral entry," in which the unqualified teacher agrees to work on becoming qualified. In the case you posted, however, this teacher was fully credentialed, lacking nothing from a legal standpoint. Unfortunately, his is not an isolated case. I have seem this often. |
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| November 01, 2008 |
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| Pastor Tim, your grandfather sounds like a very wise man! As for the prayers, thanks for the smile! (and for the prayers!) On many issues I am as conservative as one can get, but across the board, as you are aware, I don't fit nicely into that camp or any other. I strive to look only to God for my marching orders, and I believe He gives me the passions for what He desires of me. Do I ever unknowingly misinterpret Him? Surely, as do we all, including those we so like to follow. I wish you and I lived closer, Pastor Tim. Despite the few issues we disagree on, I would love to work alongside you in ministry. We may never see eye to eye on every issue, but I have never questioned the sincerity of your faith and the reality of the Holy Spirit working in and through you! You are blessed, I am blessed to know you, and I love you, brother! |
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| November 01, 2008 |
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Great blog and one that is so important. I am not college educated. I graduated High School and had to help out my family. I had the opportunity to go back to school in my late twenties but chose to stay in the work world and not make the effort. I had a child I had to support at the time. There are days that I look back and wish I had made that small effort. I help my grandchildren with homework and they range in age 15 to 5. Whew!!! If you don't know how old you are, tackle homework. It amazes me the focus of the schools is on passing test after test after test (CRCT and others). I didn't like the way reading was being taught (no phonics involved) so I taught phonics to each one of them starting at an early age and each one reads well above their grade level, but I am a voracious reader anyway. Each of them was reading, spelling, writing in pre-k. My (diva) granddaughter has a problem with math and I think most of it is from lack of self confidnece. She brought home a sheet of paper with all of the mutiplication tables on it. I took each set and cut them out individually so she could learn them one at a time. She said her teacher said she could just keep the paper with her and use it (what????) or use a calculator. Technology is great but when it starts replacing brain power something is wrong. I said that she was going to memorize each set so she didn't have to use a calculator or a piece of paper that she would probably lose anyway. She knows her multiplication tables.........
If you cannot read you are lost, if you cannot do basic math you are lost. I have often wondered what in the world is going on with our system when it does not focus on each childs ability instead of just shoving them through school like cattle.
I work with a lot of college educated people and wonder how in the world did they get a degree. Some cannot spell correctly, use simple grammar correctly and just forget about the math. We as a nation in order to survive need to get back to the basics and remember what EDUCATION truly is... |
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| November 01, 2008 |
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Pastor Tim, that would be super! Please let me know when your plans are firm!
Wow, Mary! Your comment is better than my blog!! You are the perfect example of what I was trying to illustrate here! Your grandchildren are blessed to have you! (as is MyChurch!) |
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| November 02, 2008 |
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Really great blog Kathy,
I will admit that I give each generation its share of blame. We have family letters from our great-grandparents and grand-aunts and uncles, debating with Dewey and Bennet over their principles of education. When you read their letters and books you realize the necessity of teaching both foundations and character. Too many of us weren’t' taught the basics of reading, writing and arithmetic, and then on top of that we didn't learn how to think. I was struck today with a quote at the end of a movie I was watching (Stomp the yard), it was a quote from Martin Luther King, "Intelligence plus character - that is the goal of true education.”
So, here's the question, for one who's headed back to college, and needs some goals..hehe, how do we change the system? |
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| November 02, 2008 |
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Again, dear sister your reading my mail!
What I have found, although I no longer teach in the secular arena, my 20 + years at the university level and my several years teaching everything from K-12 has shown that somewhere there has been a rejection of the love of Education for whatever reason! Do you remember when you were teaching and you could almost see the light bulb go on over the students head as they began to understand? How I miss that!!! We need to see those who educate catch fire and those who come to watch also catch. (Rather sounds like preaching doesn't it?)
Keep up the good fight of faith. gentle sister. |
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| November 02, 2008 |
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Kathy, Great Post...
An important topic and a topic my wife and I are almost hostile about with the schools. Our oldest son started K5 just after his late summer 5th birthday. We debated if he was ready but finally decided to send him. He went through the entire year getting all As. Imagine our surprise when we got a form letter at the end of the year saying the school "strongly suggested" holding him back. Of course we went in to talk to them and were given the results of a 'readiness test' they had recently given him and he was in the 21st percentile...effectively in the bottom 1/5th of his class. My first reaction was disappointment. Then I happened to have a conversation with a lady in our neighborhood who had recently quit teaching...frustration over many of the issues you sited. She told me that since the school had to show improvement 'year-over-year' that they were starting to hold more students back to give them an additional year before the standardized testing began. Disappointment turned quickly to anger. We requested another meeting and I asked point blank if that was what the school was doing...and while they would never admit it, they also never denied it. We decided to have him repeat...at a different school.
Others have asked what we do next. I have a list of things I think are needed...not sure any will actually occur, but here is my list:
1) Grade honestly
2) Throw out or completely revamp no-child-left-behind. Great concept, seriously flawed implementation
3) Return discipline to the schools and let teachers teach - not babysit
4) Reduce/eliminate the administrative burden and allow those funds to increase the wages of the best teachers
5) Develop a teacher evaluation based on sound teaching objectives to identify and retain the best teachers
6) Kick out the teacher unions who reward for tenure vs. results, and finally
7) Parental involvement, parental involvement, parental involvement. I have offered to come in and teach math to kids who are falling behind...offer not accepted. I offered to create/chair a 'school improvement program' consisting of parents, teachers, administrators...offer rejected. We do have a PTA, but their ole functions seems to be fund-raising...anyone want to by a $20 sheet of wrapping paper???? (lol if it weren't so sad). I have now decided to simply attend every board meeting and be a total pain in the ass until they decide to relent!!
God's Blessings,
pa
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| November 06, 2008 |
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Dennis, I totally agree with you and MLK! Intelligence and Character! Currently I'm afraid we are failing at both, and unfortunately I have the same question you have about what we can do to change things. I think part of the answer is that we begin small, with whatever difference we can make in our little corners of the world. Talking with teachers we know, and other parents. Teaching the children in our churches. Becoming a part of the teaching profession. Writing letters to our legislators. Running for local office. Praying.
What do you think?
Dr. Denis, yes I know the lightbulb moments! And the excitement in the students as they understand something on a higher level, or as they accomplish something they didn't know they could do. At the college level I am not constrained by government testing, so I can still see the excitement occasionally. But by the time the students get to me, they have already found education to be dull, rote, and meaningless, and it is a challenge to break throught that notion. You are right that there is little love for education itself. The great exceptions that come to mind immediately are students who have moved here from other countries . . . Given enough time, we can taint them too . . .
Patrick, stories like yours really upset me. Our school administrators are so bent on the government mandates, which include bringing up the numbers (in whatever category) every year. Thus they regularly sacrifice real students who would pull down the numbers. I recently read that homeless children are being turned away from schools, because they often do poorly on the tests.
As for what needs to be done, as with any other controversial subject, this one is a complex one. It sounds great to reward the good teachers, but who determines what a good teacher is. There are such attempts now, but as far as I can see, they are not separating the good from the bad. They are generally based on test scores, which encourages them to teach the test. This, in my opinion, is NOT good teaching. Then I recently read of a proposal to increase pay to any teacher who created a game for use in his classroom. Seriously. This is ridiculous, as anyone, given such an option, will surely "create a game!" The goal of education should be to learn the discipline, not to pass the test or the class.
I am so with you on the $20 wrapping paper! :) |
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| November 17, 2008 |
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Kathy,
I'll try to find it again, but several months ago I read an article about a school system that is grading teachers on several different dimensions. I may not have them all exactly correct here, but they included:
1) A parental review board - specifically selected by parents, teachers, and administration
2) A paired comparison by the administration (forces a 1-n rank ordering of teachers)
3) An independent panel of former teachers
4) Test results, and
5) An evaluation by the next year teachers (the ones who have to contibue the process and/or fix the short-comings/failures of the prior teachers).
I thought items 2 and 5 were the most interesting. I don't recall if the article talked at all about the weighting of each category. I do recall the teachers union fought the measure. And I recall one of the school board members saying the program was being viewed as a success if only on the basis that teachers whom both parents and other teachers had complained about for years, had finally been removed.
Unions will fight accountability unless they see a way to game the process.
Won't disrupt this blog, but at some point I will write about my niece, who died at age 10 in a public school ...and the 'system' determined no one was responsible, in spite of several documented and admitted violations that contributed to her death.
This is a battle we all must fight...our children's and our country's futures are a stake and the system is clearly not functioning properly.
God's Blessings,
pa |
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| November 17, 2008 |
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| Very interesting, Patrick. If you find that article, please share it here. Especially in our age of lawsuits, few seem willing to make subjective judgments of teacher quality, and few are really capable. The outline you discussed is intriguing because the judgment is being made from several people at several different angles. The niece story sounds like a difficult one to write - and read. Feel free to post a link here. |
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| December 19, 2008 |
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| I understand the concern and certainly concur. It would be a shame to see the country with 7 or 8 of the world's top 10 universities lower its standards. An IQ test puts America (and Australia) at about 98 on average. China is number one in average IQ and I think that has a lot to do with their improving education system, because a high IQ can be learned to a large extent.
However, let's not go from one extreme to the other. Young people need encouragement, but the right kind. I remember once visiting a recital that our son was in in a North Carolina high school. All the parents cheered exuberantly. Coming from a more reserved background, I was pleasantly surprised at the wonderful encouragement given to our young people. Australian culture is known for its knocker syndrome, a negative penchant that seeks to knock everyone down to the same level. Our parliament disgusts me for its rude and obnoxious school-yard bully tactics and I believe that's perhaps symptomatic of a self-perpetuating cycle of negativity.
Australian grading systems have more usually been along the lines of A (90-100%), B (80-89%), C (70-79%), D (60-69%), E (50-59%) and F (fail, below 50%) which seems to make more sense to me than the arbitrary percentages you listed. Australian exams are comparatively more difficult than American High School exams -- hence the 50% for a pass rather than the 70%. On the other hand, I prefer the American system of including 4 years grades, rather than our system of including only 1 or two years grades for high school graduation.
Many Europeans criticize the American tertiary educational system which tends to be more holistic (broader based) with a major in a particular subject, than the typical European degree which focuses almost exclusively on that subject alone. I suppose there are arguments both ways, but overall, I prefer balanced people to those who can only talk about one subject.
As America rethinks its education system, I believe that the three R's ought to be a major focus at the lower levels. I am appalled at the bad grammar so commonly seen today. When I entered university, I had to take bone-head (remedial) English due to a lack of it in my education and I'm glad I did. Otherwise I'd still be talking like a Tasmanian hillbilly. LOL. |
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| December 23, 2008 |
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Good thoughts, Grant! I agree that children should be encouraged. Like almost anything else, there has to be a balance. When we call "excellent" what is average, we have gone too far. Am I advocating then that we say to children "You are average"? No, rather that we look for their strengths and encourage them where appropriate, not for everything they do, and that we teach them that we love them despite the fact that science may not be their forte. I try to show all my students that I care about them unconditionally, but that their grade will be based only on their Spanish achievement.
Appalled at the bad grammar? LOL - don't get me started! |
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| December 23, 2008 |
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| I quite agree Kathy. I once heard an education expert say that our modern system only caters to about 3 areas of intellect and neglects at least 4 others. So, if our area of intellect does not fit the system, we are not the square peg, that's too classic, perhaps we are the hexagonal peg trying to fit into a dodecagonal hole and labeled a failure. Sigh! |
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| December 23, 2008 |
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| Grant, I see this all the time (and share your sigh)! At the college level, it's almost the best scenario that these other-shaped pegs are labeled failures, because the other side is that they are pushed through the system, come out with a degree, and get into a job that they are completely unable to do. Doesn't sound so bad until we are the ones who go to them for service, or our children end up in the first grade class they teach. I have no idea how to fix a system that is so broken. I hope Australian education is in better shape than ours. |
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| December 23, 2008 |
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| I believe the systems are similar in that regard across most western countries. |
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