Outside+Readings+4-14

Katie [|PISA and need for improvement] This is an article/blog about how America is not scoring well on the PISA test and has a 25% dropout rate. It is addressed toward //Parenting// Magazine’s [|Mom Congress] about how this nation needs to improve and not just a little bit such as decreasing drop out rates to be 23%. It even looks at how our top scoring states are not good enough as it would only be ranked #17 on the PISA rankings if it were its own country.

Kylie Top Test Scores From Shanghai Stun Educators This article is focused on how the US doesn't score as well as other counties on tests such as PISA. Educators are stunned and are in disbelief as to why countries like China are scoring so much better than the US. Some feel that the US is being out-educated. But in my opinion, with having students being involved in extracurriculars such as sports, I feel that we are creating a more well-rounded student. Being book smart and scoring well on tests isn't the most important thing in life. Having our students being involved in sports or different clubs will teach them things such as teamwork and cooperation that they don't necessarily learn in the classroom.

Kayla China's strength in PISA Study Highlight School's Weakness This is an article also about how China score highly on the PISA exams. What was interesting about this article though is that is criticizes the Chinese education system and how their student are not creative. Chinese students are just learning facts and rote memorization, they are not as well rounded people as the students in the United States.

Beth [|Race to self-destruction: A history lesson for ed reformers] This article is incredibly interesting. It tells the story of the polynesian people of Easter Island that built the famous and mysterious statues and how their obsession with these statues eventually led to the destruction of their civilization. It then compares this to Obama's "Race to the Top" plan. The author was able to present some great ties between the two. He argues that America's focus on test scores and on beating the rest of the world in this one area is causing us to neglect bigger issues in our society. These issues, like inequality, poor living situations, etc. could eventually lead to even bigger problems.

The article was really well written. I don't know if I agree completely with what the author says, but it sure makes me think if what we are doing know could have far bigger ramifications than what we anticipate. I think we need to stop looking at the short fix and try to get at the bigger problems.