United States vs. The World: Education

Damn, I am just a thread-killer today!

 

PS, stop talking about this whole teachers don't get paid bullshit. Has anyone ever actually looked at their pension packages as well as their paid time off? This all even gets more ridiculous when you factor in the lack of accountability and bulletproof job security...

 

Teachers get paid for a lot more than you think...don't get fooled by just looking at the base salary number.

 

The union needs to be dissolved.

 

When my mom was a teacher she got paid pretty good. My wife's mom is a teacher in vegas. She makes pretty darn good money. My post was mainly the lack of diligence in their budgeting and how they're getting away with all the crap they are. I've got no issue with the wages teachers make.

 

I just am blown away by the issues our local community is seeing with the schools.

 

Back in the day in high school I recall seeing MANY lazy asshole teachers who didn't help, didn't want to help, did jack and somehow still had a job. I recall my mom saying "it's about impossible to weed those assholes out" because they get away with murder until they do "enough" to get fired. "Like pulling teeth"...

 

Not to say there weren't/aren't still good teachers. But agreed... the union crap gets old.

 

Could not agree more.

 

And derek, all those elective you speak of, I never had any of those in my private education. Those were never even offered. I agree in the sentiment of leaving behind those that want to be left behind. If someone doesnt want to work for something, then fcuk'em thats their choice.

 

 

yeah.. that is a good point. I didn't have a huge choice when I attended a private school either. I still think it's good that they had them an unfortunate that they take them away.

 

But the validity of your point that people NEED to work hard for something to make it happen is absolutely correct. I think I was just in rant mode because I've seen how down hill and gone to hell my original home town was. It does not reflect the overall school system and is fairly off tangent in this thread. I'll call it a "Passionate outcry of frustration" because I hate to see things happen to a community I once loved and lived in and grew up in. Unemployment there is still nuts.

I've been lucky enough to work with people from all over the world. One thing I can say from my experience is that Americans are very well rounded and more "out of the box", Also I think much less rigid than their counterparts from other countries. Most of the time it is an advantage and other times its not, but I have consistently noticed it over the years. I don't know if the USA's superior College system makes up for the inadequacies of the primary and secondary schools or if its something else....

Adam Carolla sums it up perfectly here:

 

(Fast forward and start at about 1:15.)

 

Kids from various different types of familes/cultures, some that valued eduction and hard work and some that didn't, all attending the same damn school with the same damn teachers, ending up achieving wildly different things. Gee, what a concept! It ain't about how many dollars are shoveled into the damn school system (as evidenced by the fact that we spend more per student than any other country yet rank something like 397th in results).

 

Man Adam Carolla nailed it.

 

I call BS, whats the last great thing that came from Finland! How could they have 100% literacy rate as well? They must have some idiots that live there.

Coming from Finland I'm surprised to see that a developed country doesn't have close to 100% literacy rate.

 

I completely agree with Adam Carolla, and yes we also have loads of idiots, just like every country.

And for all I know, the teachers in Finland doesn't get paid very well.. It's the attitude towards education which is the key factor.

One problem with schools today is a lot of teachers also just aren't able to teach. If you are a teacher in an inner-city school, you can't make the students learn if they really aren't interested, the parents are often zero help, and you cannot discipline them. Quite a few of them can be armed and some are not afraid to hurt you either. My mom taught in such a school and said they used to pull all sorts of things off of various students. Public schools located in decent neighborhoods usually have the parents more involved and the students more behaved.

Wheels I think you nailed it, I fully agree with you, I think two of the most critical issues are the lack of discipline and respect for the teachers.