K-12 Education in America: Why We're Behind Other Countries

You have heard a lot about how the US cannot compete with other countries when it comes to K-12 education. We're behind in the key barometers, essentially meaning test scores in reading and math, which has helped fuel a mini-back-to-basics movement narrowing the curriculum.

Moreover, high stakes have driven this narrowing. Look at NCLB. Look at the School Progress Report in NYC. Hit your scores and get a bonus or we "will fire your asses," as a school district superintendent famously told his principals a few years ago.

Question: So, what is it that we're doing wrong, that the other countries are doing right?

Common Core has released a report: Why We're Behind, What Top Nations Teach Their Students but We Don't.

"Each of the nations that consistently outrank the United States on the PISA exam provides their students with a comprehensive, content-rich education in the liberal arts and sciences. These nations differ greatly with regard to how they accomplish this goal. Some have a national curriculum and standards but no tests, others have both, and some leave everything up to the states. Interestingly, no state-based nation in our sample currently has a national curriculum or standards, though one is attempting to develop some."

"So what is the common ingredient across these varied nations? It is not a delivery mechanism or an accountability system that these high-performing nations share: it is a dedication to educating their children deeply in a wide range of subjects."

"These nations' dedication to providing their students with a content-rich education may be their only commonality. After all, these high-performing nations are scattered across four continents. None shares a border with the others. Three are republics, three parliamentary democracies, two constitutional monarchies, and one the territory of a communist state. They range in population from 4 million (New Zealand) to over 125 million (Japan). The group boasts at least 14 official languages."

Answer: A commitment to a well-rounded education, that includes the arts.

I hope that you will give this a read, and some good thought too.