Two weeks ago, I wrote about the cram industry in India and asked a simple question: what will it take to get American students to start respecting education again? These Indian students choose to go to these military style cram schools, which cost an exorbitant amount of money (to the tune of $1,500) for many Indian families, with the understanding that getting into and graduating from an Indian Institute of Technology (there are seven) is the ticket to financial and intellectual success. Interestingly, our close friend Diane Ravitch commented on my post and said that these cram schools have nothing to do with NCLB testing. She's right, of course, although that was not my point in that post. Today, Forbes published Diane's??stupendous critique of pay-as-you-go programs for students (i.e. paying students to show up, behave and get good grades)--and she starts her piece by talking about cram schools (I'd like to think I inspired her, but probably not :)). She takes my question and goes further:
Interesting, isn't it, that while students in other countries are paying $1,500 a year for the chance to learn more, many American students will be paid that same amount just to do what they ought to be doing in their own self-interest?
Does the future belong to those who struggle to better themselves, make sacrifices to do so and work hard? Or to those who must be cajoled and bribed to learn anything at all?
Great question. This is a problem of American priorities. We complain that we're falling behind internationally (just ask Bob Schieffer) but wonder why? Uh, hello? We can blame our schools all we want but that's not enough. Higher standards, better teachers, and more tests are not the solution here. We need to teach our children that pulling an all nighter may be worth the temporary discomfort or that missing an episode of Project Runway is worth it to finish their math homework. That starts with parents. So here's another great question: How are we going to get parents??to start teaching their children to respect education? I asked this two weeks ago and I'll ask it again, Is it really going to take another Sputnik or is the problem more easily fixed? Suggestions welcome.
