The Main Cause of our Lacking Education System is Industrial Age Values

Once upon a time, enthusiasts designed a formal education system to meet the money-based demands of the Industrial Revolution. Fast forward to today, it seems obvious that the now established education system is unable to meet the needs of our ever changing society. We send our children to school to prepare them for the real world which is changing very, very fast but our schools have not changed much for hundreds of years. In fact, leaders from around the world have come to a conclusion that the modern system of education was created in the Industrial Age, mainly to churn out factory workers and this Industrial Age mentality of mass production control still runs deep in schools.

With that, comes a plethora of problems that stack on top of each other, causing a downfall in the American education system. The American education system is flawed due to problems within the school.

We educate children by periods and dictate their school lives by ringing bells all day long. Students do nothing but follow instructions, sit down, take out your book, turn to page forty, solve problem number three, stop talking at school. You are rewarded for doing exactly what you’re told. These are Industrial Age rules that were very necessary for factory workers. Their success depended on following instructions and doing exactly what they were told but in today’s world, how far can you get by simply following instruction? The modern world values people who can be creative, who can communicate their ideas and collaborate with others, but our children do not get a chance to form such skills in a system that is based on Industrial Age values.

This problem originated at the start of the Industrial Age, which started in 1760, roughly two hundred and fifty years ago. The education system back then was not much of a problem since it suited factory workers’ needs but nowadays, it is outdated and ineffective. This is a main cause in our shabby education system.

This affects students in all sorts of ways. The method schools use to teach their students lacks autonomy. The world we live in now values people who can be creative and can communicate their ideas whilst collaborating with others but our children do not get a chance to develop such skills in a school system that is based on Industrial Age values. At school, children go through a complete lack of autonomy and control. Every minute of a child’s life is tightly controlled by the system. In today’s world if you’re doing important work, then you’re managing your own time, you’re making your own decisions regarding what to do and when to do it. Life at school looks very different, on the other hand. The system is displaying a dangerous message to our children. That they are not in charge of their own lives and they just have to follow whatever is laid down instead of taking charge and making the most of their lives. Experts believe autonomy is incredibly important for children. It’s no wonder then that our children are bored and deem motivated by school. Can you imagine how you would feel if you were told exactly what to do for every minute of your life? Sticking to this form of teaching is essentially, setting students up for failure.

In order to improve American education systems, there should be a new method of teaching children. Hiring more energetic teachers who are eager to teach and broaden the minds of kids would contribute to a better education system. Teachers that just lecture do not make a difference. Teachers who are full of life, who interact with kids, have a passion for teaching, are needed. Having more autonomy in schools and classes would work better for students because it leads to self sufficiency and better choices. Students would no longer feel drained and constricted with more freedom and choices. Teachers assigning less homework and giving out less tests and quizzes would help because students can then focus more on obtaining skills for their future occupation. There are vocational schools within some school districts but there should be more vocational classes in the schools themselves.

Some people might argue that the current education system is not or barely flawed and that we do not need to change it but if they actually looked at the statistics for high school dropouts and graduation rates, they might think otherwise. In order to solve the failing education system, there should be more energetic teachers, more autonomy in school for the children, and less assignments, giving students more opportunities to focus on their future career paths. The American education system is flawed due to an outdated system created during the Industrial Age. The lack of autonomy is another factor in our frail system. Kids all over America are and have been seriously affected by this poor education system. If change and action do not start soon, then when will it ever?

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