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Essay on The Inefficiency Of U.S. High Schools
| Date: |
05-24-98 8:34pm |
| Subject: |
Social Issues |
| Word Count: |
1269 |
| Page Count: |
5.08 |
The Inefficiency of U.S. High Schools
U.S. high schools are not properly preparing kids for the college
experience.
The primary purpose of a high school in the United States is to get
kids into college. The courses taught in U.S. high schools are way too
lenient in their
grading policies and offer students much leeway. High school courses are too
lenient because high school teachers make them that way. One good example
that
proves just how much leeway secondary education offers students is that on
average,
professors at the high school level accept late papers. Of course late
papers are
marked down, but this policy voids the purpose to having deadlines. Most
universities,
both public and private set strict guidelines on these matters and openly
encourage
their professors to do the same.
I turned in papers a week late in high school and still received
a grade of 70 % on them. This is coming back to hunt me in college because I
now
have a big problem meeting deadlines. Although I do not like to admit it, if
high school had been stricter in this respect I might not be going through
these many
difficulties right now
Most public high school teachers are astoundingly underpaid and
overworked with sometimes over fifty students in a single classroom. In the
last ten
years the average class size doubled according to a Time magazine study
published
in 1995 stating that throughout the whole nation classes have doubled in
size. The
article mentions that this problem has occurred and will worsen due to
illegal
immigration, a population expansion, and people migration to cities and urban
sites.
Some students that can afford a private tutor or the cost of private
education follow that
path. This is not fair to the majority that can't afford this. Again, the
lack of individual
and private interaction between professor ends up resulting in that the
student gets
half of the education. For some reason I don't know, the student ends up
always
paying the price of an inadequate and inefficient public high school system.
These statistics offer little incentive and motivation to get teachers to
take action and
lobby for change.
Governmental cutbacks have forced many schools to close vital
advanced placement and other college preparatory courses which are vital for
the
student aspiring for a college education. It is becoming now more than ever
common
that states give private entities and teachers public school charters along
with grants
and financial aid to encourage the nation's public high schools, as
California
Governor William Wells said in a 1994 Time magazine article titled, "A Class
of their
Own," "to raise their standards and improve the quality of education for all
students."
Public high schools around the nation should establish and "enforce"
stricter college preparatory curriculums because over 50% of high school
students that
participated in a Time magazine poll conducted in 1996 said they are
interested in
pursuing a 4-year college education. The article stated that fifty years ago
this would
not have been the case.
If over half the students attending U.S. high schools wish to pursue
university education then public schools should tailor their programs to meet
the needs and demands of the majority. It is important to know that there is
a small
percentage of the nation that don't even go to high school as the October
22, 1990
Time Magazine article, "Schooling Kids At Home," points out.
Parents send their kids to school confident that the school will prepare
them well for the future, but overlook that essential programs like SAT
preparation and
study skills courses are not offered. How must a school system expect that
one study
efficiently for exams if they don't show how. Clearly people have been
studying for
many years and there is no set way to study, but it helps to know what are
the most
time efficient ways to review for exams.
I feels that s "study skills" class should be offered in every public
high school around the nation. If this implies a great cost then study
skills should be
incorporated in the daily curriculum or at least taught once a week during
class. The
fact is that some time should be set aside for this essential class for which
there is
great need for. The same concept applies for S.A.T. preparation. Again I
propose the
conundrum, how must one be expected to pass the S.A.T if schools don't show
us how
to pass it. Many students are left to figure out how to prepare for the exam
itself,
assuming they even know how too study. I personally had to pay a costly
S.A.T.
preparation course that boosted my grade 100 points. The fact that I can pay
for the
course clearly offers me an unfair advantage.
High school courses also lack in encouraging class discussions and
debate that are an important aspect of college life as far as I have
experienced.
"Getting by" with just doing the work is not enough in college. Class
participation
motivates analytical thinking and class participation. It is a proven
scientific fact that
when one applies what one learns and actively participates in the learning
process,
logically one will assimilate and absorb more information and retain it for
longer
periods of time because one is forced to actively become part of the learning
process
and contribute to the learning environment.
Many incoming freshmen receive a large shock when faced with such a
wide gap that slowly opens up more with the passage of time. As a result of
this, many
colleges place these freshman in summer courses to polish them up and tie up
the
loose ends aside from providing a one credit class called Freshman Experience
that
teaches them such valuable skills as study skills, note-taking, teaching
styles, critical
thinking, listening and memory skills, test-taking strategies and most
important of all,
preparing for finals.
The fact stands out that if this class were not absolutely necessary, many
universities would not require there to take it. Even those people with high
S.A.T.
scores and a strong academic background must eventually sign up for it
because
universities know high schools unfortunately don't teach these things, or do
not teach
them well. Courses like this one are in immediate demand. Originally, all
the
universities I applied to required this course which pretty much justifies
that it is in
immediate demand. I personally never had a class so comprehensive as to
include
theses skills vital for college success.
Some high schools produce graduates that cannot read or have
extremely poor reading and writing skills. If our high schools were
efficient and did
look out for the student's best interests, people would not graduate without
these basic
skill that most people agree must me present for the college experience.
Colleges
should not be teaching basic, elementary skills such as reading and
elementary
writing.
College is not meant to be a grueling and terrible time for a person, but
over the years, U.S. high schools have lost their focus and misplaced their
priorities;
producing students that cannot independently develop themselves successfully.
In
some extreme cases, kids are committing suicide in college early on because
they
can't handle the stress produced by their classes and many of the students
that quit or
do poorly have poor college survival skills.
In conclusion, U.S. high schools are not adequately preparing kids for
the college life. These high schools are too lenient, complacent,
financially unstable,
overcrowded, and simply inefficient. The curriculum must set higher
standards and
make the transition a smoother one. If these changes were implemented , the
gap
between high school and college education may one day be a thing of the past
and
once again the college years will truly be fulfilling and rewarding ones and
not
arduous or frustrating.
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