Posted on 08/09/2011 4:45:04 PM PDT by bthockey
For those of your who haven't found out yet, American students don't know basic history of their own country. I can't say I find this surprising because no one in my school is really that excited about history, let alone American history. I think this is a major problem with our schools and one that we must fix!
The National Assessment of Educational Progress tests students every couple years to see if our education system is headed in the right direction. If we dive into the stats, it's clear to see that students have horrendous history test scores. Only 12 percent of high school seniors scored a "proficient" score on the test, which is down from 20 percent of 4th graders and 17 percent of 8th graders! Clearly our students aren't learning enough about history, especially at the high school level.
(Excerpt) Read more at thebandofpatriots.com ...
School is a tool...to teach you how to find info. We apply what we need or want to apply....be it for a career or for pleasure.
How about we stop rewriting history to make it PC and stick to the facts? Then we hold the students to a standard and actually teach them something.
Doom them to repeat it then.
You could say something similar to that about any field, even medicine or engineering, both of which require a solid foundation of knowledge in many areas to build upon. Once out of school details can be looked up and memories refreshed, but the underlying core of knowledge needs to be there as one gains wisdom
I heard great phrase recently about knowledge and wisdom:
Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit, but wisdom is knowing not to put one in a fruit salad.
I had a History class everyday, starting in the third grade. The only thing that bugged me was having to memorize dates. 1066, Battle of Hastings, was always a test question. I never felt that the exact dating was a worthwhile question. More important was the “why” question.
Get rid of the Department of Education, Get rid of the Teacher's Unions, hire real teachers(as opposed to Democratic operatives), and provide the kids with non politically correct history books. That's it problem solved. Just like the vast majority of the problems facing this nation the solutions are extremely simple common sense ones. Of course that kind of solution will never see the light of day.
I'm sure we'll have to have a Congressional investigation into this, then of course much more money will be required, and of course some sort of super committee (sound familiar?) will be needed.
How about using history books by such excellent authors as David McCullough in the classroom instead of the typical socialist textbooks used.
>>For those of your who haven’t found out yet, American students don’t know basic history of their own country.<<
.
It is not their fault.
American students are now indoctrinated (brainwashed) by their “teachers” in useless bilge such as social justice, latino studies, self awareness, the blessing of diversity, etc.
You think there is time to teach anything else?
Besides, even if you were to graduate from university with a science or engineering degree you may have to travel to China to get a job.
You think I’m kidding? Think again.
ML/NJ
What should be done about it??? What should be done about it is what I've been telling you people for 15 years to do about it; pull your kids out of Government run schools and either homeschool them or send them to private school.
Please, no excuses. I've heard 'em all and I don't want to hijack this thread.
s=a=r=c=a=s=m
Teach the history of failed Keynesian economic policies of the 1930’s and compare to today’s current events.
No time to teach American history.
Gots to push the homosexual agenda, the unionist agenda, the socialist mantra. Have to push anti Christian values, and push for world equality, or some such crap.
No time to teach American history.
Don’t forget the Present told us that Muslims helped found the nation.
Do away with the socialized school system. The market will fix the schools.
That is what Dewey did—made history irrelevant—meaningless.
To understand why events occurred and the details of the events are tremendously interesting and pertinent to oneself. Kids should love history if it is made relevant—where they learn life lessons from it....which they don’t because of Marxist revisionism. They want all ideas of Honor, Character, Virtue destroyed—so no classics—no study of the heroes of our nation and the genius of the Federalist papers.
Marxist destroy the heroes of Capitalist cultures—and revise the history so they are reviled and forgotten. So their courage, duty and wisdom isn’t copied in the future. Inspiration is needed to maintain a culture—heros are always needed which includes pride.
Teachers are screened by Bill Ayer types also—as is their thinking which is corrected along with their philosophy. Marxism kills truth and interest in history. They want to redesign people so no memory of history is allowed—no attachment to traditions.
Like Churchill said of WWI. There were so many lessons to be learned—but they weren’t, and because of that failure to learn from history we had WWII—an unnecessary war. Socialism/communism philosophy was already rampant in England by the end of WWI.
The U.S. is not the only one.
Around 15 years ago, I had an English kid on my staff. He was likeable and bright but knew nothing about his own country.
I though he would be a good one to discuss British history with until I discovered I knew quite a bit more about it than he did. He did know who Churchill was but that was about it.
Two UCLA economists say they have figured out why the Great Depression dragged on for almost 15 years, and they blame a suspect previously thought to be beyond reproach: President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
FDR's policies prolonged Depression by 7 years, UCLA economists calculate
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