tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6726401108704027247.post4942440978611693447..comments2023-12-11T12:49:44.639-06:00Comments on Polish Mama on the Prairie: Finnish Schools, Polish Schools, US SchoolsAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12655147780375093626noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6726401108704027247.post-78302888808263942902012-01-10T10:39:49.777-06:002012-01-10T10:39:49.777-06:00Very interesting article. I definitely do think t...Very interesting article. I definitely do think that the American educational system is broken--both in the private and public school areas. The "teaching to the test" mentality is not helpful. When my daughter was in Montessori, she was challenged based on her own individual talents and likes. She seemed to grow a lot at that school. Now, she is in public school. I am pretty happy with what they are doing in science and reading. However, I am not satisfied with math. It does not seem that the math is being taught to reach all students based on their way of thinking. I do feel that each student learns differently and has different talents and we need to be able to find a way to tap into that. Another thing that drives me nuts is that our country does not emphasize the importane of learning a foreign language at a young age. We are so far behind other countries in that area. One of my dreams for my daughter is to master another language at a younger age than I did. So, in addition to school, she is attending French classes. The competitiveness addressed in the article is interesting. I feel that schools are less competitive now than when I grew up. Now, there is an emphasis on everyone being a winner. I wonder if this has been the experience for others?However, if we are discussing access to education, there is a clear issue with the quality of education students receive based on socioeconomic factors. Very interesting!Mel S.https://www.blogger.com/profile/13172756129777510377noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6726401108704027247.post-29376399276713604322012-01-10T10:33:04.110-06:002012-01-10T10:33:04.110-06:00To be honest, at this point I would be up for tryi...To be honest, at this point I would be up for trying something, ANYTHING different because what we are doing now isn't working. But I think the most logical thing to do is to start with something that is working elsewhere! So yes, I would be all about reform that took us more to the Finnish approach. I really do think the single most damaging thing in our schools is the ISAT teaching the power it has been given. Yes we had standardized tests in school but it wasn't the end all for teachers. I am ok with individualized progress testing which is done in our area through NWEA but the empahsis put on the ISAT testing puts unneeded pressure on teachers to teach specifically to these tests. Currently my son is stressed by the amount of material his teacher is trying to work through before the test and his a phenomenal student. Can you imagine how those who struggle (but still care) feel?? These tests take not only the joy out of learning but the joy out of teaching. I heard this week from a high school parent that they hear from their child too often that they are watching movies in class. But our elementary kids don't have time for movies. Most likely they will get a movie day to celebrate the end of ISAt testing but until then the pressure is on to plow through as much testing material as humanly possible! To me that is all kinds of backwards!Lisa Noelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02895762022312960022noreply@blogger.com