2015 PISA Results: US Science Scores on PISA slightly above International Average

2015 PISA Results: US Science Scores slightly above International Average

http://www.oecd.org/pisa/

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From Slate in 2014 - What’s Holding Back American Teenagers?  Laurence Steinberg asserts that if we want our teenagers to thrive, we need to help them develop the non-cognitive traits it takes to complete a college degree—traits like determination, self-control, and grit. This means classes that really challenge students to work hard—something that fewer than one in six high school students report experiencing, according to Diploma to Nowhere, a 2008 report published by Strong American Schools. Unfortunately, our high schools demand so little of students that these essential capacities aren’t nurtured. As a consequence, many high school graduates, even those who have acquired the necessary academic skills to pursue college coursework, lack the wherewithal to persevere in college. 

From Upworthy in 2012 - Ask The Kids.   Amanda Ripley surveyed hundreds of US students that participated in foreign exchange in a high performing country.  She found three major points about the US education system that they all agreed on.  The students all said that in their foreign host countries:

• School is harder. There's less homework but the material is more rigorous. People take education more seriously, from selecting the content to selecting the teachers.

• Sports are just a hobby. In the U.S., sports are a huge distraction from the business of school, but that's not the case in other countries.

   and most importantly

• Kids believe there's something in it for them. The students in other countries deeply believe that what they are doing in school affects how interesting their lives were going to be. Even if they don't like a class, they see their education as a stepping stone to their future.

  The YouTube video below shows Ms. Ripley presenting her conclusions.