Forbes 400 Billionaires Dish on How to Best Reform America’s Schools
Take the time to reconnect with the classics
Not only does America rank 31st out of 65 industrialized nations in math, but 1.2 million kids drop out of school annually as well. 6,000 kids drop out of school every single day. Another sad fact: More than half of 8th graders don’t read at grade level and will never catch up. That’s a pretty cloudy forecast. Something has to be done if America wants to remain a world leader and be competitive in the global marketplace, but what? Forbes interviewed billionaires on their Forbes 400 list and asked how they would reform America’s schools. Here are some highlights:
-Raise expectations and stop teaching to the lowest common denominator
-Take the Montessori approach, customizing a path for each child based on their interests rather than following the cookie cutter approach
-Focus on project-based learning, teaching kids how to find information, how to assess the quality of information, and how to creatively and effectively use information to accomplish a goal.
-Keep enthusiasm alive by pushing gifted kids to the extent of their abilities. If they’re consistently held back with the class, their enthusiasm for learning will wane.
-Parental involvement is key!
-Curriculum must inspire lifelong learning in students. Today’s system makes test results the goal, rather than lifelong learning.
-Underwrite prenatal care for poor women, which will reduce learning disabilities as well as the ultimate cost of education (interesting idea)
-Stop applying fads and politics to education and focus on what works (classical education)
-Outsource education to parents—HOMESCHOOL! (I can’t believe homeschooling is on this list.. how exciting!)
-Public schools need to be transformed into high-performing enterprises from the inefficient bureaucracies of today
-Create personalized learning experiences for each child and invest in research to determine which techniques are most effective for different kids
What do you think? Which of these recommendations do you think could best transform American education? Which would you apply to your homeschool?
Read it for yourself:
Forbes: The Best Ideas for Fixing K-12 Education: http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2011/1010/opinions-human-ingenuity-conversation-fixing-education-forbes-staff.html
