The United States is ranked 14th in education worldwide, 24th in literacy, and 17th in educational performance (rankingamerica.wordpress.com.) Many studies and statistics on the U.S. education system indicate that the nation is not a forerunner in this arena worldwide. I have learned that critical thinking is not only vital for thinking rationally but also as a tool for learning. Bell Hooks argues that children are organically predisposed to be critical thinkers and that this process is often interrupted once they enter the educational system (Hooks, Critical Thinking, 7, 8.) If there is an interruption in the system, a review of the system is warranted, to see what is being taught in the classroom? Are students learning? Are students forced
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In the summer one semester, I decided to attend two online classes. I never met any of my professors and had a very difficult time with the materials in the courses. With minimal support, I was still able to complete the assignments as specified, support was very limited, all testing except the final, was done online. I hold myself to higher standard, but how easy would it been to search for answers online while taking a test. Based on what I submitted and scoring well on the tests, I passed the class, but how is this positive learning? I see it as a lowering in academic standards, there are too many negative factors to consider, the instructors were under the assumption that I did all the work myself, but they were not present, I did not listen to their lectures, I did not receive oral instructions, and so how can this be an accurate representation for the grade I received. The lack of interaction with teachers leaves out any possibility of engaging in dialogue and learning in a logical manner. I am an instructor that teaches HVAC, creative thinking is not a main topic in my teachings, but it is incorporated within the curriculum. I instruct and encourage my students to think critically when performing mechanical tasks, this is important, a logic understanding on how something works can result in a successful repair, sometimes the problem is not obvious, this is when thinking and logic plays a vital
In the summer one semester, I decided to attend two online classes. I never met any of my professors and had a very difficult time with the materials in the courses. With minimal support, I was still able to complete the assignments as specified, support was very limited, all testing except the final, was done online. I hold myself to higher standard, but how easy would it been to search for answers online while taking a test. Based on what I submitted and scoring well on the tests, I passed the class, but how is this positive learning? I see it as a lowering in academic standards, there are too many negative factors to consider, the instructors were under the assumption that I did all the work myself, but they were not present, I did not listen to their lectures, I did not receive oral instructions, and so how can this be an accurate representation for the grade I received. The lack of interaction with teachers leaves out any possibility of engaging in dialogue and learning in a logical manner. I am an instructor that teaches HVAC, creative thinking is not a main topic in my teachings, but it is incorporated within the curriculum. I instruct and encourage my students to think critically when performing mechanical tasks, this is important, a logic understanding on how something works can result in a successful repair, sometimes the problem is not obvious, this is when thinking and logic plays a vital