Research and Writing

International Lessons about National Standards compares and contrasts the standards in different countries and comes to a conclusion about which aspects the Unites States should follow. It focuses its studies on education standards and testing in Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, the Netherlands, Russia, Singapore, and South Korea. These countries suggest to create independent institutions that will ensure the development of national standards. Although the independent institutions will make sure national standards exist, they should not be the ones creating them but to provide the encouragement and resources in creating the standards. The United States should develop coherent, focused, and rigorous standards involving English, math, and science. Then, test students during their 4th, 8th, and 12th years in school with some open ended questions to reflect the coherence. Whether the students do poorly or excellent, the students themselves, the teachers and the schools are responsible.

International Lessons about National Standards is the first step towards creating a better education system for the United States. Not only does the study covers China but it also covers nine other countries for additional options for improvement. It first mentions creating an institution that will support the creation of the education standards. Countries around the world emphasize on the knowledge of English, math, and science. To prove their learning in these subjects, students are tested during or a year before they move on to the next school. Having students themselves, teachers, and the schools held responsible for the students' learning puts pressure on all of them to provide the best education for the students.

I think this study and the results of this study is leaning towards Hirsch and his ideas. This study suggests that students learn the basic knowledge of English, math, and science but does not mention anything about preparing the students to be open minded and to think on their own.

"Having so many topics in the curriculum as the U.S. does means that each topic is covered superficially— and, often, repeated grade after grade" (Schmidt, et. al 24). If schools could go in depth in each concept, the topics would not be repeated every year and middle school math would not be "a repetition of the arithmetic topics covered in grades 1-5" (Schmidt, et. al 25). And if topics can be fully covered before high school, students can start to develop their own way of thinking that is aside from lecture and regurgitation.

Hirsch also believed in testing, but why should knowledge be questioned with a number 2 pencil and bubble-in answer sheets? Why not allow the students teach each other on topics that were taught?