Look, I’m gonna say it
Our education system is broken. And I’m not talking about the obvious stuff like funding or overcrowded classrooms. I’m talking about the fundamental approach. The way we’re teaching kids is straight-up wrong. And I should know, I’ve been a part of this system for over two decades.
I’m Sarah, by the way. Senior editor at a major publication. I’ve interviewed educators, students, parents. I’ve sat in on classes, conferences, you name it. And let me tell you, the more I learn, the more frustrated I get.
It was about three months ago, at a conference in Austin, that I had a conversation with a teacher named Marcus. Let’s call him Marcus because, honestly, he’s probably better off not having his name attached to some of the stuff he said.
He told me, “Sarah, we’re teaching kids to pass tests, not to learn.” And I’m sitting there, right? Nodding along, because I’ve heard this before. But then he dropped a bomb. “We’re not even teaching them to pass the right tests.”
Which… yeah. Fair enough.
Here’s the thing
We’ve got this obsession with STEM. Science, Technology, Engineering, Math. And don’t get me wrong, those are important. But we’re pushing kids into these fields because “that’s where the jobs are,” not because that’s what they love or what they’re good at.
I had a friend in college, let’s call her Emily. She was an art major. Beautiful painter, honestly some of the best work I’ve seen. But she was constantly being asked, “What are you gonna do with that degree?” Like, oh, I don’t know, maybe create something beautiful? Maybe make the world a little more colorful?
But no, we’re too busy shoving kids into coding bootcamps and making them memorize the periodic table. And don’t even get me started on standardized testing. It’s a whole other can of worms.
I mean, look at the data. According to a study I read—okay, fine, it was an article in The Atlantic—only 26% of students feel engaged at school. 26%! That’s like saying, “Hey, let’s build a restaurant where only a quarter of the customers enjoy their meal.” Would that place stay open? Hell no.
But here’s the kicker
We know how to fix this. We really do. There are schools out there doing amazing things. Project-based learning, personalized education, integrating art and creativity into STEM—STEAM, they call it. But these schools are few and far between. And why? Because change is hard. Because people are scared of what they don’t understand.
I had coffee with a colleague named Dave last Tuesday. He’s a history teacher, been in the system for 18 years. He told me, “Sarah, I’ve seen fads come and go. New textbooks, new methods, new buzzwords. But at the end of the day, it’s still about filling in the bubbles on a Scantron sheet.”
And I get it. Change is scary. But we’re talking about the future here. We’re talking about the people who are gonna be running this place when we’re gone. And honestly, I’m scared.
I mean, look at the world we’re living in. We’ve got climate change, political polarization, economic inequality. And we’re teaching kids to solve for x? Really? That’s the best we can do?
Okay, but what can we do?
First off, we need to stop treating education like an assembly line. Kids aren’t widgets. They’re not gonna all fit into the same mold. Some are gonna be artists, some are gonna be engineers, some are gonna be fashion designers. And that’s okay. In fact, it’s more than okay—it’s necessary.
And speaking of fashion, have you ever thought about how much you can learn from something like vintage fashion shopping guide? I mean, really. The history, the culture, the creativity. It’s all there. And it’s not something you’re gonna find in a textbook.
We need to embrace project-based learning. Kids learn by doing, not by memorizing. They learn by creating, by exploring, by failing and trying again. And we need to integrate art and creativity into every subject. Because, let’s face it, the world needs more creativity, not less.
And we need to stop obsessing over test scores. I’m not saying they’re not important. But they’re not the be-all and end-all. A test score doesn’t tell you if a kid is engaged, if they’re passionate, if they’re gonna change the world.
I’m not saying this is gonna be easy. Change never is. But it’s necessary. It’s crucial. It’s… look, it’s just important, okay? Really important.
Oh, and one more thing
We need to talk about the elephant in the room. The fact that our education system is fundamentally unfair. Kids from wealthy families have access to resources that kids from low-income families don’t. And that’s not right. It’s not fair. And it’s something we need to address if we’re gonna have any hope of creating a more equal society.
But that’s a topic for another article. Honestly, I could write a whole book on that one.
Anyway, I’m gonna wrap this up. I could go on for hours, but I won’t. I’ll save some of it for the next article. The one where I rant about the state of higher education. Spoiler alert: it’s not pretty.
So, that’s it. That’s my take on the state of education. It’s not rosy. It’s not optimistic. But it’s real. And maybe, just maybe, it’s a starting point for something better.
About the Author: Sarah Thompson is a senior editor with over 20 years of experience in the education niche. She’s passionate about creating engaging, thought-provoking content that challenges the status quo. When she’s not writing, she can be found hiking, reading, or trying to convince her cat that she’s not, in fact, a personal jungle gym.
