Critical Analysis: What did You Learn at School Today?

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Critical Analysis: What did You Learn at School Today?

At present, the subject of education, “consists of bodies of information and of skills that have been worked out in the past; therefore, the chief business of the school is to transmit them to the new generation” (Dewey). To what end? John Dewey, Professor at the University of Chicago and Columbia University, suggests that the purpose of learning is to “prepare the young for future responsibilities and for success in life, by means of acquisition of the organized bodies of information and prepared forms of skill, which comprehend the material of instruction”(Dewey). Teachers are the organs through which students are brought into connection with the material and thus effective teaching is vital.

Traditional teaching has left D.C. public schools far behind the standard level of educational competency. DC is ranked, according to one study, as the lowest performing school system in the nation (WalletPop). According to Courtney Mabeus, a writer for the Examiner, “The District of Columbia ranks fourth-worst in the nation when it comes to preparing its public school students for college” (Mabeus). The District’s failure has given rise to what is called ‘new education and progressive schools’ (Dewey). With “more than 5,000 charter schools in 39 states and Washington, D.C.” according to an article published Glendale News (Zimbert). Accordingly, it is not too much to say that an educational shift professes to be based on the underlying problems of traditional education.

Now, what results is an abstract void in which the far-reaching fundamentals of traditional teaching find no connection to students. In short, the point I am making is that in the vacuum provided by the absence of...

... middle of paper ...

...and Achievement: A 3-year Longitudinal Study." Journal of Educational Psychology 100.1 (2008): 1-14. Print.

Mabeus, Courtney. "D.C. among Worst in Preparing Students for College - Examiner.com." Washington DC News, Restaurants, More by Top Local Experts. Examiner, 12 June 2007. Web. 05 Apr. 2010. .

WalletPop, "The Best & Worst Public School Systems in the U.S." Personal Finance News, Advice, Calculators - WalletPop. Web. 05 Apr. 2010. .

Zimbert, Max. "Glendale News Press Archives Education IN DEPTH:Charter Schools Absent in the Area." Glendale News Press Front. Glendale News Press, 2 Apr. 2010. Web. 05 Apr. 2010. .

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