“When I was growing up, my parents used to say to me: ‘Finish your dinner — people in China are starving.’ I, by contrast, find myself wanting to say to my daughters: ‘Finish your homework — people in China and India are starving for your job.’” -- from Thomas Friedman's The World is Flat
First, let me thank you all for your attention to the film last Friday. You probably know my answer to the question in the title of this post. I do think there is a crisis - a quiet crisis that is more dangerous than any crisis we face as a country. But this blogging session is not about what
I think. It is your opportunity to give your opinion about 2 Million Minutes, about the so-called crisis in American education, and your feelings about your experience with American education.The film 2 Million Minutes tells the story of how six students use their 2,000,000 minutes (4 yrs) of high school. It quickly becomes obvious that the two students from India and the two from China spend far more time in school and studying than the two students from the United States. While all six students went on to college, the Indian and Chinese students were disappointed that they did not get into their first choice of schools. What does this say about them? Are they weaker students than the film portrayed? Or did they just set their sights higher than the American students?
So, how does all of this relate to you?
Are you concerned or alarmed by what you saw? Do you think that American students like you should be doing something different? Should school officials and teachers being doing something different to help improve how American students are performing?
Is there really a crisis?
You may think that all this talk about a crisis in American education is just dead wrong. What do you think? Is there really a crisis? Do you think that you'll be prepared to compete for the really good jobs when you graduate from college?
Do you think tha
t American students spend enough time in school and studying? Do we spend too much time on other things - sports, TV, video games, or other things? Do you think that you should make changes in the amount of time that you study?Regardless of how you feel about 2 Million Minutes, there is a lot to talk about and debate. I want this to be the most active blogging session so far. Read all of the comments that have been made, enter your own comment, then come back often throughout this week to continue the conversation. The only thing that I ask, is that you keep the conversation thoughtful and intelligent. Be sure to give reasons for the opinions you offer.
Before commenting, take a few minutes to watch the following video:
Helpful Links
USA Today article about 2 Million Minutes
Boston Globe - My lazy American students
This session will end at 12 am on Saturday, January 16.
Student Sleeping image from Flickr
Posts
13 comments:
I think American students should study harder and try harder in school, because the Chinese and Indian sudents are catching up to us. We have great universities and opportunities in America. Another thing is that the parents of Indian students and Chinese students need to lower their expectations and let their children play outside and do sports because maybe he is the best soccer player in the world but he is in his room 11 hours studying all day. I don't think it is a crisis yet because we still have people succeeding and Americans are coming up with new technology every month.
I agree with jacob I also think, American Students should study more so they can get into better colleges.Also the Chinese and Indian students should have alittle free time to have fun becuase you need to have friends,play sports,and do other extra curiculer activites.I don't think theirs a crisis in America becuase people are coming up with new things,but I do think American students should take up more studying so we can all mostly get the jobs we want.
I agree with Chisom, i think that american students should study harder and more often because it's not that other countries are catching up it's that they are past us.And i aslo think that other countries like China andIndia should have more time to do stuff with there friends because if you are just studying all the time than you wont have friends outside of school and all you will see is your school and your house. i think that we have just as many oppertunities in America if not more than other countries it's just they are taking more advantages. i also think that parents in China & India should lower there expecations a little and parents in America should higher theres. I dont think it's a crisis yet because we have people coming up and inventing new stuff, and we also have people being very successful but i do think it is an upcoming crisis.
I agree with Chisom because some American students spend to much time in front of the TV and not studying. They do not take there homework seriously. Chinese and Indian students need to have fun instead of being in the classroom for 9 hours. They do spend more time in there classes but sometimes it is great to have a break.
yea i agree w jacob on every thing he said. very well spoken. and i do think that us as a country can do better in our acadimics. but india and china needs to loosen up some bc they study to much and are to much involved in school but ya kno smarts isnt the only thing in life u need to enjoy life lik in sports or hav a hobby u enjoy. or read a book that is nonnrelated to school.:)
i really agree w brayson its not a crisis yet but a upcoming one. and that americans shold higher their expectations some but chinse and indians should just lower theirs bc u should hav time for non related school stuff. my opion is that kids should make straight a's or a's and b's but u can stil be happy and hav friends and go to the movies as long as ur doing good in school. so they should loosen up and hav some FUN !!!!!!!!
I also agree with jacob, i think that americans do need to step it up because if we want to remain top of the food chain then we need to work harder and remain at the top. Also china and india students need to spend less time with there noses in the books and more time with a ball in their hand, and i think that this is going to a crisis in a few years, and that china and india will catch up to us.
I think that the chinese and the inian do work to hard and they set them selves too high of expectation and they need to bring it down a little and we need to bring ours up a little they spend more time in a class room and at their home and 9 hours of school every day if we want to get to the goal that we set for our selves then we need to get focused on our school work.
i think that we as americans should learn there languge but in a way the english transition and like china has a long number scale we need to find out what they mean and learn them in the engligh transion ...but they dont need to lower the expectations because of us we should just higher ours to the extreme and work our way to the real top of the food chain....so we should as bad as it sound get more home work get more help and study more and before you know it every thing will turn around our economy will be better etc. so as they always say dont make someone else fail because of your mistakes...
i also agree with jacob and brayson because American people may not study enough but we also have sports to work on to get a scholarship and but at the same time you may work hard at that sport but school does come first. people in India and china need to slow down because they have to high of expectations and they dont go and play a sport and get serious about that sport so not only would you get a scholarship in school you could get one in sports. we have always had alot of opportunities to go out and get a great education so we study... some, but not enough, but in India and China they study to much its like they never take a break with it they could be studing from 7 hours to 12 hours. which means they are being pushed to do what they do. they may be the first one in their family to go to college but they need to slow down because like Jacob said they are catching up with us.
I see what Jacob and all of you are saying and i agree that Chinese and Indian students need time off of school but you have to look at it from a parent's point of veiw. If we were stuck in a second world contry in poverty and overpopulated wouldn't you want them to have a better life. And compared to some minorities in America these children may have a better chance than some amarcans.
i beleive that we all should try way harder and stop being so lazy all the time. one day if this may happen we could never get good paying job because of us not doing what were supposed to do and people will be better than us at sertain things.
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