If I could improve the educational system I would:

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If I were to re-create the educational system or a school system how would I make it better:

Education is one of the most important things in this world. On a micro level, a good education for an individual level can contribute greatly to that person’s success, wealth, happiness, and wellbeing. On a macro level, a community of well educated individuals can help a community prosper, create new innovations, jobs, a better economy, and a safer and better community. On a global level, the more numbers of educated people and communities, the more the world can potentially benefit. Unfortunately there are a lot of people who suffer from dropping out of school when they are young who lack certain education required to live a productive life. Furthermore, there are many educated individuals who also struggle to live a good life due to certain gapes in their education that they could have greatly benefited from if it were filled. This is often caused by the current structure of most educational institutions around the world. I personally have struggle when it came to learning in school and now, I am fairly educated but I, like many others, have certain gaps in my learning that are critical to success. I was able to push myself through areas that I struggled and learned a lot of additional things in the process and I am going to mention them in this paper. If I could re-create a school or improve the overall education systems around the world, I would do that in seventeen different ways.

The first thing I would do to recreate and improve the overall education system, is to emphasize the importance of education more. Many individuals when they enter school hate school and do not take it seriously. There is really only one main cause to this. They do not think it is important. When individuals understand something is important to them, they will have an unstoppable motivation in doing so. It is human nature. The reason why individuals don’t think school is important, especially in their younger years, is because they are not taught that it is important. I believe if school’s really emphasized the importance of education from the start, it will help minimize students failing and dropping out in the future. I think this should be done before any school work school work is even introduced to the students. At grade one, I think the first week or two should be focused only on how important education is. This could be divided up by first, having the students talk about what they are interested and “what they want to be when they grow up.” Secondly, they could then be told how being her- right now- in school, is an excellent opportunity to achieve this and earn a lot of money. When each course and subject matter is taught to students, students should also be taught how and why this particular subject will help them obtain a job, such as the one they dream, and earn money.

The second thing I would do to recreate and improve the overall education system, is to push individuals to their fullest potential but also not making it to hard for the individual. Many students in schools these days are not being pushed to their fullest potential. People who are gifted in math are often bored because they are being taught math that is too easy for them. This same thing also happens to other individuals gifted in other areas and their potential is wasted, and they become bored, and worse even get bad grades in the subject they’re good at! Many often lose interest in the areas they are skilled at and find interests else ware. Individual’s talents should be recognized and pushed. If an individual is really good at math, they should be taught individually by a specialized one on one teacher until they are ready to enter a course at a higher grade level. If this is done, this could increase their chances of them being very successful, which can help benefit the world.

While individuals who are gifted at one level should be pushed to a higher potential, others who are weak on another subject level should also get more special attention to get them up to speed. Many individuals who struggle in certain areas can actually get over a hump in their struggles if they are given the extra help. When individuals don’t, it can make problems worse down the road and individuals can become discouraged and not want to try anymore.

I believing a “three level’s classroom” approach would really help individuals excel in what they are good at and help improve areas they struggle in the best. Each subject taught in class should be divided into three levels of difficulty. For example for a math class, there will be three math classes all teaching math. However, each math class will teach math at a specific body of students based on how much they excel in it or struggle in it. One class can be for students who are pretty good at math, one class will be for people who are gifted at math, and the last class can teach math slower and more one-on-one for people who struggle at it so they can improve quicker but also not fall more behind. I believe this will help allow individuals who excel at something, to be given the opportunity to become even more brilliant at that specific subject while others who struggle at a specific subject to catch up and improve in it with a minimal chance of failing or giving up.

The third thing I would do to recreate and improve the overall education system, is to accommodate three basic learning styles. Different people learn differently. Some people are visual learners, which means they learn best visually. Some people are auditory learners, which means they learn best by hearing people talk or reading text. Some are kinesthetic learners, which means they learn best by doing. Many people have a combination of all three learning styles but most are strongest in one of the three types. Most schools unfortunately teach subject matter auditory. This means many individuals who are a super strong visual or kinesthetic learner will struggle learning the subject matter in the classroom lecture or textbooks. If a classroom was divided up into three sections which gave individuals textbooks and learning aids that teach specifically to that specific learning style, this could improve the chances of people learning the subject more and not dropping out. A teacher could successfully teach using all learning styles the same time by simply using different types examples when they teach. For example, when teaching a math problem, she could explain it words first, then she could draw color coded pictures, fraction strips, or charts, and then have people in the class use physical objects like blocks, fraction strips they can use themselves, money to count, or even walk around the room to help further explain the problem to kinesthetic learners. Different examples will not only help assure students can get concepts on a deeper level but it will make learning more fun.

The forth thing I would do to recreate and improve the overall education system, is to have students go to different classes like in high school in earlier grades. In Junior High or High School, students often go to different classes for different subjects or extracurricular activities. In elementary school, most subjects are held mainly in one classroom with exception of a few extracurricular activities. I however believe, this should be done in elementary school, in fact in grade one. The reason why I feel this could help individuals learn better is, first individuals won’t become bored being in one classroom all the time planting a seed or boredom early on. Secondly, switching classes more often will allow individuals to go to different classrooms for the same subject to help teach them at a level they are best suited for. In other words, this will help make the “three level” classroom approach work. Third, switch classes often will help individuals get down time to rest their mind, while also getting slight exercise which can bring oxygen to the brain when walking to another classroom. Forth, switching classes more often will help individuals become more responsible individuals. Having to go to different classrooms may seem kind of daunting for young people but it something that they will easily learn and help them also be more organized at an earlier start. Fifth, switch classes will individuals meet other individuals such as potential friends, and help different teachers know the different variety of students more.

The fifth thing I would do to recreate and improve the overall education system, is to make text books, lectures, and other learning tools easier to understand. Many school text books from elementary school up to high-school are very hard to understand. Many books are written dry with hard to understand examples. Many teachers often lecture in a similar fashion. As previously mentioned, if textbooks were written to accommodate different learning styles it would help. Class lectures with more interaction can help get students more engaged. This could increase their interest in the subject matter increasing their chances in succeeding in learning it.

The sixth thing I would do to recreate and improve the overall education system, is to not proceed to the next topic until most or all of the student understands it. It is very common for teachers to teach the subject to students and then move on to the next point even when some people still don’t understand it. Teachers often do this because they do not want to waste valuable class time explaining things. However, I believe many teachers should take a little bit more time making sure all the students get it before moving on. If some students really struggle at a specific concept and time doesn’t permit, then there can be a specific time slot during the day or class period where they can re-explain things further. With that said, there are times when some students are not paying attention and this can cause time for the rest of the class. In that case, more discipline should be made when individuals do that, and their consequence can be having to have to re-explained during recess or other fun events.

The seventh thing I would do to recreate and improve the overall education system, is to give students the option to retake tests, or assignments if they receive a bad grade. Many students who fail a test have to receive the bad grade and have to proceed to the next chapter without being able to make their grade better from the previous test. I however believe, students should be given that opportunity. I think students should be allowed to be able to retake a similar version of the test again and receive partial credit when they pass it. I believe if a student fails a test, they will be determined to learn what they missed in order to get a better grade. After all, the goal is for the students to be educated.

The eighth thing I would do to recreate and improve the overall education system, is use more summarizing and reviewing the subject taught. I have often noticed when I’ve been in school, main points taught, the main points are not summarized enough. People learn best by having things summarized in the beginning before it is taught and then summarized in the end. Having things summarized in the begging allows people expect what is about to be taught and help expand on the main points in their head. Having the main points summarized in the end helps the individuals review what has been taught and help integrate what they learn. This makes studying it later, much easier. Learning and memorization could be improved even more if previous chapters can be summarized during future subjects and connected to future topics.

The ninth thing I would do to recreate and improve the overall education system, is to have more breaks and downtime to process and integrate information. Class should have more down time and breaks- specifically after a main subject point or subject chapter or section is taught. Many teachers do that some, but I feel this should be done more often. More downtime can help individuals process the information they learn and have it solidify in their head. If people learn too much subject matter at once and then suddenly learn something new, the information will not get solidified or worse cause interference from the other subjects learned afterwards- distorting the information. These small breaks don’t have to last long- only five minutes minimum or ten minutes at most. This time can be used to review the subject, and maybe talking about additional details related to the subject that’s light and fun that doesn’t require making many new connections in the brain.

The tenth thing I would do to recreate and improve the overall education system, is to use homework only to review stuff taught in class. I used to not like doing homework when younger but I believe homework is a good thing. I however believe homework should be only used as a way to review something that has been already taught in class. Homework should not have an individual teach a new subject matter. Many schools require students to read a chapter in a book and then talk about it in class the next day. I believe the opposite should be done, I believe a subject matter should be talked about first in an easy to understand way, everyone should be made sure the understand it. Then the students should read the chapter in the textbook for homework simply as an aid to review what has been taught in greater detail. I believe, being at school should be the time where the brain should do the most activity in learning, while being at home, the brain is use to kind of rest for the next and review what has been taught.

The eleventh thing I would do to recreate and improve the overall education system, is to teach communication and human interaction skills more. School these days focus on many great subjects that help individuals prepare for the real world and be happy individuals. However, there are also a few things the educational system does lack and one of them is teaching individuals how to socialize with others, how to have healthy relationships with future partners, and how to properly communicate. Socialization may come naturally for the most part with most individuals, however, there are always challenges that every individual faces when socializing with friends, being around bosses and co-workers, or with romantic partners which, oftentimes, have to learn the hard way in order to learn. In the process of learning crucial social interactions in specific circumstances people often lose jobs, have split marriages with kids, or do things that end up getting them in trouble, imprisoned, or regret. Some people such as people with Asperger’s or High Functioning Autism or other conditions that might cause them to struggle in certain areas might make them posed to being naive about certain things that may become natural to others. Many people often fall victim of being used by other people because they have not been taught how to detect users and abusers. They classes can teach people how to simply get along- something many adults often struggle with. Existing classes today in the educational help people become educated and book smart as an ally for success and that’s great. However, classes that teach people things like social, communication, and interpersonal skills and how to deal with various challenges related to that matter could also save people a lot of trouble in the future and also make people even more successful.

The twelfth thing I would do to recreate and improve the overall education system, is to teach psychology and positive healthy living habits more. Just like the benefit of having classes in school to help people learn the basic interpersonal social skills, having a class that would teach people basic psychology and how to be a happy person and how to deal with difficult situations in the most proactive way would be even more beneficial. Many people in the world become depressed because they are not sure how to handle difficult situations. Many people in this world suffer because they aren’t sure how to not suffer. Many people are depressed, angry, insecure, jealous of others, incompetent, and often don’t meet their fullest potential of success and pleasure. Others often try to hide their negative feelings by undermining others, competing, and cut others down such as at work. This is happy because people suffer and they have not been taught how to not suffer. In truth people can learn to handle just about any kind of situation and not suffer negative feelings by simply learning how. Classes at school can teach people how to do this. Classes can teach people how to be proactive, how to handle stress, conflict resolution, how to handle a loss, family challenges, how control anger, and how to have a good attitude. They can teach individuals mindfulness. Individuals can learn how to handle any kind of situation, no matter how bad, and figure out how to handle it and find the good in it. This class can teach individuals the true pleasure of giving and helping others. Also it can talk about how some people can be dishonest, greedy, and be corrupted in a powerful position such as work and may get away with it, but how being truly honest and good can get you further in terms of success and happiness.

The thirteenth thing I would do to recreate and improve the overall education system, is to have classes that teaches students about jobs and careers. Classes that talk about different jobs and career paths that give exposure of what they are even at an early age can be very helpful in preparing individuals towards a successful future. Many individuals, as they grow up, change interests and thus change their career dreams. Many people often graduate from high school and enter college having no ideas what career to get into. Worse, many people graduate from college entering a field they find themselves not interested in or even hating. Early exposure to different careers would help an individual decide what career would be best for them because they would already have an idea of what it is like. Courses can cover all the different types of jobs categories, the skills it takes to enter it, and what they job would be like working there. In higher grades such as in high school, these courses can also help prepare individuals to be successful at their job by learning job related skills ahead of time that you would only learn at a job. Furthermore the classes can also teach people how to write a resume, cover letter, and how to do well in an interview.

The fourteenth thing I would do to recreate and improve the overall education system, is to only serve healthy food in the school cafeteria. Healthy eating habits can significantly improve your energy level and your ability to think clearly and focus. Unfortunately, many school serve unhealthy food at the school lunches. Pizza, nachos, and process foods are often served to save money. Many of these foods contain chemicals and carbohydrates that will make people’s energy spike for a moment and then mentally and physically crash. Furthermore, school snack such as chips, ice cream, and coke are often served as well as treat. As a result, many students use their lunch money to buy junk food during every lunch period after they eat their processed foods. Fruits and vegetables are very cheap in their natural form and they are the most healthy among anything. If more schools used their money to order fruits in bulk and cook more natural meals, a slight amount of money would increase, however a significant amount of improvement in energy and mental clarity would be apparent in the students. Many students may moan about not being able to eat ice-cream and coke for their meal, but it won’t take long for them to realize apples are good too, have more energy, and they will develop a healthy eating habit at their school without even realizing it.

The fifteenth thing I would do to recreate and improve the overall education system, is to have more extracurricular activities and extracurricular type classes at earlier grades. Music, science, art, theater, gym, sciences, creative writing, shop, home economics, and computers classes are what the building blocks of most careers are made of. Furthermore, students enjoy these kinds of classes. Unfortunately, many schools are cutting these classes especially in earlier grades to save money in their budget. These classes are very important and need to be enrolled even as early as first grade. These kinds of classes give students exposure to the different types of things students can do as future jobs when they get older. Furthermore, extracurricular helps students discover passions and interests they never thought they never had. Moreover, they will receive a foundation early on of a potential career interested to build early on while also be more well rounded in knowledge from the other extracurricular programs.

The sixteenth thing I would do to recreate and improve the overall education system, is to have more report cards per school year. Most schools and educational systems give feedback showing their grades on a paper like a report card only three times per school year. However, I believe grades should be presented more times a year such as twice that. The reason why I believe this should be done is that it can first, provide more feedback to the student as well as the students parents about his or her progress. Secondly, a more broken down micro semester system allows the individual to think in terms of smaller manageable goals instead of fewer larger goals that are harder to achieve. For example if an individual fails one semester, there are many more semester he or she feels could he or she could make it up to in order to maintain a good grade.

The seventeenth thing I would do to recreate and improve the overall education system, is to actually have students receive a small salary during the school year based on their grades! Yes this may sound crazy but I think this is a possible solution as well. Let me rephrase this in another way. Schools can be made more too look more like a job for students who attend it. This means they can earn money while being in school. The government who provides the education budget for the school can use a small percentage to pay the students based on their performance. In other words, students can earn money based on how good their grade is. When they receive their report card, they can also receive a paycheck and the wage would depend on how good their grades are. For example, they can receive 20 dollars for every A, 10 for every B, 5 for every C, and so on. I believe education and the knowledge they get from the school is most important. However, I believe a small amount of pay rate base on their performance could also drive students to want to learn more. I believe the best way to help achieve goals that require effort is to have an award attached to the goal to drive you to achieving it. Furthermore, I believe a small salary would also help train a student’s mindset earlier on, what it’s like to work at an actual job that you get paid and the need to work hard to earn it.

A person’s education is very important. A good education can help the world as a whole. However most educational systems that provide the education for people often lack many things and have other things that could be improved in order to enrich the quality of the education the person can receive in order to live a happy, successful life. I have talked about seventeen different ways in which I feel the educational system could be improved if I had recreate the educational systems in this world. Some of the things I covered include: how subject matter is taught, how classes are setup focus on individuals skills in one area and others struggling in other areas, additional classes and programs that should be taught, improving the quality of food, and even providing a salary for all the students to motivate them to learn. I am well aware, I don’t have a teaching degree, nor do I direct a school or school system, but I who have been in many different schools, and know a lot of people who have worked in a school know a little bit about how it works. Between my knowledge and interest in schools and my struggle I’ve had when studying and learning material in a variety of classroom settings, I was inspired to maybe mention some of these ideas I have had for many years. I'm not planning on starting my own school or getting into a political official or anything like that, but my goal in writing this is to hopefully inspire a few individuals interested in the educational system for many some added perspective from an individual who struggles but has strong drive and desire in overcoming challenges. If you have any other thoughts or ideas about how education could be improved, or even any disagreements into what I wrote, please share your information because your feedback in valuable to me and other people interested in this sort of thing. Thanks for reading.

James Edwin Hackett IV