Abstract
News media often publish comparative studies that report U.S. student performance in a global context. The school quality concern seems so simplistic that anyone who had compulsory education can chime into the discussion. In this article, the condition of U.S. education is further disentangled across the boundary of K-12 and higher education. Core program features are examined to reveal profound factors behind student performance in mathematics and science. These findings are grounded on triangulation of the interrelated observations that are typically obscured from test score comparisons across nations.
Highlights
Casual discussions concerning school quality happen every so often at American dinner tables (Brandburn, Hartel, Schwille, & Torney-Purta, 1991; Rotberg, 1990; 1991)
If human resource development does not stop at the K-12 levels, why don’t we divert some attention to the quality indicators of higher education that have a more profound impact on the future economy? In this regard, Rotberg (1991) adduced the following education indicators behind the American competitiveness in the global economy: 1) How productive is the U.S in basic and applied research fields? What does the marketplace say about the research opportunities in our institutions of higher learning? 2) What are our accomplishments in making major technological advances, as measured by patents and their application in products, in areas such as semiconductors, biotechnology, materials development, radiation imagery chemistry, information storage and retrieval, medical research, and pharmaceuticals?
Similar to the relationship between research and development (R&D) and customer service divisions in industry, college scientists or mathematicians should collaborate with educators for ongoing improvement of school quality in the core subject domains
Summary
Casual discussions concerning school quality happen every so often at American dinner tables (Brandburn, Hartel, Schwille, & Torney-Purta, 1991; Rotberg, 1990; 1991) This topic has drawn more public attention after President Obama’s first major speech on education – In March of 2009, the President called for drastically improving K-12 student achievement to regain lost international standing (see Klein, 2009). School curriculum is examined to identify profound factors behind student performance in mathematics and science. Since those core subjects are taught around the world, the comparative lens may help enrich our understanding of U.S education in the global context
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