Eric Ngo. "How can we change the education system as we know?" edsurgeindependent.

com 3
Dec 2018 https://edsurgeindependent.com/how-can-we-change-the-education-system-as-we-
know-5ed6dd7ca9f1 (Links to an external site.)
edsurgeindependent writer, Eric Ngo brings up a major flaw in the education system. As a boy
who grew up in Vietnam, he talks about all the books he loved to read as a child. He goes on to
talk about how once he was accepted in his teens to schools, the focus on a set education and
grades became a big part of him. He had to give up the things he loved to read, to focus on his
academics. But once he got to college, they asked him what are his interests and passions. And
he couldn't answer them. He reflected on how the system is flawed, and how it failed to spark
interest. He went back to read books on biology, history, and so on. He brings up many
alternatives to how we can fix the education system for the better. Like focusing on group efforts
and self-reliance.
This article shed some more light on the flaws of the education system from a different
perspective from my own. It showed me that this issue is not only not exclusive, it is common. It
showed me the importance of interests and talents, and how that should play a bigger part in
the education system. This website has many interesting and reliable articles to use as sources
of information.
Eric tends to lean on his own experiences and emotions for this article. He does bring up
statistics, but not as much as you would think. He does show some of the ways that the system
could be changed for the better. And not just his own ideas, but ideas that have been brought
up or offered before. Schools tend to not let you focus on your passions or interests, without
having some kind of drawback to grades and academics.
Kathleen McCartney. "Why school reform is urgent." CNN.com 30 August
2010 https://www.cnn.com/2010/OPINION/08/30/mccartney.new.schools/index.html (Links to an
external site.)
A writer from CNN known as Kathleen McCartney, has this to say in her article. At the start of
the article, she brings up how kids are getting ready to head back to school. Their parents are
getting them new supplies, to soften the blow of the end to their summer vacation. She then
goes on to talk about how the government was incentivizing better performances for schools.
But how this kind of pressure doesn't work for the system we have in place for school districts.
She talks about how the system has failed kids of diverse backgrounds, a statement of
inequality in our schools. The statistics she brings up only help to hammer in her point, of how
we need to change the education system.
This article has given me more background on the statistic end of this argument. l always
thought that system was unfair to those of lower income, but this only drives it home. It has
given me more evidence for my paper, and was a wonderful source of information. CNN is a
very trustworthy source of information and news. So I have no doubts about the credibility of this
websites information.
The statistics Kathleen brings up, point to schools all across America. She even brings up
Americas place in the education system against other countries. We are 21 out of 25, which is
kind of sad. The way the government measures the effectiveness of certain schools also is
flawed, due to the nature of some school districts. All in all, she goes over how we should
change the education system for the better.
Lynch Matthew "18 Reasons the U.S. Education System is Failing" The
Edvocate  https://www.theedadvocate.org/10-reasons-the-u-s-education-system-is-failing/  (Link
s to an external site.)
   This article goes over all the main points of this pressing issue. Everything from, high school
dropout rates, lack of innovation and new teaching methods, budget restraints, inequality of
colleges, and many more. The article covers almost every base needed for this argument, and
is a great source of information and support. I think the best pillars of the argument are how the
system is unequal to all parties and how it doesn't benefit new students with its's teaching style. 
  This article is obviously in defense of changing the education system and goes over the most
important points of the argument. It pretty much nails every part of the debate across the board.
There isn't one stone left unturned, and this one in particular will probably be my most valuable
source of information. The audience of this article is also a big plus. It is the general public it's
aimed for, meaning it reaches the broadest audience possible. And while the source isn't
something like CNN, I would still count it as very reliable.
  The article added a lot more points for me to work off of, and was great reference material for
my argument. Now that I have a solid list to work off of, it will be a lot less difficult to structure
my paper. What surprised me most about this source is just how thorough it all is. This article
covers about everything you need to know on this topic, at least on a surface level. My views
have only been reinforced by this article. Now I need to go more in depth into each of these
points to deliver a solid argument. I will look to other sources for more information.
Worzel Richard "Why Education Must Change" Tech
Magazine  https://teachmag.com/archives/1525 (Links to an external site.)
  This source takes the argument on the stance of how we should try to teach to the individual
rather than a bigger group. That students should aim to be creative thinkers. The article goes on
about how the students of today are smart and skeptical. And since they are this way, the
education system needs to change to accommodate. We can no longer have basic surface level
academics, but we need to focus on careers on how to use this information for practical use.
  The viewpoint of this source is honestly a little bit pretentious in how it goes about displaying
its opinions. It gives off the vibe of those kids in the chess club who always act like they're
tactical geniuses. Because of this I think they'll have a harder time swaying opinion. Though
they do fit into the same side of the debate, I wouldn't align myself with these nerds. They lose
their audience by talking in such a high-handed condescending way, and I think it makes the
article become less effective. Even though the source is very credible.
  I think this is probably the weakest source I’ve come across so far, since it doesn't add much in
evidence to the conversation. If anything, it makes the argument seem petty or unimportant.
They're debate while written soundly, is not worded well enough to sway judgement to their
side. I was surprised since I thought this source would be as good as the others. My views on
the matter still stand however. I will have to look into finding better sources for my paper and for
this argument.
Boyes Tui Karen "Why our education system needs to change." Education
Central  https://educationcentral.co.nz/why-our-education-system-needs-to-change/ (Links to an
external site.)
  This article is probably the most interesting one I have read yet. It goes over how we need to
focus on what the author refers to as "soft skills". These include things like, teamwork, creativity,
empathy, and social skills. They also go over how the style of teaching we are using in not
adequate. The way we teach subjects in three-week blocks isn't how we should be using our
schools. We should as other articles have prefaced, focus on the individual. How they should be
prepped with practical life knowledge, and to focus on mastery of skills. These are the kinds of
things that this article goes over.
  Once again, this article is on the side of change to the system, which isn't surprising. But I
think this article takes and interesting perspective for the debate. Most other sources would go
over financials or the logistics of change. But this article instead chooses to focus on not only
what we should be teaching, but why these interesting ones in particular. This article is like
others, taking the best approach and being as broad as possible for its audience. And the
broader you are, the better chance you have at swaying public opinion. And since the source is
credible, it has a better chance as well.
  This source has a more interesting take on the issue, which I think works in it's benefit. It
focused on a different side of the issue not talked about, and in a creative way. It has added a
lot for my debate, and will make the overall argument stronger.  The focus on emotional
teaching was the most surprising part about this source, but in a good way. It has changed my
perspective on the issue, but in better way I feel. I want to look into this side of the argument
more.
The people "What Students Are Saying About How To Improve American Education" The New
York Times  https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/19/learning/what-students-are-saying-about-
how-to-improve-american-education.html (Links to an external site.)
  Now this source is in my opinion, is the most interesting. As stated in the title, the source of
this article is real students. It shows from each of their perspectives what they think would be
beneficial to change in the system. They go over things like, pressure, the elimination of tests,
use of technology, and much more. There is about 10 or so of these student submissions, and
they all add a lot of strength to this argument.  Reading from the student’s perspective is what
this article is going for, and it works.
  The students are all on the side of change, but the interesting part about this article is how
each student views how we should go about this change to the system. Since it's the students
writing, it fits perfectly for this debate. The people most affected by this change should be the
most important source. The audience is also once again the general public, but with a little more
appeal to students. And since it's the New York Times featuring these students, there is no
question of its credibility.
  This source has had the biggest impact on my way of viewing this argument. Seeing this
debate from the sides of the people who it matters most, really adds a lot to an argument. This
has strengthened not only my debate, but my resolve for this argument. The biggest pleasant
surprise of this article was its source, the students. The different perspectives made the article a
very interesting read. My views are only now more strengthened. I want to focus on the student
perspective for my side of the argument.