School isn’t changing

In American schools, every five days out of the week, kids are expected to go to school for 12 years of their life. 12 years of information and curriculum has struggled to keep up with the rapidly changing environment. A reason school has not changed is the way that school is organized.

Classrooms are expected to have desks in neat rows and oftentimes have a seating chart for the students and have to ask permission to move. Students should have the ability to move desks to encourage collaboration. By encouraging better communication among students in a group, they will have an easier time solving problems at a comfortable pace.

The grading system is now doing more harm than good. When students complain that they feel rushed and pressured in school, the main reason is the grades they get. Sometimes students bite off more than they can chew, but other times what they mean is true. It makes students feel like they are competing against others and living up to expectations to maintain a perfect grade. Yes, it tells students, teachers, and parents how well they’re doing in school, but for some students, they just feel pressured. Which will make them probably do worse in school. However, not all schools around the world use this type of grading. Countries like Germany use a grading system that uses one to six. One being the highest and six being the lowest. This would put less strain on student’s minds, yet still understand the importance of maintaining a good grade in school.

Another thing that troubles students are the early times when class starts.The school start time depends on the district’s choice for many U.S. states, which is a problem for some students. There are other factors that play in a teenager’s life, other than when class starts, that may affect not only attendance, but their performance in school as well. Many teenagers assume more responsibilities outside of school such as work, chores around the house. Followed by extracurricular activities like sports, performances, or competitions. And the less time they have to do the other responsibilities, their performance will diminish in everything they are a part of.

As stated before, students struggle with keeping up with school from the tedious and stale seating, the pressure and strain of the grading system and then the early class starting times, and these are ways to fix those problems.