Why the American education system is failing. Let me point out a fact that people know but are afraid to admit: America's education system is broken. Decades of failed education policies, decades of political commitment, and decades of miscommunication and misunderstanding about education have reduced the system to what it is today. Our students are ranked 21st in the world even though we spend more on education than most countries. Finland, on the other hand, spends 30% less than America and yet is ranked number one, or within a spot or two, in math, reading and science. Why then? Well, one nation is obsessed with testing and another is obsessed with educational innovation; teach according to a curriculum handed down by politicians, who have little or no knowledge of how to educate properly, and students' abilities are measured by tests. As we move through the school years, the emphasis on testing becomes stronger and stronger until there is literally no other way to measure student progress. However, this strong adherence to testing has managed to delay progress. I've always wondered if tests are supposed to measure ability, why are there review sessions the day before? Why are standardized tests intended to measure progress (HSPA, NJASK, etc.) now prepared in advance if not for the sole purpose of obtaining high scores? We've gone from "educating the future" to "faking it until you make it." Instead of stimulating curiosity (which is the driving force behind learning in children and adolescents), we implement test-taking strategies. Instead of trying to instill lasting knowledge, trying to make students score high on the next exam, while knowing in the middle of the article......some believe that defunding education is a good way forward for this nation. . We have created a system that values ​​test scores as more important than learning and we have failed to provide meaningful incentives to teachers by placing inadequate emphasis on teaching and innovation. These are sincere and egregious crimes that the government and the system are committing and it is time for change. Some might ask, “Can we keep standardization and improve it?” The answer to this question is “no”. It’s a flawed system; it treats students like products in a factory. We are organic beings, where learning is unique among us all. How can the United States claim that it is first in the world when it is not even in the top twenty when it comes to educating its future? To learn more, see the Smithsonian report Why are Finnish schools successful? and Sir Ken Robinson's TEDTalks.