Pop quiz. What year was this written?
“Our once unchallenged pre-eminence in commerce, industry, science and technological innovation is being overtaken by competitors throughout the world. … The educational foundations of our society are presently being eroded by a rising tide of mediocrity.”
2012? 2004? 2000? Try 1983.
These days, it sounds as if things have been bad for decades and are getting worse with each passing day. But statistics trotted out periodically — usually by education officials who are lobbying for more funding — are not painting an accurate picture.
But empirical evidence shows a completely different story. So, why do people who claim to care the most about education continually use terms like ‘dismal’ about American students?
Discover the real story by reading the article written by Alex Berezow and Hank Campbell featured in USA Today.