Students in more countries passing those of the USA, UK, Australia, & New Zealand
In something that should not come as a shock to most of us, a new study shows that students in other countries are passing those on the USA and UK and Australia:
December 3, 2013
The Programme for International Student Assessment (Pisa) ranks 65 countries. The UK was rated 26th for maths, 23rd for reading and 21st for science.
It is the first time the UK average score has not been ranked in the top 20 in any subject…
Scotland scored 513 points for science, behind England, which scored 516.
Wales performs worst across the three subjects, the research shows. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-25198792
December 3, 2013
The average estimated score in math was 494. Canada had 518. Shanghai, China topped the list in math with an average of 613. Canada was also outperformed by Singapore, Hong Kong, Chinese Taipei, Korea, Macau, Japan, Liechtenstein and Switzerland. http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2013/12/03/pisa-results-canada-student-rankings_n_4376190.html
AUSTRALIAN teenagers’ reading and maths skills have fallen so far in a decade that nearly half lack basic maths skills and a third are practically illiterate.
The dumbing down of a generation of Australian teenagers is exposed in the latest global report card on 15-year-olds’ academic performance…
Poland has now leapfrogged Australia in maths, helping push Australia from 11th place 2003 to 19th in 2012.
Australian teens came fourth in PISA’s world literacy rankings in 2003, trailing only Finland, Korea and Canada.
But they now rank an equal 13th with New Zealand.
The ranking for science fell from 6th place in 2006, to 16th place in 2012. http://www.news.com.au/national/pisa-report-finds-australian-teenagers-education-worse-than-10-years-ago/story-fncynjr2-1226774541525
December 3, 2013
The results show that New Zealand 15-year-olds who came through the education system from 2001-2012 are continuing to score above the OECD average in all three topics. However, New Zealand’s ranking on the OECD scale is lower than the last PISA report, particularly for maths and science. http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA1312/S00063/pisa-results-confirm-education-challenge.htm
Scores in math, reading and science posted by 15-year-olds in the United States were flat while their counterparts elsewhere — particularly in Shanghai, Singapore and other Asian provinces or countries — soared ahead…
Our scores are stagnant. We’re not seeing any improvement for our 15-year-olds,” said Jack Buckley, commissioner at the National Center for Education Statistics, the research arm of the U.S. Department of Education. “But our ranking is flipping because a lot of these other countries are improving.”The test scores offer fresh evidence for those who argue that the United States is losing ground to competitors in the global market and others who say a decade’s worth of school reform has done little to improve educational outcomes. “While the intentions may have been good, a decade of top-down, test-based schooling created by No Child Left Behind and Race to the Top — focused on hyper-testing students, sanctioning teachers and closing schools — has failed to improve the quality of American public education,” Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, said in a statement…
Shanghai dominated the exam, occupying the top slot in all three subjects. The Chinese province has catapulted to the top in PISA over the past decade after focusing on teacher preparation and investing in its most challenging classrooms, among other things.
Germany, Poland and Vietnam were among several countries that made significant improvements in their test scores…On the math portion, 28 countries tested better than the United States. Aside from the Asia powerhouses of Shanghai, Singapore, Hong Kong, Taipei, Korea, Japan, the United States was outscored by a string of European countries including Latvia, the United Kingdom, Poland, France, Germany and Slovenia. http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/us-students-lag-around-average-on-international-science-math-and-reading-test/2013/12/02/2e510f26-5b92-11e3-a49b-90a0e156254b_story.html
The “Race to the Top” program was announced by USA President Barack Obama and Secretary of Education Arne Duncan on July 24, 2009. The “no child left behind” law was signed by then USA President George W. Bush on January 8, 2002. And at least Randi Weingarten, the president of the American Federation of Teachers, does not feel that they have been effective.
Here is the list of the top 36 according to the PISA report:
Pisa results 2012
Source: OECD, PISA http://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2013/dec/03/pisa-results-country-best-reading-maths-science
0 OECD average 494 496 501 1 Shanghai-China 613 570 580 2 Singapore 573 542 551 3 Hong Kong-China 561 545 555 4 Taiwan 560 523 523 5 S.Korea 554 536 538 6 Macau-China 538 509 521 7 Japan 536 538 547 8 Liechtenstein 535 516 525 9 Switzerland 531 509 515 10 Netherlands 523 511 522 11 Estonia 521 516 541 12 Finland 519 524 545 13 Canada 518 523 525 14 Poland 518 518 526 15 Belgium 515 509 505 16 Germany 514 508 524 17 Vietnam 511 508 528 18 Austria 506 490 506 19 Australia 504 512 521 20 Ireland 501 523 522 21 Slovenia 501 481 514 22 Denmark 500 496 498 23 New Zealand 500 512 516 24 Czech Republic 499 493 508 25 France 495 505 499 26 UK 494 499 514 27 Iceland 493 483 478 28 Latvia 491 489 502 29 Luxembourg 490 488 491 30 Norway 489 504 495 31 Portugal 487 488 489 32 Italy 485 490 494 33 Spain 484 488 496 34 Russian Federation 482 475 486 35 Slovak Republic 482 463 471 36 USA 481 498 497
Having students improve, of course, is good. Yet, for the USA & UK & Australia, since its students are not truly improving, other nations will be able to develop technological and economic advances because of this. This will not bode well for the USA, nor its Anglo-Saxon allies, including Canada and New Zealand (both of which did relatively well on the test). But, the basic message of the report is that the Anglo-Saxon nations are being passed up academically.
Education is important, and should be important to everybody. And not just for economic reasons.
In the last century, in his The Seven Laws of Success booklet, the late Herbert W. Armstrong wrote:
The Vital Second Law
And so, if you are to arrive at SUCCESS in LIFE, you must first set the right goal, and then comes the PREPARATION to achieve that goal.
So, the SECOND law of success in time sequence, is EDUCATION, or PREPARATION.
How can one expect to accomplish his purpose unless he acquires the know-how?
One thing we need to know about life—and many do not—is that humans do not come equipped with instinct.
To this extent, the dumb animals have a certain advantage over us. They do not have to learn. They never need weary their brains with book learning.
The new born calf does not have to be taught how to walk. It starts immediately to get up on its somewhat infirm and uncertain legs. It may fall down on the first or second attempt, but in a matter of a few moments it stands, even if a little unsteady at first. It does not require a year or two—not even an hour or two—the little calf starts walking in a few minutes! It does not need to reason out any goals. It requires no textbooks, nor teaching. It instinctively knows its goal—dinner! And it knows, also instinctively, the way. On its own four legs it proceeds immediately to the first meal!
I have repeated so many times: birds build nests—by instinct. No one teaches them how. Five generations of weaver birds, isolated from nests or nest-building materials, never saw a nest. When nest-building materials were made accessible, the sixth generation, without any instruction, proceeded to build nests! They were not crows’ nests or eagles’ nests. They were the same kind of nests weaver birds have built since creation. They had no minds to think out, imagine, design, and construct a different kind of nest.
Of course dogs, horses, elephants, dolphins, and some other animals can be taught and trained to do certain tricks. But they cannot reason, imagine, think, plan, design and construct new and different things. They do not acquire knowledge, perceive truth from error, make decisions, and employ WILL to exercise self-discipline according to their own reasoned wisdom and decisions. THEY CANNOT DEVELOP MORAL AND SPIRITUAL CHARACTER.
But humans have it not quite so easy. Humans have to learn, or be taught. Humans have to learn to walk, to talk, to eat or drink.
We don’t come to these basic accomplishments instinctively and immediately like the dumb animals. It may take a little more time. It may come a little harder. But we can go on to learn reading, writing, and “rithmetic”!
Then we can go further, and learn to appreciate literature, music, art. We can learn to think and reason, to conceive a new idea, to plan, design, construct.
We can investigate, experiment, invent telescopes and learn something about outer space and far-off planets, stars, and galaxies. We invent microscopes and learn about infinitesimal particles of matter.
We learn about electricity, laws of physics and chemistry. We learn to use the wheel, construct highways, and roll over ground faster than any animal. We learn to fly higher, farther and faster than any bird. We learn how to take nature apart and make it work for us. We discover and utilize nuclear energy.
But we have to LEARN—to STUDY—to be EDUCATED—to be PREPARED for what we propose to do.
One if the first things we need to learn is –that we need to learn!
Once you have learned enough to CHOOSE A GOAL, the second step toward successfully accomplishing that goal is to LEARN THE WAY—to acquire the additional education, training, experience, to give you the know-how to achieve your goal.
Most people fail to set any definite goals. Having no specific aims, they neglect the specialized EDUCATION to make possible the attainment of their purpose.
Now all these men whose case histories I have recounted had goals. They had the overall purpose of acquiring possessions, attaining status, and enjoying the passing moments. As a means to this objective, they had the specialized goals of succeeding in banking, industry, politics, acting, writing, or whatever. They all EDUCATED THEMSELVES for their particular profession or calling.
They were broad enough to realize that education included not only book learning, but personality development, leadership, experience, knowledge form contacts and associations, and from observation.
Yet these “successful” people were not really successful. They not only chose an overall goal that led them in the way of false values, they also failed to equip themselves with the RIGHT education to make possible that REAL LASTING success—fulfilling the PURPOSE of life.
There is, then, a right and a false education.
These successful people were not lastingly successful. Their education failed to teach them the TRUE VALUES. They chose goals that led them in the way of false values that didn’t last.
The entire system of education in this world neglects to recapture the true values. Even the scholarly educators themselves too often devote themselves to arduous years of research into non-essential and useless channels.
The basic and most essential knowledge—the true values, the meaning and purpose of life, the WAY to peace, to happiness and abundant well-being—these basics are never taught. Because I was given to see this decadence in modern education—to recognize this tragic knowledge gap—I was led to found a college that fills this need.
Right education must teach that all things are a matter of cause and effect—that for every result, whether good or evil, there is a cause. True education will teach the CAUSE of this world’s evils—of personal or collective troubles—so that they may be avoided. Also it much instruct in the CAUSE of this world’s evils—of personal or collective troubles—so that they may be avoided. Also it must instruct in the CAUSE of the GOOD results, that we may know how to win them instead of the troubles. Right education must not stop at teaching TO LIVE! It must know, and teach, the PURPOSE of human life, and how to fulfill it.
Decadent education has spawned student revolt, which has, on occasion, plunged many colleges and universities into states of violence and chaos!
It’s another significant tragedy of our time!
This world is dissemination false education that has come down to us from the thinking, philosophizing, yet misguided pagans who lacked a knowledge of the true values and purposes of life! The true history of education is an eye-opening story in itself!
Not only can the right education “open doors,” it helps many people become more productive. It helps people live up to more of their potential, physical, and for some, spiritual as well.
Some items of possibly related interest may include:
Why Were You Born? Why did God make you? Herbert W. Armstrong wrote this as a booklet on this important subject. You may also wish to read the article What is Your Destiny? or watch the video, also titled What is Your Destiny?
What is the Meaning of Life? Who does God say is happy? What is your ultimate destiny? Do you really know? Does God actually have a plan for YOU personally? There is also a video titled What is the meaning of your life?
The Seven Laws of Success Herbert W. Armstrong had seven laws that he felt could help people become successful. And the second “law” has to do with health.
Anglo – America in Prophecy & the Lost Tribes of Israel Are the Americans, Canadians, English, Scottish, Welsh, Australians, Anglo-Saxon (non-Dutch) Southern Africans, and New Zealanders descendants of Joseph? Where are the lost ten-tribes of Israel? Who are the lost tribes of Israel? What will happen to Jerusalem and the Jews in Israel? Will God punish the U.S.A., Canada, United Kingdom, and other Anglo-Saxon nations? Why might God allow them to be punished first?
Barack Obama, Prophecy, and the Destruction of the United States-Second Edition for Second Obama Term This is a 160 page book for people truly interested in prophecies related to Barack Obama and the United States, including learning about many that have already been fulfilled (which the book documents in detail) and those that will be fulfilled in the future. It also has a chapter about a Republican choice. This book is available to order at www.barackobamaprophecy.com. The physical book can also be purchased at Amazon from the following link: Barack Obama, Prophecy, and the Destruction of the United States: Is Barack Obama Fulfilling Biblical, Islamic Catholic, Kenyan, and other America-Related Prophecies? What About Republican Leaders? Second Edition for Second Obama Term.
Barack Obama, Prophecy, and the Destruction of the United States-Second Term-Amazon Kindle edition. This electronic version is available for only US$2.99. And you do not need an actual Kindle device to read it. Why? Amazon will allow you to download it to almost any device: Please click HERE to download one of Amazon s Free Reader Apps. After you go to for your free Kindle reader and then go to Barack Obama, Prophecy, and the Destruction of the United States-Second Term-Amazon Kindle edition.
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