I agree; probably the article is excessively polemicized. I do think the author has a point, but he oversimplifies in making it a black and white, us vs germany thing.
I think the biggest difference is that it seems that in US schools, due to the high risks teachers face from litigation and the various incentive structures, the situation has degenerated to an "inmates running the asylum" scenario. The teachers, simply put, lack the ability to impose some minimum level of order and discipline, and the worst are allowed to run amok to the detriment of all of those remaining in the class. The focus in education in the last twenty years has always been "not leaving someone behind", and of course that sounds at worst anodyne if not downright saintly. Sadly, "not leaving someone behind" is in practical terms often paid for by the good students not being able to pay attention during class or being harrassed by the bad kids.
I think it is probably along this dimension where there is the greatest disparity between the US and Europe. In Europe, at least to my mind, there seems to be more deference to authority, in particular to the teacher. Just as a silly example: in the US, there was a recent supreme court case where some kid had a banner that said "Bong Hits For Jesus" at a school event. The kid was ordered to remove the banner and IIRC was suspended or the like; nothing huge. So he took the school all the way to the supreme court! Aside from the absurd legal waste here, and despite the fact that he lost his appeal, what strikes me is the sense of entitlement. I don't think it would even cross a French or German high school student's mind to try to pull a stunt like that.
On the other hand, US universities are the envy of the world --- and the concentration of US universities in the FT top universities ranking is evidence of that -- and there is no shortage of nerd glorification at these institutions. Also one need look no further than Silicon Valley to conclude that the situation for the US is far from lost.
Finally, I would add that, in respect of high school education, it does seem that in more than a few places Europe is regressing in performance, and for much the same reason as the US and indeed many other countries: we've relaxed the system, made it easier for students, in particular the bad and disruptive ones, with predictable results. Not that I'm advocating a return to harsh punishment, sadistic teachers, militant drills, etc., but I think we need to think carefully about the overall incentives for students and teachers and ask if, in the current constellation, society is best served.
I think the biggest difference is that it seems that in US schools, due to the high risks teachers face from litigation and the various incentive structures, the situation has degenerated to an "inmates running the asylum" scenario. The teachers, simply put, lack the ability to impose some minimum level of order and discipline, and the worst are allowed to run amok to the detriment of all of those remaining in the class. The focus in education in the last twenty years has always been "not leaving someone behind", and of course that sounds at worst anodyne if not downright saintly. Sadly, "not leaving someone behind" is in practical terms often paid for by the good students not being able to pay attention during class or being harrassed by the bad kids.
I think it is probably along this dimension where there is the greatest disparity between the US and Europe. In Europe, at least to my mind, there seems to be more deference to authority, in particular to the teacher. Just as a silly example: in the US, there was a recent supreme court case where some kid had a banner that said "Bong Hits For Jesus" at a school event. The kid was ordered to remove the banner and IIRC was suspended or the like; nothing huge. So he took the school all the way to the supreme court! Aside from the absurd legal waste here, and despite the fact that he lost his appeal, what strikes me is the sense of entitlement. I don't think it would even cross a French or German high school student's mind to try to pull a stunt like that.
On the other hand, US universities are the envy of the world --- and the concentration of US universities in the FT top universities ranking is evidence of that -- and there is no shortage of nerd glorification at these institutions. Also one need look no further than Silicon Valley to conclude that the situation for the US is far from lost.
Finally, I would add that, in respect of high school education, it does seem that in more than a few places Europe is regressing in performance, and for much the same reason as the US and indeed many other countries: we've relaxed the system, made it easier for students, in particular the bad and disruptive ones, with predictable results. Not that I'm advocating a return to harsh punishment, sadistic teachers, militant drills, etc., but I think we need to think carefully about the overall incentives for students and teachers and ask if, in the current constellation, society is best served.