Tailor education to individuals, not to taking a test

Darlene Schottle’s guest opinion on Common Core standards for Montana shed some light on the process; however, I have two thoughts for the superintendent of schools for Kalispell School District 5.

First, does every student require the same education measured by national standards? Toby Cosgrove, a world-famous cardiac surgeon and now CEO of the Cleveland Clinic, a $4.5-billion-a-year enterprise and world renowned medical center, struggled for C’s and D’s in school due to dyslexia. Steve Jobs, Bill Gates and Frank Lloyd Wright all dropped out of college. I agree with having some structure in early education to pull up those who struggle academically, but perhaps the answer is to do a better assessment of individual skills and tailor education to the student rather than one-size-fits-all testing to demand that all students fit a particular mold. There is no shame in being the best auto mechanic, salesman, welder, electronics repairman, etc.  

Of course everyone should learn basic math and reading skills, but education focused on trade skills should begin in high school and certainly all students needn’t be shamed into thinking that lack of performance on standardized high school testing or lack of  a college degree equals failure. There are a lot of unemployed college graduates, but far fewer unemployed skilled workers.      

Second, if Montana students score sixth in the WORLD in math and fourth in the WORLD in science, why on earth would you want to change anything? We are constantly assaulted by liberals and internationalists about our horrible carbon footprint, our international bullying, how bad our medicine is and how bad our education is.  Seems as though the United States, at least according to them, does nothing well.  

If it is all about giving the children the best education we can so they can compete on the world stage, and (at least in math and science) we are doing that here in Montana, why on earth try to fix something that isn’t broken?

Myerowitz is a resident of Columbia Falls