Reply #12: EVERY point in the OP title is WRONG: It is LACK of any memorization that is killing US education. [View All]

[WinkyDink]

Students need not actually learn and remember ANYthing beyond arithmetic and the alphabet. All they DO is sit in groups and "brainstorm." FACTS are ANATHEMA IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS.

2.) THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A "STANDARDIZED CURRICULUM." A CURSORY glance at, say, three contiguous school districts would have made this abundantly clear. Textbooks, lesson plans, course offerings, grading systems,....ALL DIFFERENT IN SOME IF NOT ALL RESPECTS.

3.) THERE IS NO NATIONAL STANDARDIZED TESTING. PA., e.g., gives its own PSSA tests, developed at the state level by a consortium of local entities, for Grades 4, 8, 11, and maybe more at this point.
http://www.portal.state.pa.us/portal/server.pt/community/pennsylvania_system_of_school_assessment_%28pssa%29/8757

BTW: You will notice that only science and mathematics are considered valuable. Technological innovation rules. No more do human beings care to discover the wherefores of their humanity.

And THAT is why American students admire Ayn Rand.