The Marvels of Modern Education

Thinking back to the time when the school was just one room and comparing to the classrooms of today, one would have thought that we would have seen a dramatic increase in student performance. In retrospect has anything really changed?

The teachers back then had to be creative with the meager resources they had to further their students' education. They were faced with large classrooms, varying learning abilities, and in most cases were often the only teachers to be found in their vicinity. Today, we have the wealth of technology, educational supports (both inside and outside of the classroom), numerous researches on how children learn, a vast selection of professional development for our teachers, innovative curricula, as well as the option to choose a public, private, or charter school based on their model and if it is the best fit for our children. This begs the question: How well are we doing? Are our students experiencing success? Have we surpassed the achievements that were made in the past? Is it even possible to compare?

Though the problem still exists where teachers of today in some areas are still experiencing a scarcity in supplies and access to technology, they manage to provide exceptional education to their students. The fact that these students also succeed at subsequent levels despite the odds defy the norm and triggers the question: What does it mean to be educated? How does academic success look?

How were the teachers in the one room schoolhouse successful? How would they have fared if they had been evaluated by today's standards? Have we missed the entire concept of education? 

I am curious. What do you think?