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Education Around the World Signature Assignment

Task 1. Big Picture Questions
Question 1 – Name 4 countries that have a great educational system. Based on what you learned in this course, what are 3
similarities that these countries have in common? What are some factors that have helped these countries to excel in the area
of education? 
Four countries that I chose that are at the top as far as their education system goes are Denmark, Canada, Finland, and Estonia.
All four countries off a free, quality education, which allows for all student, regardless of socio-economic backgrounds to have a
equal shot at learning. All four countries also report that their students have a growth mindset in that they disagree with the
statement that ‘your intelligence is something about your that you can’t change very much’. They also all have a relatively small
class size compared to other countries. One factor that helps to ensure that these four countries can offer a great educational
system is highly competent teachers. Another factor to having a great educational system is that their governments place a lot of
importance on education and therefore are willing to fund various aspects in order to provide their people with access to
knowledge.
 
 
Question 2 – Based on what you’ve learned in this course, do you think the top performing countries are influencing other
countries? Describe how the countries, which are listed highest in terms of PISA scores, are having an affect on other
countries. 
I think that the top performing countries are influencing other countries to be better academically. PISA tests are something that
all participating countries have that’s the same as everyone else and it’s a good way to see where the education system for each
country is compared to others. When a country sees that their neighbor is doing better in a particular area, they automatically
seem to have the competitiveness to do the same or even score higher. The better an education system is, the more attractive
the country looks, and the greater edge they will have on a variety of aspects including technology, economy, healthcare, and
even military. The best of the best want to stay the best and families will move and participate where they feel they have the
best chance at success. Valuing education is worthwhile for a country because it can bring talent that otherwise may have gone
elsewhere. 
 
 
Question 3 – Do you think that countries who pay little or no attention to educating its citizens can/will have a negative
impact on the world in the future? Support your answer.  
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I don’t necessarily think that the countries who don’t value education as much as others will have too much of a negative impact
on the world in the future. I think it’s too bad, but I think that the countries who do well will continue to do well, with or without
the acknowledgment of lower scoring countries. The divide between top and bottom will continue to grow, but eventually I think
those countries who have other priorities will have to step up a little more and figure it out. In my opinion, they’re only hurting
themselves.  

Question 4 - How does education in other countries compare to the system of education in the U.S. from your observations?
It seems like a lot of other countries take education quite a bit more seriously than we do in the United States. It’s a balancing
act for sure. Some countries place so much importance on doing well academically that the students live and breathe learning.
While that may seem harsh, I found it interesting that suicide rates among teens actually wasn’t high at all in countries where all
they seem to do is go to school. So, maybe they’re doing something right? Then again, in those same countries, suicide rates
among adults was a lot higher than other countries. While kids are busy growing up in a super structured environment that
forces them to be academically competitive, once they’re adults and they have reached what they consider to be the top and
they’re (in a sense) done, they struggle to be ok with the sudden downtime and freedom to just use their education in whatever
line of work they chose. In the United States, a lot more emphasis is placed on sports than other countries are willing to give it.
Grades matter here in the U.S., but it’s almost like they only matter sometimes because having good grades is a requirement to
place in Friday’s game. States also differ in how they prioritize education and that makes it hard to judge the United States
academically as a whole. I spent my first almost 30 years living in Minnesota and while I went to school, it was known that we
had a good education system compared to other states. I had friends in Tennessee who were my age but always years behind
academically. I had forgotten about that until this book had a student from Minnesota—I could relate to their Minnesota
education experience!

Question 5 - Name some populations that are denied a good education? For example, we all know based on experiences in
this class that women and girls are denied a good education in parts of the world (sadly). What are other groups of people
that are denied a good education?
I think that low-income populations are denied a good education somewhat. A lot of public school teachers do the bare
minimum and when that’s the only option for some kids, they suffer the consequences. Another population that I think is denied
a good education is those with disabilities. Once again, they are at the mercy of whatever school system has the funding to
support their needs. Public schools HAVE to take them, but a lot of time the education they receive is more basic life skills and
they aren’t pushed very hard. Lastly, I think that gifted and talented populations can struggle to find quality education here in
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the United States. They can only learn as much as they are taught and if they don’t have a school system that challenges them
and they can’t afford to search out different options, they’re stuck where they are.

Question 6 - Reflect on the topics we've discussed throughout EDUC 200 – name some things you could now do differently in
your future class because of the information learned in this course.
I want you to be self-reflective (think about your thinking) – tell me what you could do in your future class to make it better
based on items we've learned about with regard to different educational systems around the world?
It could be things like helping diverse learners, or perhaps being more aware of students who may live in rural areas of your
district and don’t have access to technology (these are just some ideas I had).

In learning about different educational systems around the world and what seems to work for them, a couple of things have
stood out to me that sound like good ideas and things that I could try to implement. Several countries do not give out homework
to take home. What they get done in school, is what gets done. I like that idea because it allows kids the opportunity to be kids
once they get home. They can play with their friends, be with their families, help with household chores, and learn other
valuable life skills that will set them up for further success in life. Another idea that I like is the idea of frequent fresh-air breaks.
Especially at the elementary age, kids need to burn off energy. They need to be able to take a break so that they can reset their
brains and come back to class fresh and ready to learn more.

(Questions 7a through 7e) Let’s say that you are the ruler of your own country - think about some of the factors/conditions
that go into having a great educational system. And please have a little fun with these questions, too.

Question 7a - What would be the name of your very own country? What would be the name of the capital of your country?
Make something up! Have fun, be silly.
My country would be named Brick and the name of its capital would be Heidith.

Question 7b – What would the population of your country be? Big or small? Come up with a number. Why did you choose
that number? For example, would you want an incredibly large population, say over 1 billion or perhaps you want a very small
population, under 1 million? Tell me why you chose the population size you decided up.
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The entire country of Brick would have a population of 3.2 million people and would be roughly the size of Minnesota. Smaller
populations (under one million people) lack some resources that larger populations (more than one billion) have. Larger
populations are difficult to manage compared to smaller populations. A population somewhere in between gives enough
competition to be able to pick and choose the best of the best for various positions but doesn’t get too competitive and busy
with a feeling of just being a number. Medium-sized populations can cultivate a good community feel while still being able to
provide an ample amount of resources and opportunities to afford the people almost any experience they could want.

Question 7c - Do they have access to technology (very briefly tell us about technology in your country)?
My country will definitely have access to technology. From the standard programs already available to new technology that
could be developed by innovators in the community. Technology can be extremely beneficial not only to education, but also to
an economy as a whole.

Question 7d – Would your country be mostly rural? Urban? Suburban? A combination? Why?
My country would be mostly suburban with a little bit of urban. I like the feel of hustle and bustle and I feel like there’s more
privacy in a crowd because everyone is busy doing their own thing. With privacy comes independence and a community that has
some sense of “I can do it” seems to be able to accomplish a lot.

Question 7e- Come up with at least 4 more facts/factors that would have an impact on your country’s educational system.
Think about conditions/factors that have led to the creation of great educational systems around the world. Now, what
condition/factors would you like to see in your very own country?
For the educational system in Brick, we would offer a free, quality education for all children to ensure that student across all
demographics have access. Keeping up to date on the socio-economic factors in Brick would be important and there would be
programs set up to afford people the opportunity to better themselves and their families. Third, there would be a huge focus on
recruiting and retaining quality educators and funding to provide them a competitive livable wage. Lastly, students would go to
school all year. There would be a couple week breaks in between quarter/trimesters/semesters, but students would not lose any
information from not attending over the summer as is the case with so many students in the real world here in the United
States.

OPTIONAL – If you would like to draw an outline of the country in Word (using tools found in Word), include some clipart
and/or freehand then insert that picture of your country and place it here, please do so. This is optional of course, but I love
seeing how creative students can get! Only do this if you have some free time.