Hw 40

Interview with Dad(teacher):

Do you think schools have changed much in the last 10 to 20 years?
There is definitely more of an emphasis on testing and the tests are now more 'high stakes'. In terms of the reason for school and the mission of a school, not much has changed. The schools we have and had 20 years ago were made to form people in to good workers. Schools continue to perpetuate capitalism.

How do you think the purpose of the first schools in the modern era have affected the schools we currently have?

They are the same. They teach kids to be good workers. They teach people to be obedient, not question authority, be punctual, etc. The only change has been in school for the truly privileged.

Interview with friend(high school student):

What do you think schools are for? Are they useful to you?

Schools are made to prepare you for the future and educate you on the things you need to know for certain jobs. Personally schools are not useful for me because alot of the things we learn are not relevant to my life. Its more like a motion like robotic then something I actually do and think about.

If you had a choice would you go to school?

No I think I could spend my time more productively learning things that could actually benefit me.

Interview with friend friend(high school student):

If you could change one thing about schools what would it be?

I would let students focus more on one topic. The way we run school now people have to go to classes they are not interested in. If people could focus in more on the things the liked people would ave true knowledge about certain topic and become experts in those topics. People would probably more interested in school. I know I would

Is highschool worth the four years you spend there?

No. In terms of the things we learn we could probably learn that in less time. I think the biggest change in high school is not academic it social. So I think those four years could be spent in way better ways.

Interview with college student:

Is school something that truly benefits you or something that is done because it is required?

I think schools benefits you in many ways however it has so many flaws because they give people no room to choose what kind of education they want until the reach college and this causes so many people to lose interest in school. It does help, the ways schools are run in particular high school need to be changed.

What do you think of the idea that school is made to sort people into groups economically?

I've never thought of school that way but it is true. Levels of education separate people and the people with higher levels of education usually make more money.

Interview with Mother(teacher):

Why do you think our education system is so weak even though a lot of our society relies on school?

Because school does not rely mainly on the academics but more on the idea that you can make it if you try although that is not true. It keeps people believing in the American dream and helps keep the heirarchy in society.

What is the biggest affect school has on students?

It teaches many students to believe their failure is their fault. So for example if kids fail regents it is their fault although many students who do fail the regents have much harder circumstances and are many times were not taught the necessary skills to be successful on such tests.


I think school is a tool of society and is one of the most important ones. Many people view school as their way to the top and for few it is but in reality most people do not make it to the top. Many hard working people remain poor. School provides an illusion in the same way I would argue religon does, it gives people hope and makes them want to fit in to specific molds that help the heirarchy of society remain in place.