Eye of the Editors: Awareness
Even as students strive for great test scores, schools should encourage teachers to discuss current events with their classes.
January 27, 2016
Despite what it may feel like at times, the purpose of school is not only to get into university or remember the right answers for a test, but also to educate students on becoming well-informed individuals. Yet today’s Diamond Bar High School students have a narrow viewpoint on that subject because of the school’s emphasis on test-taking and its role as the “stepping stone” to higher education.
Students are not developing their own opinions on current events the way that citizens should be doing. DBHS claims to prepare students for the working world by developing their skills to contribute to society, but this effort seems hardly present.
Though it may seem ironic considering that this is what most high school students strive for, colleges have stated that they seek students who are well-informed individuals capable of thinking for themselves, not merely cogs in a machine who can spit out one good test grade after another. So why have teachers not pushed students to form their own opinions, or at least get a dialogue going on issues?
Teachers shouldn’t always stick to their intended lesson plan, if it means they can’t encourage students to think for themselves. When people discuss current events, they help to shape their own opinions. There seems to be little of what is happening in the world today ever being talked about in class. Some very pressing issues have occurred this school year, such as the Paris and San Bernardino attacks, but rarely are such events even brushed upon in class.
Not all classes have to focus on current events, if it’s not what their subjects require, but in certain classes—such as history, English and even science—why should it not be openly discussed? All that is happening in the world is not merely a backdrop to a student’s education. These are real, pressing issues that are as equally important to a student’s life as a test. The San Bernardino shootings were less than an hour away from school, yet few teachers even touched on the subject.
A past column in The Bull’s Eye discussed students and their lack of awareness of what is going on in the world today. It talked about how, especially at DBHS, it seems that students do not care about current events. This is an issue that should not be entirely blamed on students.
As a high school that regularly ranks high in national rankings, DBHS should be obligated to not only have students become the high scorers they are, but also have students think intensely and critically. Since today’s high school students will eventually become an integral part of tomorrow’s society, they should leave school with the desire to think for themselves.
