What Our Education System Needs Is More F's Summary

In Carl Singleton’s article, “What Our Education System Needs is More F’s,” he argues that students aren’t receiving the failing grades they deserve. School systems are to blame for the lack of quality in America’s education. No other recommendation for improvement will succeed. The only way to fix the American education system is to fail more students. According to Singleton, the real root of the issue is with the parents. Since the parents believe their children are passing, they don’t take an interest in their child’s studies. They allow the child to spend little time on homework and more time on other activities, such as watching television. When a child comes home with an F, then the parents will take notice. Only then will parents take an active role in their child’s education, instead of letting the schools do it all. The schools are failing the students by giving them passing grades they don’t deserve. Singleton doesn’t believe an increase in salary or a merit raise will improve the situation. The only solution is to fail students who do not master the material. Only then will parents take notice in their children’s education and will school boards take notice, since holding a child back and having them repeat a grade cost twice as much as passing them on to the next grade.

Inglee says not to celebrate, because more than a quarter of students who graduate don’t meet the basic reading level (2013). According to Ganem it’s worse than that – a CNN investigation revealed that college athletes in basketball and football programs in public universities only read at an eighth grade level (2014). This is not a new phenomenon – illiterate athletes were pushed through the system and given passing grades to maintain their eligibility (Ganem, 2014). The giving of grades that weren’t earned isn’t reserved for K through