In an age of technological wonders, medical breakthroughs and scientific uncoverings, the U.S. education systems seems to remain stagnant. Teachers are dispassionate, students are unmotivated and parents are uninterested.

When you think of school, what is the first thing that pops into your mind? Is it excitement? Is it passion? Is it interest? I would be willing to bet it was none of the above. If I had to guess, your list may have included dread, stress, anxiety, hate, lack of motivation and procrastination. This simple test gives us an indication of the success of our current education system. According to an article written on forbes.com, in 2013 a survey conducted by the National Research Council noted that upwards of 40 percent of high school students are chronically disengaged from school. Learning is suppose to be fun; it is suppose to push students to seek out information on their own. When done correctly learning should not be something to dread but something to look forward to. Learning should be a lifelong practice that adds color and vibrance to our lives. Instead, learning is too often listening to dispassionate teachers give the same drab lecture for the third time in a day. It is receiving a worksheet filled with the same monotonous questions over and over and it is assignments that are completely irrelevant to students’ lives.

Students are not innocent. With the popularization of services like Netflix and social media sites, students spend less and less time studying and more and more time binge watching TV series or scrolling through feed updates. Learning takes the backburner to video games and partying. Despite students growing lack of motivation, I think there are a number of other factors that greatly affect a student’s passion and ability to learn. Teachers who are dispassionate and disconnected do very little in developing a student’s understanding of a subject. When a teacher doesn’t want to teach, the students don’t want to learn and a disconnect is created.

Parents also play a role in their children’s education. When parents do not promote academic excellence or take interest in their children’s coursework, it negatively affects how their children view school. Lastly, the school curriculum is flawed in more than one way. Schools teach students to memorize 100 digits of pi or recite 17th century sonnets but fail to teach communication skills, time management skills or money management skills.

Learning is increasingly more enjoyable when led by an enthusiastic and passionate teacher. When a teacher is able to connect with their students, they are able to more effectively tailor their teaching style to fit the needs of the students. I think that in addition to teacher produced test scores, student evaluation should be taken into consideration when considering their pay and position. Teaching is one of the most valuable jobs in our society and those who excel at it should be rewarded. I also believe that parents should take a more involved role in their children’s academic life and in doing so their children’s effort, involvement and performance will likely increase. The school curriculum needs to be changed, instead of long lectures and an ungodly amount of homework that induces unhealthy levels of stress and anxiety, they should focus on hands-on learning and practical applications that students can take with them into the real world. Ultimately, I think that students need to step up and own their education. Yes, school sucks sometimes and yes it is not a perfect system right now, but if students take a stand for their education they can start to be the change they wish to see in the school system.