Our high schools are obsolete

Bill Gates in the Los Angeles Times on “What’s Wrong With American High Schools” —

Our high schools are obsolete.

By obsolete, I don’t just mean that they are broken, flawed and underfunded — although I can’t argue with any of those descriptions.

What I mean is that they were designed 50 years ago to meet the needs of another age. Today, even when they work exactly as designed, our high schools cannot teach our kids what they need to know.

Until we design high schools to meet the needs of the 21st century, we will keep limiting — even ruining — the lives of millions of Americans every year. Frankly, I am terrified for our workforce of tomorrow.

Key point: “We need a new design that realizes that all students can do rigorous work.”

The whole essay is worth your time.