When starting to do research on any topic its easiest to start researching from the point of, what's wrong, how can it be fixed? This applies to any system you try to improve, or fix. Going through high school it was easy to tell or hear the problems with education. Most commonly these issues revolve around getting people to graduate, move on to college, prevent dropping out, achieve good grades, so on.

I will go on record and state personally that in about every aspect of life "You get what you put in". If you are doing all your work and showing competence in the classroom, then you deserve high marks. If you do your work, and show you are trying, but just can't get it; then it needs to be shown you are trying and not to be failed because of negligence. This also goes that if you complain, don't do the work, and are just lazy then, you fail! A simple belief, but one that reflects and gives reward to those who try.

So how do you get everyone on the same page, you give them something to work for. Something that they can tell will give them an opportunity even if there's failure, but still motivates them to achieve more. To answer this question, we need to adapt our education system to follow that of the vocational European system.

Now this is a common school system in many European countries. Vocational school systems don't focus on a common core, but instead focus on an occupational required field the students would work in. So if you working for an engineering type field then you would focus primarily on math, and science. While meeting limiting language, and art classes. This is indicated in the first article we have evidence from the site "The German Way & More| Education". 

The article explains how the schools benefit the student's ability to learn in their environment. Not only that but it also talks about required classes. However, some of these classes (such as religion) don't apply to our system and are thus irrelevant. It also includes that all schools are public, and run by the state, which gives students the option to attend where ever they can get accepted at, solely on grades. This also means standards are all the same everywhere.

This source comes from a blog meant to educate on how German, and German speaking places, function in the world. While blogs can very much be less credible this blog is in sense a continuation of the book "The German Way: Aspects of Behavior, Attitudes, and Customs in the German-speaking World". It is routinely updated today with modern information that is relevant.

Now one of the most influential aspects in our system that completely differs from or counter-parts is sports in schools. In our second article this is brought up, by Stefanie Loh when she interviews Oli Templeton. While our systems allow students to be involved heavily and easily in school sports, this emphasis is not found in the European system. It is instead pushed for in state sponsored club sports.

So what does that really mean, wouldn't that allow students to focus more on classes, and be more successful? This isn't really true, consider players who receive scholarships to go play at universities for their abilities. Most sports in European countries as previously stated, are state funded and cost significantly more than the chance that students in America receive. So this would actually take away many students chances of a better life if this part was adapted.

This source, while old, still holds up in common schooling today in Europe. This source is from someone who comes from England, where the pushed club sports for the community. This is a primary source in what their school systems are like and still applies today.

Now while most of the focus of this topic has particularly covered the primary/ secondary schooling, there is one aspect left over. This would be the University side of the education process. This comes down to a large part of just culture difference, and geography (comparing the size of America to that of a European country). This includes to living near campus, social life, and conversing with professors. It is just in general a complete difference of how our student cultures act.

Due to how close students are and the infrastructure of the countries most students commute rather than living on campus. This is due to the fact that an hour trip in Europe is really just a visit to the country over. Another aspect that is a common problem in American universities is student drinking, again this is a major difference in cultures, as they drink at a much earlier age. Even Marc Cugnon points out that it is an "entirely different drinking culture". These two while small in the grand scheme of university schooling to our two systems, are very obvious in major differences that can be seen.

This article really paints the major distinction between the European system and American systems, in a cultural aspect. It highlights that Europeans are very much in a more self- controlled and disciplined while American students lack this. This article was by a professor but is very opinionated. It does not have any major backing evidence, and is very much a secondary source.

Drastically changing the American education system is a radical idea and does not seem like it would happen anytime soon. With that said it does not negate the face that many aspects of the European system would be immensely beneficial if we adopted them to our system. While there are two aspects to education primary/secondary, and university, this is primarily for primary/secondary school. This is due to how University aspect of school is really just a major cultural difference in our two society's.

With what has been said, some aspects of our system do need to be retained. Such as the aspect of the students having the availability of sports or being able to change their preferred major during secondary school. Aspects like these allow students to pursue what they believe gives them their opportunities in there lives.

There are many aspects to adjusting how schooling would work if we adjusted it. This includes adjusting standards, and grading. What qualifies as passing, and how long people would be needed to stay in, as this varies in many European systems. So as it seems like it should be simple, it is not a simple concept once you start to delve into it. It would require much work, but with changing, and combining philosophies could drastically improve our system.

