Kate Tuttle

QUALITY QUESTIONS. Schools are the driving force in a child’s education, and administrators must ensure their students are equipped with the knowledge vital to engaging with the world outside their country’s borders.

Are all Asians good at math? Are men naturally better in the workplace? These questions reflect common stereotypes, generalized assumptions about groups of people. Stereotypes exist across race, gender, politics, religion and nationality, shaping literature, cinema and public opinion. By reducing individuals to only one characteristic of their multifaceted identity, stereotypes can be harmful and limit opportunities. While stereotypes originate from historical or cultural contexts, they remain unfair to those who do not fill the harmful mold.

Close your eyes and picture the “typical” American. Loud and obnoxious. Owns a gun. Racist. Ignorant and apathetic to other cultures. But are these stereotypes accurate?

One particularly pervasive stereotype is that American students are uninformed about geography and history. While this perception may carry shards of truth, the root cause of this assumption lies in the American public schooling system. As someone who has had the privilege of attending a private independent school since kindergarten, I’ve reflected on how these stereotypes apply to me.

In elementary school and middle school, any “history” curriculum was bundled under the category of social studies, therefore lacking a structured focus on historical world events. In comparison to my peers who attended public school, I rarely engaged with global history in any meaningful way, and I often remember feeling they knew more about what was going on in the world. Now, since SPA is an independent school, the difference in content coverage between a public school can be attributed to the variation in curriculum. In hindsight, I was sheltered. Another question remains: why are students being sheltered from events that everyone should know about?

However, high school presented a shift. Spanning freshman and sophomore years, World History I and II was required, and now, as a junior, U.S. History is mandatory. Now, I feel much more informed. Compared to my outside of school friends, I sometimes feel I’ve grown more informed about global events thanks to SPA’s discussion-based curriculum. Here, learning is self-driven, empowering me to take ownership of my own education.

Of all American stereotypes, the one that is most applicable to me is that American adolescents struggle with geography. Geography courses are not required in middle and high school curriculum in most states. Furthermore, a survey conducted by Gallup found that only six percent of American participants scored an 80 percent or higher on questions testing knowledge of geography and foreign affairs. Despite SPA’s independent curriculum, this gap is still apparent in my education. This is not because of personal ignorance (although I could start memorizing countries), the reality is the schooling system has never emphasized this information.

That said, change is happening. The SPA History Department recently introduced a new World History curriculum requiring students to memorize locations on an international map. This is a step in the right direction, but broader educational reform is necessary. This global awareness is vital as countries grow increasingly interconnected; it gives people the ability to appreciate cultures different from their own and celebrate different perspectives. Schools are the driving force in a child’s education, and administrators must ensure their students are equipped with the knowledge vital to engaging with the world outside their country’s borders.