网帖翻译

Anne W Zahra
As a US teacher, I think it should be pointed out that this question is unanswerable at such a general level. Our schooling system is state and locally controlled, and there are as many answers to this question as there are schools. So keep that in mind.
I’ll tell you about my experiences teaching in the US South, mostly in small cities and rural communities.

作为一名美国的教师，我认为有必要指出，这个问题在如此笼统的层面上是无法回答的。我们的教学体系是由各州和地方控制的，所以对于这个问题，请记住这一点，答案的多样性就如同学校的数量一样多。
我来分享一下我在美国南部，主要是在小城市和农村社区教学的经历。

Most US students here don’t take the college preparatory curriculum (honors/ AP/ IB). Those college-track classes are challenging and the students who do well in them generally graduate from college successfully. Not all these college-track students earn great grades, and not all of them go on to college, but most earn at least a 4 year degree from a regional or state university. Your very top performers generally do well at more elite universities and in more demanding majors, like sciences, medicine, law, etc.

在这里，大多数美国学生不会选择大学预科课程（荣誉课程/ AP/ IB）。那些针对大学升学的课程颇具挑战性，而且在这些课程中表现优异的学生通常能够成功地完成大学学业。并非所有这些准备上大学的学生都能获得优异的成绩，也不是所有人都会继续升学，但大多数人至少能从地区性或州立大学获得四年制学位。那些表现最好的学生通常在更精英的大学和更具挑战性的专业，如科学、医学、法律等领域表现出色。
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The students who aren’t college-bound are a problematic case. They often say they will go to college (often spelling it “collage”), but few of them actually ever earn a degree of any kind. Some are probably of low-average intelligence, but by far most of them are simply average, healthy, normal kids who want to pass their classes but aren’t particularly academically oriented otherwise. (Note that some actually belong in the college track but, unfortunately, lack the home support/ stable environment/ mental and emotional stability to persist and succeed there. Sometimes the school succeeds in getting them into that higher track to stay, but not always.)

那些不打算上大学的学生构成了一个难题。他们常说自己会去上大学（经常将“college”误拼为“collage”），但真正能获得学位的人寥寥无几。其中一些学生可能智力平平，但绝大多数其实只是普通的、健康的、正常的孩子，他们希望课程能及格，但在学术上并没有特别的志向。（需要指出的是，有些学生本应适合大学路线，但遗憾的是，他们缺乏家庭支持、稳定的环境或心理和情感上的稳定性来持续并取得成功。有时学校能够成功地将他们引入更高层次的轨道，但并非总是如此。）

Yes, some students are terribly lazy and won’t do much work despite being quite capable of passing. However, the vast majority of students, lazy or not, are at least “average” in my experience and their school-refusal behavior typically has nothing to do with their intellectual ability. Sometimes it’s emotional. Sometimes it’s cultural; anti-intellectual attitudes are very common in less affluent American communities, and minority students in particular may carry out their adolescent rebellion by rejecting school-related expectations and academic values. In my community, I’m very different from most of the students I serve and this can be a factor in how much they learn.

是的，有些学生非常懒惰，尽管完全有能力通过考试，他们还是不怎么努力学习。然而，根据我的经验，绝大多数学生，无论是否懒惰，至少处于“中等水平”，他们拒绝上学的行为通常与智力水平无关。有时是情感问题，有时是文化因素；在一些较贫困的美国社区中，反智的态度非常普遍，尤其是少数族裔学生，他们可能通过拒绝学校的期望和学术价值来表达青春期的叛逆。在我的社区，我与大多数我所服务的学生有很大的不同，这也可能影响他们的学习效果。

Then again, what is the connection between their academic program and the hourly-wage jobs they will transition to after graduation? Unlike college-bound students, high GPAs don’t bring them any obvious rewards at all— there are no hiring preferences for higher GPAs, for instance. Sometimes these students openly say the curriculum doesn’t matter and has nothing to do with their future jobs. They’re wrong about that— they’re supposed to be voters and parents one day, not just workers, and they need the knowledge. However it’s difficult to convince most adolescents of this. They lack the insight to understand it.

不过，学术课程和他们毕业后从事的时薪工作到底有什么关系呢？与那些有志于上大学的学生不同，高绩点成绩对他们几乎没有任何实际的好处——比如说，雇主并不会优先考虑高GPA的求职者。有时候，这些学生甚至直言不讳地说，课程内容根本不重要，和他们未来的工作毫无关系。其实他们错了——他们将来不仅仅是工人，还应该成为选民和父母，他们需要掌握这些知识。然而，要说服大多数青少年相信这一点很难，因为他们缺乏足够的洞察力。

A Tactical American
It is no longer an education system, under the demonicrats it has become only a demonicrat indoctrination centers by stupid brain-dead indoctrinated demonicrats idiot they call teachers these days.

现在的教育系统早已不再是一个真正的教育体系，在“民主党”的掌控下，它变成了由那些被洗脑、思想空洞的“民主党”支持者所主导的洗脑中心，而这些人如今被称为“老师”，实际上只是愚昧的工具罢了。

Hannah Madden
Neither.
You can’t have an education “system” in a supposedly “free” country.
Only a requirement that parents provide education for their children, in addition to their other obligations.
Which is the reason we have an “education system:” there is no freedom, just the illusion of it.

都不是。
在所谓的“自由”国家里，不可能存在一个教育“系统”。
这只是要求父母除了其他责任外，还要负责孩子的教育。
这就是我们有“教育系统”的原因：没有真正的自由，只有自由的假象。

Lara
Is the American education system actually declining or are kids just too lazy to try?
I don't think it is that kids are too lazy. I would say there is a great deal of inconsistency from district to district and state to state. The standards, values and courses taught can vary widely. As can the level of education from a poor neighborhood public school, to a wealthier area public school to a private school.

是美国的教育体系真的在衰落，还是孩子们懒得去尝试？
我不认为是孩子们太懒。我认为不同地区和州之间的教育存在很大的不一致性。教育的标准、价值观和课程内容可能差异很大。从贫困地区的公立学校到富裕地区的公立学校，再到私立学校，教育水平也各不相同。

As a child growing up I was exposed to several different public schools. Some were very good, others mediocre, the one my step-siblings went to I considered sub-par by the time I was in fourth grade.
While technically they all teach the same basics of arithmetic, English, history, science, the quality and standards and methods for teaching and for passing those courses can vary greatly. My step-siblings would receive A+'s for work that would have gotten me a C or an F in my schools, such as using "ain't" on an English term paper. But different states, different standards.

在我成长过程中，我接触过几所不同的公立学校。有些学校非常好，有些则平庸，我继兄弟姐妹去的那所学校，到了我四年级时，我认为其教育质量已经低于标准。
虽然所有学校都教授基本的算术、英语、历史和科学，但教学质量、标准和通过课程的方法可能大相径庭。我的继兄弟姐妹可能会因为在英语论文中使用“ain't”而得到A+，而在我的学校，这样的作业可能只能得到C或F，不同的州有不同的标准。

Also, the level of parent/community involvement in the educational system of an area can have an impact. It's not just funding, it is also involvement and pushing for certain standards. I had attended schools in wealthier areas that the main concerns were teen pregnancy (as long as it was less than neighboring districts) and appearing to be prosperous (which is why "problem" kids were encouraged to drop out at age 13), while the scholastic side of things was mediocre, and a rural community that prized critical thinking and education with an excellent program. Surprisingly, I have noticed having colleges in a town does not improve the education levels in a public school located there(my own observation).

一个地区父母和社区对教育系统的参与程度也会影响教育质量。不仅仅是资金问题，还包括参与度和推动特定标准。我曾就读于一些富裕地区的学校，那里主要关心的是青少年怀孕问题（只要比邻近地区少就行）和显得繁荣（这就是为什么“问题”孩子被鼓励在13岁时辍学），而学术方面则是平庸的。我也去过一个重视批判性思维和教育的农村社区，那里有出色的教育项目。令人惊讶的是，我发现一个城镇有大学并不一定能提高那里公立学校的教育水平（这是我个人的观察）。

So while studies vary a bit on how the educational system is doing, it really is hard to be certain, given the wide range of standards and expectations each district has and how they are rated. You basically have some oranges making up the bulk on the apple cart.

虽然对教育体系的表现有不同的研究，但由于各个学区的标准和期望值以及评价方式的多样性，要得出确切结论确实很困难。你基本上看到的是，在本应全是苹果的推车里，橙子却成了主要成分。

LoasidaBW
Is the American education system actually declining or are kids just too lazy to try?
No, for the most part, the system is pretty well screwed. Bush 2 and his Conservative Christian and Oligarch buddies have pretty well disemboweled any hope of a decent public school system for the next 50 or so years.

美国的教育体系真的在衰退吗，还是孩子们只是太懒了？ 不，大体上来说，这个系统已经相当糟糕了。布什二世和他的保守派基督教以及寡头朋友们已经严重破坏了未来五十年左右建立一个像样的公立学校系统的任何希望。

Think I am joking?
Or did you miss the fact that the TEXAS STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION voted 10 to 5 to teach the poor little kids in Texas that these United States, back in the day, was founded on---CHRISTIAN PRINCIPLES---.
This is known, as propaganda.

认为我在开玩笑吗？
还是你没注意到德克萨斯州教育委员会以10比5的投票结果决定，向德克萨斯州的孩子们传授这样一个观点：这个国家从一开始就是建立在——基督教原则——之上的。
这种行为被称为宣传。
原创翻译：龙腾网 https://www.ltaaa.cn 转载请注明出处

So, yeah...decline is a mild version of the really fucked up hodge-podge state by state, city by city crazy-quilt education system we have at the K-12 level.

那么，说教育水平下降还是太委婉了，实际上我们的K-12教育系统实际上是一个由各州、各城市拼凑而成的混乱局面。

Courtney Cleopatra
It's not that it's necessarily difficult, nor are most of us lazy. It's just extremely time consuming, so those of us taking advanced classes are either extremely overwhelmed or extremely bored.
Those 15–20 classes that you were taking could have extremely easy curriculum or just be mostly extracurriculars. The 7 classes that a US student is taking could very well be all on the IB or AP level , which are no joke. Not to mention the insane amounts of homework that we're expected to do nightly.
Obviously, there are definitely lazy American students, the same way that there are lazy Panamanian students, but the laziness isn't related to the amount of classes.

并不是说这一定有多难，也不是我们大多数人懒惰。只是这些课程极其耗时，特别是对于我们这些上高级课程的学生来说，我们要么感到压力山大，要么就觉得无聊透顶。
你选的那15到20门课程可能很轻松，或者主要是课外活动。而美国学生选的7门课程很可能都是IB或AP级别的，这可不是开玩笑的。更不用说我们每晚都要完成的海量作业了。
当然，美国也有懒惰的学生，就像巴拿马也有一样，但懒惰和课程数量无关。

Shakeel Alibhai
Just because someone only takes 7 or 8 classes a year doesn’t mean that they’re lazy. It’s possible that those 7 or 8 classes could have as much work as the 15 to 20 classes that you mention.

仅仅因为有人一年只上7或8门课，并不意味着他们懒惰。他们上的那7或8门课程的工作量可能和你提到的15到20门课程一样多。
原创翻译：龙腾网 https://www.ltaaa.cn 转载请注明出处

Agath Olson
Is the American education system actually declining or are kids just too lazy to try?
I am totally lazy for having a 4.1 gpa last semester.
I think it is because there is no consistency to the American education system so the average of the entire system can be brought down. I think what would help make it a little bit easier to reform in theory is to make it more consistent but that may not be the best course.

美国教育体系真的在衰退吗，还是孩子们太懒了？
上学期我的平均分只有4.1，真是太懒了。
我认为这是因为美国教育体系缺乏一致性，导致整个系统的平均表现下降。我认为理论上有助于改革的方法是使其更加一致，但那可能不是最好的方法。

Roy Chambers
Probably the best comparison is British A levels (UK high school) and the International Baccalaureate.
A-Levels have a total of 4 subjects a year, but in the last year is essentially the same as university.
The Baccalaureate has more subjects a year. But is considered to be similar in difficulty.
The reasons for this include the amount taught, whether subjects are combined or split and so on.

最好的比较可能是英国A-levels（英国高中）和国际文凭。
A-levels每年总共有4门科目，但在最后一年基本上和大学一样。
国际文凭课程每年有更多的科目。但难度上被认为相似。
原因包括教授的数量，科目是合并还是分开等等。
原创翻译：龙腾网 https://www.ltaaa.cn 转载请注明出处

Just a Random Person
I’ve spent most of my life in public schools. I have just recently switched to homeschooling and duel enrollment for various reasons that I’m afraid I can’t get into.

我在公立学校度过了人生的大部分时光。由于一些我不便细说的原因，我最近转而接受家庭教育并同时注册了双重学籍。

my grades are certainly worse than in public school, but not because it’s bad. Quite the contrary. My home and private school classes are teaching me much more effectively and teaching actually useful things. I have a lot more work to do, but now I don’t spend all my time all day doing it. Why? Because when I do that work is entirely my choice. I go to classes on tuesdays and the rest of the week is devoted to completing the work I’ve been given. My schedule is extremely flexible and I’ve been able to work it into something that leaves me with time for my own life. I also get to choose my best style of learning. There is no schoolwork for my homeschool classes, because the curriculum teaches through reading. I have a set of books I read through every day. It’s a much more engaging style of learning because I get to learn history and hard topics through stories. My work is challenging and I enjoy it because I actually feel productive.

我在家庭学校的成绩当然比公立学校差，但不是因为家庭学校不好。相反，我的家庭和私立学校的课程教学效果更好，教的也是真正有用的东西。我有更多的工作要做，但现在我不会整天都花在做作业上。为什么？因为我何时做作业完全由我自己决定。我周二上课，剩下的一周用来完成给我的任务。我的时间表非常灵活，我已经能够将其安排得让我有自己的时间。我还可以自己选择最佳的学习方式。我的家庭学校课程没有学校作业，因为课程是通过阅读来教授的。我每天阅读一套书籍。这是一种更具吸引力的学习方式，因为我可以通过故事来学习历史和难题。我的学习具有挑战性，我享受它，因为我真的感到有成效。

but just this past week I’ve had to drop out of my algebra 2 class. I was trying as hard as I could but I could not pass the tests. There was something fundamentally that I simply missed in public school, because I was allowed to get by using simply a calculator. I cannot competently solve equations with fractions and square roots are hard for me to find.

就在上个星期，我不得不放弃了我的代数2课程。尽管我尽了最大努力，但还是没能通过考试。在公立学校，我忽略了一些基础概念，因为那里我只需要用计算器就能混过去。我现在无法熟练地解包含分数的方程，而且对我来说，找出平方根也变得困难。

i initially was embarrassed and angry with myself, but I’ve come to understand that this wasn’t my fault, but the fault of those responsible for teaching me these things in the past, because they never did. And it’s an ongoing theme I’ve seen in other students who went to public school.

起初，我感到尴尬和愤怒，但我已经明白这不是我的错，而是过去负责教我这些东西的人的错，因为他们从未教过我。这是我在其他上公立学校的学生中也观察到的一个持续存在的问题。

public schools trap you in essentially a prison for 7–8 hours a day. You have no escape from your peers. If your lucky you get a 15 minute break at lunch and then it’s right back to work. Our schedules are decided for us and so we have to give up outside activities to accommodate. I do horseback riding and in public school I could rarely ever ride because school expected me to give it 100% of my attention. The schools are miserable and severely damaging. And the 7–8 hours? What are we even doing in that time? Because I’ve been able to learn more in 3 hours of homeschooling then a full day of public school. It’s no wonder we all hate schools when they put us in these conditions.

公立学校基本上每天把你关押在一个地方长达7到8小时，就像监狱一样。你无法摆脱同伴的包围。如果幸运的话，你或许能在午餐时间获得15分钟的休息，然后就必须立即回到学习中。我们的时间表是别人为我们安排好的，因此我们必须放弃其他的活动来适应这个时间表。我爱好骑马，在公立学校我几乎没有机会去骑马，因为学校期望我将全部注意力都放在学习上。这些学校令人感到痛苦，并且造成了严重的伤害。那么在这7到8个小时里，我们究竟在做什么？因为我发现在家庭学校的3个小时里学到的东西比在公立学校一整天还要多。难怪在这种环境下，我们都会讨厌学校。

you can argue about if masks are damaging or not, but for me personally masks were very much unhealthy. I was stuck with a perpetual headache and extreme nausea that I just got used to. I believe this was due to wearing a mask all day every day because I haven’t felt that way since dropping out. They also closed off the water fountains because of covid, so if you didn’t bring a bottle? Tough luck, no water for the entire day. I had depression from being forced to sit and listen to a teacher drone on for the whole day rather than exploring my passions and focusing on things I’ll actually use in the future.

你可以讨论口罩是否有害，但就我个人而言，戴口罩确实对我的健康不利。我经常感到持续的头痛和极度的恶心，以至于我都开始习惯了这种状态。我认为这是因为我每天都必须戴口罩，因为我自从不再佩戴后就没有再出现过这些症状。由于新冠疫情，他们还关闭了饮水机，所以如果你没有带水？那就倒霉了，一整天都没有水喝。我因为被迫坐着听老师唠叨一整天而感到沮丧，而不是去探索我的激情，专注于我将来会用到的东西。

the schools are more focused on test scores then students health, because it makes them money. Free time is being cut out more at younger and younger ages and it’s frightening to think the effect it will have. I’m simply glad I was able to escape.
the kids are not lazy. We are suffering

学校更注重考试成绩而非学生健康，因为这样可以为他们带来利益。孩子们的自由时间越来越早地被剥夺，想想这会造成的影响就让人感到恐惧。我只是庆幸自己能够摆脱这种状况。孩子们并不懒惰，我们其实都在遭受煎熬。