Race to Nowhere

The vision of a successful future and the effort to fight for it, is a driving force for a number of parents and students. At what cost though? A leisure time filled with charity work that is creditable at the university admission exams, or extracurricular activities such as membership in a football team or participation in the school choir, all help children to gain highly valued points. These activities rob them of necessary moments of relaxation. Long hours dedicated to homework and the unsystematic cramming of pages of texts for the upcoming exams teaches the students to pass tests very well. However, they are not taught to think critically about the topics they should acquire through learning. Schools produce individuals who can pass tests perfectly, but these students prefer textbooks prepared in advance instead of practice. They focus on earning the relevant scores to achieve their desired future and so grasp the opportunity for a better life. But they are not able to acquire the knowledge that is supposed to help them realize this dreamt of future. Because of the permanent emphasis on the need to achieve the best possible score, these growing girls and boys become stressed and psychologically and physically ill. Is the American education system racing to nowhere? (Academia Film Olomouc)