Discipline in American Schools

Often , people from the President onwards are bemoaning the lower standards in  American schools.They often point out that some  countries in Asia and Europe are doing better the U.S. with regard to the raising of educational standards at schools.In the PISA(Program for International  Student Assessment) tests, American students do not perform as good a s the students from China, Singapore, Hongkong,Finland or Korea.
According to the Department  of Education, about a third of first year students entering college had taken at least one remedial course in reading, writing, or math.
Thomas Friedman in speaking about the reforms needed in American education says the following in his book,"That Used to be US:"We believe that six things are necessary: better teachers and better principals;parents who are more involved in and demanding of their children's education;politicians who push to raise educational  standards, not dumb  them down;neighbors who are ready to invest  in schools even though their  children do not attend them;business leaders committed to raising educational standards in their communities; and --last but certainly not least--students who come to schools prepared to learn , and not to text."(p.109)
 Often the teachers are  blamed.At other times, it is mentioned that it is the lack of funds that is responsible for the lower standards. Millions of dollars are pumped into the school system to make it better. What often is forgotten is that no one is interested in enforcing discipline at school,in  telling the students what is right and wrong and making them do home work. If you allow the students to behave and act unchecked , give the impression that anything is permissible and that there should be no punishmnet for gross acts of misbehavior then,  we cannot expect that any improvement will take place  in our  schools. The Principal should  be more than an administrator .He or she  should be a motivator.  Greater attention  should be paid at home by the parents to the life and studies of their children.The lesson from the book "Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother" is that there is more work to do on the part of parents for  the education of the children.They cannot just be bystanders.The following quote from the book by the Yale Universit Professor ,Amy Chua, shows the commitment of Chinese parents:"Well, I  can tell them, because I have done it.Here are some things my daughters,Sophia and Louisa, were never allowed to do: attend a sleepover, have a playdate, be in a school play, complain about not being in a school play, watch TV or play computer games,choose their extracurricualar activities, get any grade  less than A, not be the No.1 student....the Chinese believe that the best way to protect their children is by preparing them for  the future...and arming them with skills..that no one can take away."