I recently posted about the Finnish quest for equity in education and how the unexpected result of that quest was an exceptional rise in test scores and success in Finnish Schools. I suggest that the American quest for exceptionalism might be having the reverse effect.
When we have exceptional schools and colleges the obverse is also true. We have many schools and colleges that help define the exceptional by being mediocre or downright awful. When we decide that it's OK to suffer along with good enough because the exceptional among us are doing well and we think that with luck and perseverance we can be exceptional too, we miss the point. If we can all do well then no one is the exception.
This is hard for Americans to understand. The propaganda we use to prove that we are the exception is flawed. What is exceptional about America isn't us - it's our circumstance. We have the good fortune to live an a land rich in resources and with a legal framework that reduces some inequality of opportunity. That, my friends, is a matter of luck - not a matter of Americans being better or different - it's just plain luck!
We, like the Finns should be looking for ways to bring equity to all Americans, not just looking to become exceptional ourselves.
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