Here's an old chestnut...

Ryan brought this up in his last post. It reminded me of a premise to a massive plot line in an unpublished work of mine.

What is the greatest flaw in the American education system?

Ryan laments his "classmates" knowing nothing of basic civics, but being nearly Ph.D candidates in their immersion of American "pop" culture. So is this a sign of a failed system? Are horrible teachers to blame? Is it a fault of American society in general? The demise of the nuclear family?

I am not going to post my answer yet. But I have time stamped proof that this answer, my opinion at least, was put to paper in 2005 almost immediately after the book was published. I am interested in what you guys have to say.

The parameters of the question are wide. It encompasses all levels of education, from kindergarten to post graduate. Have at it.