[kathe-rine]

This does not line up with my experience attending a fairly average / slightly above average US public school. At least half my classes largely required problem-solving and critical thinking. I spent a fair amount of time parroting stuff but that's unavoidable early in education, and most of my teacher's used it as a base for higher thinking. My primary and secondary education could certainly have been better, but this article strikes me as a gross and counterproductive exaggeration.