Any public school attendee could sit down and pick apart the flaws in the American education system for hours — there’s mandated standardized testing, weak math programs, socio-economic division and how U.S. students are being globally outperformed, according to PISA. The bulk of these issues have already been pointed out by every education critic on the planet, yet American lawmakers and reformers still struggle to address them, when perhaps a backdrop of larger issues hides behind the obvious.

There’s a reason that other countries are leaving America in the dust and it’s that their societies value education significantly more than America does. It’s time to look beyond the faults in the actual schooling system and focus the faults in our culture:

1. Lack of respect

In the Western world, the word ‘discipline’ connotes punishment or harshness. In Eastern culture, discipline is an integrated part of respect that comes as a part of being a mannered person. Eastern cultures train their children from a young age to respect their parents. The word "respect," is a broad term, but what sets Eastern cultures apart is the view of respect as a religious duty. The concept extends significantly further than holding open doors and talking politely. For example, in countries such as China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan and Vietnam, bowing to elders is a sign of reverence. Elders also eat first at the table and sit at the highest/most comfortable seat in gatherings. In comparison, honoring adults like nobility is something almost unheard of in the West.

With regards to education, this reverence transcends the household and carries over to schools, where respect for teachers is an non-compromised expectation. School environments in general are stricter as most schools require a uniform. In India, students stand up beside their desk to answer questions. American households and schools are more likely to lack this respect because of a cultural short-coming.

2. Individualism over collectivism

The focus of American education is to eventually launch children into college where they can become independent, which is a valid goal to a degree. However, to high school students, the word “independence” means being able to free themselves from the rule of their parents, entertain themselves and live on their own. The idea of marrying or starting a family isn’t as often associated with being ‘independent’ as it could be. More so, the American focus on so-called ‘independence’ takes away from the family structure, which in turn takes away from the education system.

What current culture lacks is a collective mentality to do what’s best from a familiar aspect, such as giving up entertainment time during youth to give time to preparing children for the future. American children and grandchildren of immigrants can bear witness to how their parents and their grandparents traveled miles to another country, giving up their homes just to attend college, look for work and ensure that their children receive a proper education. At the same time, as family structure carries more weight in the East, parents are more involved in ensuring the success of their children’s academics. Demographically, Asian American children tend to receive higher grades than other ethnicities, partially due to increased parent involvement in school work.

Additionally, some Japanese schools have students prepare their own food at lunch and serve their classmates. Not only does this lesson encompass social interaction and practical life skills, but also teaches students to work for others and cooperate to reach a common purpose—which stems from a collectivist culture.

3. Governmental neglect

Apart from Asia, Finland is notable for its unorthodox yet hugely successful education system, which is 100% state funded. Also, all teachers must carry a masters degree, which is fully subsidized. Finnish value for education is due in part to government involvement in funding schools and training teachers. Teaching itself is regarded as a competitive field, where only the top 10% of graduates are selected—giving them the same social status as doctors and lawyers.

Now look back at America where teachers are underpaid and schools are inconceivably underfunded. Data from The Connecticut Conference of Municipalities (CCM) estimated $763 million in underfunding in 2012 in Connecticut alone. The figure became closer to 1 billion when other factors were included in the estimation.

It seems at least somewhat feasible to make curriculum changes like The Common Core, but how in the world do you change an entire culture? Well, it’s also important to remember that an ideological shift doesn’t happen overnight. If next week, if someone was to mandate that all American schoolchildren had to make their own lunch like the Japanese, there would be chaos. Without a deep, societal motivation to raise hard-working, productive adults, schools can implement as many common core-type changes as they want and still lag behind. Modifying culture is a gradual process, stemming from modifying parenting in future generations, continuing to advocate for adequate funding, and integrating moral ethics within curricula.