I think it is useless to argue (as in this article) that students are doing either better or worse in the American school systems now than in the past. What is

I think it is useless to argue (as in this article) that students are doing either better or worse in the American school systems now than in the past. What is significant (and much more interesting) is the fact that compared to other rapidly advancing countries (e.g. India), our educational system is much less effective, and that this could have severe consequences for the US in the near future.