This is what happens when schools are only assessed by their students' performance on standardized exams in Math, Science, English/Language Arts, and Social Studies/History. This is what happens when districts are forced to cut budgets to preserve those core subjects after losing accreditation from state and federal oversight agencies.
This is what happens when the standards of education are lowered to accommodate the emotions of sensitive imbeciles. This is what happens when a nation of people decides feeling smart is better than being intelligent. This is what happens when you base an entire nation's education standards off of the requirements set by the state where the textbooks are published.
This is what happened to a generation of Americans who grew up under the tutelage of No Child Left Behind.