Public Schools in America for a long time were regarded as the best public schools in the world, but with the development of Asian and European schools American schools are not ranked as highly. American Public schools in 1999 were ranked sixteenth and seventeenth in science and math right behind Bangladesh. Some students are graduating from high school with little more than an inadequate ability to read and a diploma that should mean the student knows at least the core subjects. Other students are dropping out and not graduating at all. Colleges are not trusting diplomas and grade point averages as a basis of admissions because they know that with the large variety of classes that high schools offer as credit that the student may not know as much as his or her GPA says. Colleges are recalculating GPA's deleting non-core classes and evaluating SAT and ACT scores for the purpose of admissions. Colleges also have to offer more remedial classes to teach students what they should have learned in high school. Something needs to be done to reform America's public schools especially at the high school level. One way to reform public schools would be to forma common curriculum. This means that a government committee comprised of educators, teachers, corporate representatives, book publishers, parents, etc. would decide what classes must be taken by every student to graduate from high school. The courses selected by the committee would cover the basic subjects such as mathematics, science, the English language and composition, government, history, etc. and the level of these required classes would be at a level that graduating students should be able to master. There would be more than enough room to take electives and other classes of interest, but the core classes would be the focus. This gives students enough knowledge to go onto college and obtain jobs in the American knowledge based economy. This would also eliminate the problem of colleges not being able to decipher the multitudes of high school classes and the grade level the classes are at. Opponents to this plan say that this would eliminate any teacher creativity and would drive many educators from the field. This is not entirely true because teachers are already required to teach certain things in their classes and the standards would not be telling them how they have to teach it.
The American school system is no stranger to criticism, but everybody seems to have a distinct idea of what should be done to improve it. It was not too long ago that we had no public schooling system at all. A man would change that forever, immortalizing himself as the “father” of American education. It was surprising to me that I had never heard of this man, especially considering I had finished my journey through free and compulsory education two years ago. The man who went on to change American education, was Horace Mann, the first Secretary of the Board of Education in Massachusetts. Horace Mann tirelessly campaigned for the public to be educated, heralding it as a “great equalizer.” So why is the gap between social classes rising exponentially? There are fundamental issues holding us back from fulfilling Horace Mann’s dream of an education system which empowers citizens by leveling the playing field for everyone, including pedantic policies, a limited curriculum, and standardized testing.
Kevin Kumashiro has many topics in his great book that explains why the school system is the way it is and why is not being changed in many ways. He shared his experience teaching in another country and how he realizes that the school system was bad in both countries. The common sense of what is the academic education needed for the students to know is how to read write, and do math and many other courses do not have a lot of value in our school system. There is more subjects than math, writing and reading that should be important to our society. His writing talks about how standardized testing is just making the teachers have to teach what is in the test and not actually teach the students the necessary information and skills needed to succeed in their lives.
A child’s first day of school is often viewed as a rite of passage; the first step on the road to a happy and successful life. This is true for most children from affluent families who live in the best school districts or can afford expensive private schools. But what if a child’s first day of school is nothing more than the first step on the road to poverty and possibly even illiteracy? The documentary Waiting for “Superman” addresses many issues in a failing school system and the innocent children that system leaves behind. Although the documentary spends little time suggesting parents’ roles in their children’s education, it clearly shows that we must make changes to help children from low-income families and improve the teacher’s unions.
Many individuals have been affected negatively by trouble makers in school. Troublemakers have either disrupted classes or bullied other students. Yes, trouble makers may harm one’s learning environment, but should they be kicked out of school? Though many individuals argue that troublemakers will not change and hold the class down, they should not be kicked out because they need help. Most of these kids that are disobedient do not know the distinction between right and wrong. We should not withdraw trouble makers from school, rather, we should help these troublemakers and teach them right from wrong. In the article “Let’s Really Reform Our Schools” by Anita Garland, she states that American high schools are disasters because there are troublemakers (694). She asserts that the withdrawal of troublemakers in schools would make the learning environment peaceful for students who want to learn
To respond to the statement made by Kozol regarding the nature of public school in America, one must consider the question of what exactly education is for in this country; what is it's purpose. I believe that education is used to produce what Kozol refers to as "good citizens:" "defeated, unprovocative" people that will fill the necessary jobs, pay the necessary taxes, and perform all the other duties put forth by the government such as voting and jury duty. This is why the situation in America's public schools has not changed since the time Kozol wrote The Night Is Dark..., and why things will probably not change without a revolution within the public school system.
The controversial topic about the function of school is discussed at many school board and PTA meetings throughout America. In Anita Garland’s opinion, schools are not functioning properly. Garland states her reasons as to why the purpose of school has to change in her article, “Lets Really Reform Our Schools”, where she starts off by saying, “Desperate illnesses require desperate remedies. And our schools are desperately ill.” She proceeds to list the remedies in order to transform our schools into a more healthy, successful environment. First, Garland claims that the students who are not interested in studying should not be allowed, better yet, never forced to attend school with kids who want to receive
...uture of American Public Education looks grim. A change in allocating money to the proper intuitions and programs is a necessity for growth and a well rounded educational system. This will allow all students regardless of location to receive the same tools and resources to obtain a high success in learning. The inherent assumptions and discrimination against poor, minorities, and special education students must be eliminated to provide a equal and democratic school society, which will enrich and prepare these students in becoming prosperous adult community members. Reform should include high standards from administration and teachers, not just from the students. Most importantly, reform should include giving the students, teachers, and families a voice in how we teach the students.
Nation policy has been at the forefront of educational reform for decades and lacks effective initiatives to move the education system forward. The U.S Education Reform and National Security report outlines the national initiatives that have taken place to reform the education system. From Goals 2000, to No Child Left Behind (NCLB), to Race To The Top, and Finally Common Core these initiatives have fallen flat for the most part. These policies are riddled with worldviews and common values, also apparent are some key philosophies of education that have identified over time. Although policies are established to benefit the education system, the implementation of some these initiatives has been nothing but headaches at the state and local levels,
The American Education System has been a core component to the development of generations since it became a public system in the 1870s. Since then more rules, higher expectations for some, and even lower expectations for others have been added to the original structure. In recent years, many debates have surfaced over whether the American education system is failing. Too few they believe the American Education System is on the right track. Most researchers however have shown statistics that it is in fact slowly declining as new acts and regimens are added. It has been on a downward spiral for years and citizens have been watching it happen, the lack of government funding, acts like the No Child Left behind Act, focus in the wrong places, and the curriculum set up is acting as a deterrent for success.
There are many similarities and few differences between E.D. Hirsch’s “Why America’s Universities Are Better than Its Schools,” and Benjamin Barber’s “America Skips School.” The main purpose of both articles is to address the fact that Americans fall far behind in the scholastic accomplishment of their young students. Mutually, the two authors agree that American K-12 students learn more each day outside of the classroom than they do inside the classroom, and that the schools need serious reform. Barber focuses his attention on the financial situation of the schools, as well as the political standpoint that the government just does not care, and the American government has simply given up on its children. Hirsch tackles the idea that if our K-12 schools stay with their current level of teaching, it is only a matter of time before the institutions of higher learning will no longer be considered among the best in the world. At the present time, it seems as though America’s youth have been placed into a category for which they are no longer looked upon as a bright future for our nation as was considered in the past, as Barber has commented, “Jefferson thought schools would produce free men: we prove him right by putting dropouts in jail” (159).
Since we established our first schools in America, we have been in a constant state of change. We have progressed from schools made purely to teach young white boys the bible so that they could become preachers, to schools that allow women, to schools that are made to prepare everyone for their future. Even though we have had an abundance of good change, we have also had an abundance of bad change. Education Reform, in concept, is a great idea. Society is changing so our schools should be changing at the same rate. Our schools are struggling and we need to work towards reforming them for the better. The problem is, this reform is being put in place and decided by people who have never taught a day in their life. There are many different examples of reforms put in place by people who have never taught, that are failing out students. No Child Left Behind, Common Core State Standards, Race to the Top, and other reforms are all examples of these failures. We need to look back on the mistakes that we have made through these reforms, and use this knowledge to improve future reform.
Have you ever had a teacher you really enjoyed? Why did you enjoy him? For most people it is because the teacher interacted with the student and made them feel involved in the learning process. As Carl Jung puts it: “One looks back with appreciation to the brilliant teachers, but with gratitude to those who touched our human feelings. The curriculum is so much necessary raw material, but warmth is the vital element for the growing plant and for the soul of the child.” (para. 249).
High school and college dropout rates are at an all time high. Secondary school students are told throughout high school that if they don’t go to college then they will never be successful. Going to college doesn’t always make a difference because many career choices such as teachers and lawyers are highly contested and result in either no job or low salary. Low pay deters teacher’s motivation and they tend to work part time jobs to supplement their income. Public schools standards are comparable to a kangaroo court’s procedure; private schools are known for better teachers, environment, and test grades. The major problems in the public school system include the lack of funding, lack of resources, and lack of standards.
Ideas swarm around us everyday. They run through our heads and at times they alter our thoughts, believes, and perception. The question is, what ideas, events, or words affect us so that we do the things we do and say the things we say. If we understand the causes and know the effects, we have yet to fully understand the “chain.” In essence, the real question is not “what” ideas, events, or words affected the person but rather “why” it affected them. To understand the why, we must first understand the initial cause and effect.
The United States has proven to be a world leader with their powerful military, democratic government, and stringent foreign policies. There is one category however, the United States struggles to be number one in, education. As shocking as this may sound, the public school system in America is not superior to other developing countries. I have witnessed this scandalous phenomena firsthand, engrossed in the public school system from kindergarten to freshman year of high school. The student body and the school administration is morphing into a nonproductive system with a zombie-like attitude. American students lack academic drive and curiosity compared to European and Asian countries because the standard for academic success is constantly lowered. Americans must reform the school system and change their perspective on how important an education is to the rest of the world.