"A world-class education is the single most important factor in determining not just whether our kids can compete for the best jobs but whether America can out-compete countries around the world. America's business leaders understand that when it comes to education, we need to up our game. That's why need to work together to put an outstanding education within reach for every American child"-President Barack Obama, July 18, 2011
Even though everyone agrees with the president, and most are aware that the current system is out of order, not everyone agrees on what course of actions should be taken to fix it. There are those who believe that approaching the issues through a government control department of education and a standardized mandated curriculum is the answer. Others are dead set against it, claiming that more government involvement would do more harm than good. Furthermore, there are those who believe that parents or the individual should decide on their own education. What is not being debated is that in order to come to a common understanding all sides will have to put aside their politics, religious beliefs, moral differences and personal ideologies and that, is easier said than done.
When analyzing the efficiency of the American education system the focus tends to be on the consistent decline of our testing programs; but what is more alarming is how American students stack up against students from other industrialized countries. American students fall far behind their counterparts in almost every educational field in both Asia and Europe, especially in math and science. Moreover, evidence suggests that American students are progressively on a decline and keep falling farther behind each year. Whichever side is ri...
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...etent bureaucrats that do not appear to have our best interest in mind. Let me be clear, let there be no doubt in your mind that if the education system in America dies, the American dream dies with it.
Works Cited
Chabot, Leo L. “A U.S. Department of Education? YES - It is time to give education the status that it deserves" Interview with Daniel B. Taylor, West Virginia State Superintendent of Schools U.S. News & World Report 29 May1978; Pro and Con; Pg. 75
Deeptha thattai “A History of Public Education in the United States” http://www.serventfree.net/~aidmnejournal/publications/201-11/publiceducationinthe unitedstates.html.WEB
Flores, John. “Keeping America Competitive Globally” Deseret Morning News 6 August 2011
Gordon, Howard R.D. “The History andGgrowth of Vocational Education in America”. Tappan NJ: Allyn and Bacon, Prentice Hall, 1999. Print
Chris Hedges, the author of the article “Why the United States is Destroying Its Education System” attempts to persuade his audience to agree with his argument through the use of rhetoric. In this text critique, I will thoroughly analyze the effectiveness of his article by highlighting important premises, tropes, ideographs, and narratives. He claims that the United States’ education system is on a downward spiral due to education reform and the influence of corporate power.
The purpose of this article is to convince Americans that the public school system is failing students nationwide and that it needs to be ended. O’Rourke boldly argues that there is no need to mend public schools, only end them. The public school system has been serving America for years, but O’Rourke clearly believes that it is time to put an end to them. O’Rourke argues that it the public school system’s time is up in this statement: “America’s public schools have served their purpose. Free and compulsory education was good for a somewhat unpromising young nation,”
The United States of America has placed low on the educational ladder throughout the years. The cause of such a low ranking is due to such heavy emphasis on standardized testing and not individual student achievement. Although the United States uses standardized testing as a crutch, it is not an effective measure of a student’s ability, a teacher’s competency, or a school’s proficiency.
“Vocational Education in Finland.” Ministry of Education and Culture. Ministry of Education and Culture, n.d. Web. 2 Oct. 2013. .
In 1867 the original Department of Education was created to collect information on schools and teaching that would help the states establish effective and competitive school systems. During that time the D.O.E. was called the Office of Education and didn’t have an official place in the Executive Branch. The United States Department of Education (D.O.E.) has been officially around since 1971 when President Jimmy Carter signed into law the creation of the D.O.E. as a Cabinet level agency. Two years later, when President Ronald Reagan took office he planned on abolishing the D.O.E. right away because he believed the federal government was intruding too much and that the state and local governments should control the education (Genovese 164). However, in 1983 the D.O.E. published A Nation at Risk: The Imperative for Education Reform which critiqued America’s public education system. President Reagan was alarmed at this report and decided to retain the D.O.E. because he saw it as a weakness if our education system was producing citizens not able to contribute positively to our economy (Genovese 165). Since that year, most republican presidential candidates have considered abolishing the D.O.E. until recently.
“If you would just get up and teach them instead of handing them a packet. There’s kids in here that don’t learn like that. They need to learn face to face. I’m telling you what you need to do. You can’t expect a kid to change if all you do is just tell ‘em.” Texas student, Jeff Bliss, decided to take a stand against the lack of teaching going on in his class (Broderick).
...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.
Education supports everyone getting opportunities in life and being able to choose better for themselves. As Horace Mann wrote, education is the “great equalizer for all.“ However, the United States Public School system will likely never be able to equally educate its masses of students. Public school educating all fairly is a myth.There is no one entity to blame for this failure. The failure lies with each student who has been conditioned to sit passively in an un-engaging classroom. Its failure lies in some students disrespectfully distracting their classmates and frustrating their once inspired teacher or administrator. The failure lies with administration being distracted with causes of the moment and burns out from knowing that all
State School. (2013, 31 August). Retrieved September 6, 2013, from Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia: http://en.wikipedia.org?wiki?Public_education
Cochran, Clarke, Lawrence Mayer, T.R. Carr, Joseph Cayer, Mark McKenzie, and Laura Peck. "Education: Conflict in Policy Direction." American Public Policy: An Introduction. Boston: Wadsworth, 2012. 334-335. Print.
After reading Joel Spring?s book, and reflecting on some of the issues facing our schools, it is apparent that our educational system requires much attention among our nation?s leaders. While the system has transformed in many beneficial ways, we are still plagued by the growing problems of society. I look forward to reading another book by Joel Spring, and developing my evolving understanding of the educational system within the United States.
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.
Education is the backbone of most nations. Proper teaching to students ensure things such as better technology, better fund distributions, running operations like businesses, military training, and the government. Sadly, our nation is very low on the ladder when it comes to education. Students First has pointed out that most children are reading below their grade level, are respectively the 20th and 27th best nation when it comes to Math and Science, and there is no signifigant change. Americans are however getting an education, though lower than against other nations America still are able to make a living with their lives. There is much needed improvement, but at least Americans are not completely ignorant. Citizens can make a living with their lives and though not as intelligent as someone from Korea or Japan there is no way to dispute that our education system is doing
There are many important things children gain while growing up; the most important thing children gain growing up is their education. The educational skills children learn in school teach them the skills they need to perform outside of the classroom and in the workforce. With education being one of the most important gains in the lives of children, it has come to light how in recent years the United States has fallen further and further behind their peers in international rankings. According to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) 2009 educational scores the United States ranks “33” (1), which is lower than the 2002 ranking of “18” (CNN). With such a decrease in the United States ranking, parents wonder why American students are falling behind. The No Child Left Behind Act, standardized testing, and the large use of technology are some of reasons why the United States is falling behind in educational rankings.
Before the education system was implemented in the U.S., many political figures “wanted to create a national culture and qualified politicians for a republican government” (Spring, 2014, p. 10). Thomas Jefferson was the first to propose “an education, but with limited access for the whole population” (p. 11). On the other hand, Horace Mann called the father of the public schools believed that education was essential to reforming the society and one “important idea was that all children in society attend the same type of school. The school was ideally the common place for all children” with the philosophy of equal opportunity for all (p. 12); however, many were the debates at that time, how to incorporate education in an unfair society. That is why the big question about the U.S. education system is: what are the political and social goals of education since then to now?