Pros And Cons Of The United States Educational System

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A country that was once the leading educators is now below the top 20 of 65 countries in the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) of 2012 (Chappell, 2013) . The PISA, which occurs every three years, tests students in reading, math and science. "In mathematics, 29 nations and other jurisdictions outperformed the United States by a statistically significant margin, up from 23 three years ago. In science, 22 education systems scored above the U.S. average, up from 18 in 2009." (Reports Education Week Chappell, 2013)
Since the last testing in 2009, scores have significantly increased in Shanghai, Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea, Macao and Japan. According to the study Shanghai students surpassed Massachusetts, one of the …show more content…

Though they have been the same since 2003, other countries that were once lower are now exceeding goals set by the U.S. Department of education. The test, which was given to student’s ages 15 years and 3 months to 16 years and 2 months, also found that students are less interested in math and science than in the past and other countries.
In the years leading up to these results, the United States Educational System underwent many modifications that transformed the way students and teachers viewed their education or the lack there of. This term paper will briefly examine the many changes that the Educational system has endured including: funding, bullying, No Child Left Behind, Dropout rates, college tuition, classroom size, teacher salaries, and the local Portsmouth Public School …show more content…

No Child left behind NCLB an extension of the Elementary and Secondary Education act requires states to test students in reading and mathematics annually in grades 3-8 and once in grades 10-12. States must test students in science once in grades 3-5, 6-8, and 10-12. Each year states must set a goal and achieve it for further state funding. After two years of not meeting standards, the school must offer student the choice to attend a different school that has met their standards, free tutoring, and/or the ability to attend after school programs.
Dropout rates
Dropout rates amongst the minority have historically always been lower than those of Asians and non-Hispanic Whites. These rates were especially low in low-income and rural areas. But, current dropout rates are fairly low in the United States for Hispanics, Whites and African Americans. Although Hispanics still have the highest dropout rates, they reached an all time low with 14% in 2013 where the highest was 32% in 2000. Dropout rates are also low among African American students now at 8%. (Fry,

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