...Education Reform in America’s High Schools ENG 102: English Composition II April 7, 2014 Education Reform in America’s High Schools The American education system’s history goes back to the early colonial day where the students were taught differently and the Bible was a major part of education. American schools are failing and the reason why is that they are suppressing children to a base model of education. All children learn naturally because they are born to be curious, creative, and intrinsic motivated. There is a great many parents, students and educators who believe education reform is greatly needed in American society today is very complex and ever changing, and a high school diploma is very necessary to compete for jobs in any given career. But, the U.S. now has the highest dropout rate today in many years and if some major education reform is not implicated the U.S. will fall farther down on the list of countries who are failing to meet the need for continuous production of quality students to contribute to society. This paper will discuss how the Education System in the United States is failing students. By asking probing questions that looks at education reform from the top with the federal and state governments, to the educator and administrators, the parents and students and what are some possible avenues or changes can be taken to improve the educational system in the United States. What is education reform? Education reform has been forever...
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...“Placing blame for the failing educational system” Nothing is more vital to this nation’s success than the future of a good education system. Most Americans have good reason to be concerned with our current educational system which is failing miserably. The United States used to be a leader in education. Now it has dropped in rank due to things such as: poor performance from teachers /students, low test scores, overcrowded class rooms, high school drop outs, and underfunded federal programs. We face solid competition in higher education from nations like; China, Latin America, India, and Singapore. The United States government tried to raise the standards when congress introduced a new bill called “The No Child Left Behind” act. Unfortunately, this bill that former President George W. Bush signed left many Americans unimpressed. Although, I do commend our government for trying to address this critical issue, many people found this bill to be far from the change we needed. Our educational systems are swamped with all the politically correct information and the testing requirements, that we have lost sight of some value basic information. Many students are able to remember book knowledge, but cannot display basic common sense. Although, I know that classes like “cooking” are not popular anymore, but maybe a small part should be mandatory. Teaching children about balancing their personal budgets might lead to someone helping our national debt. And if they learned about nutrition...
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...American Education: Not Worthy of an “A” In the height of the economic recession circa 2008, the CEO of a McDonald’s supplier experienced difficulty finding competent workers for the modern factory jobs. The position entailed basic communication skills, literacy, and the ability to solve a problem. These traits were lacking in the recent high school graduates of Oklahoma public schools. In rapidly evolving and fast-paced financial markets, a quality education has become the foundation for success, and the education being offered by U.S. schools proves to be a faulty base for structure. In Amanda Ripley's The Smartest Kids in the World, Ripley demonstrates the American education system's need for rigor by providing personal narratives...
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...“‘murica” and “thanks Obama”, this nationalistic sense is a de facto aspect ingrained within Americans, particularly in people who hold powerful positions in the nation. Within seconds of feeling any facet of our nation threatened, we become defensive as our nationalistic senses rise. Although Americans may think of defending ourselves from terrorist attacks or other poignant incidents etched into our history, we rarely think of the instances where we have sacrificed the well-being of our own people in order to maintain the prevailing culture of the United States. As demonstrated both by the observations of Michelle Alexander in The New Jim Crow and the firsthand experiences of James Baldwin in A Talk to Teachers, the marginalization of people of color has occurred for years in order to impede the nearing changes that would shift our society and culture. Upon reading both Alexander and Baldwin’s works, it becomes clear that people...
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...America is claimed to be the land of the free and the home of the brave, a land of opportunity and beauty. It is portrayed as being a place where those in the lower socioeconomic level can achieve upward social mobility. This, of course, this is not true for millions of Americans because no system is perfect or even great for that matter. The subject of this essay is one that feels as though it has been intentionally avoided due to the stigma associated with it by many people in society. However, it deserves utmost regard and should be addressed by American politicians as well as local leaders. That topic is poverty, and this essay will try to explain how something such as poverty can span all ethnic groups as well as age groups. I will also try to offer some possible solutions that though they may be unrealistic due to the fact of government stagnation, they would help the average impoverished American escape the grasp of poverty. In 1929 the Great depression began. It was a period of immense turmoil in America, as many people were thrusted into poverty. To combat this, in 1935, President Franklin Roosevelt proposed, and Congress enacted, the Social Security Act to hedge against the hazards and hardships of life, including events that caused a family to lose its...
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...No Child Left Behind and its Effects on City School Districts Abstract The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) is a federal law that mandates a number of programs aimed at improving U.S. education in elementary, middle, and high school by increasing accountability standards. The aproach of NCLB is based on theories in education that high expectations and goal setting will result in greater educational achievement for most students. High standards for all students as well as educators are quality goals, however, using standardized tests to measure success is not the most effective method. Having high standards is a necessary part of our nation's success, it sets a high level of accountability and provides benchmarks for both the student and educators. Those schools that are categorized as performing poor are required to have supplemental asistance like tutoring, after school programs or even replacing teacher completely. Schools risk being restructured or even taken over by the state is after five years of not making adequate yearly progress. But standardized testing is an ineffective way of assessing individual student performance. This type of test gives reason to teach according to what is on the test, rather than for authentic learning. When using standardized tests there is no room to account for differennt learning styles and strengths of each student. Everyone learns differenntly but with this type of test doesn't allow for...
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...their child will receive an exceptional education, one that will lead to positive circumstances and a bright future. However, in America today, the educational system has shifted, and it’s definitely not for the better. The problems within the U.S public education system are astonishing; with almost every American president since the 1960s promising education reform, with none being successful. The fate of millions of children around the country lies in the hands of irresponsible adults, individuals who are responsible for these poor education systems. The 2010 documentary Waiting for Superman travels in depth to the corrupt system that will continue to affect the lives of the same people who will soon be Americas future. In the gripping documentary it is revealed that a leading factor to our faulty system is the refusal of teachers unions to adopt a system that rewards good teachers. Due to the tenure system that was enacted by American Association of University Professors in 1900, teachers are guaranteed a life contract that declares that their position cannot be terminated without just cause. This means that bad teachers who only hinder their students’ performance can keep their jobs and not suffer any repercussion’s. However, good teachers who do their job well are paid just as much as the bad teacher, indicating the unfair nature of our system. However, this isn’t the only problem. As parents realize that our public education system may only lead to negative situations...
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...American Government Mrs. Macon (661) 822-2130 pmacon@teh.k12.ca.us I. Course Scope A. Course Description In this course students will reflect on prior knowledge learned to help them further their understanding of the foundations of American Government and our political system. An emphasis will be placed on civic responsibility and the importance of participation in the democratic process. We will begin by examining the foundation of our nation, our Constitution, and discuss the philosophy of those who created it. We will then use this knowledge to compare and contrast various philosophies of government throughout our world today. This class is a senior course that fulfills the American Government or Civics graduation requirement. B. Textbooks and Materials Used Magruder’s American Government will be the text book used for this course. Multi-media resources and primary documents will be used throughout the duration of this course. You will also be able to view information about this class through the website, myteacherweb.com. Go to myteacherweb.com and click on, “Find Your Teacher.” Follow the instructions from there and click on, “Mrs. Macon.” II. Grading Policy A. Grading Scale: 90-100 = A; 80-89 = B; 70-79 = C; 60-69 = D; 59 & below = F B. Description of Grading Procedures: 1. Grades will be based on a point system. All assignments...
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...interlocking systems of oppression specifically affect the schooling of low income and underrepresented students,” this quote was taken from Ikeisha Daniels during an interview. Daniels is a history instructor at the University of Chicago Carter G. Woodson middle school, where she comes in direct contact with the issues black students face in predominately African American schools. The circumstances of African American education in the United States are abominable in some communities compared to other ethnicities, which is taking a toll on the students, teachers, and families of the black educational system. The history...
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...Sobia Chaudhry Deb Williamson English 1113 February 16, 2012 Analysis Essay “Waiting for Superman” The importance and value of public education has declined over a period of decades in the United States of America. It portrays this concept in the documentary “Waiting for Superman” that the failing of schools is getting worse. The reformers of public education are not making much of an effort on this failing educational system. The movie explains public education system is about keeping the teachers unions happy, and having them line their own pockets at the expense of our children’s education. Charter schools being the hot spot where motivated parents are trying to send their children, however there is a limited space and a lot of applicants, the children are placed in the hands of luck. The American Federation of Teachers has been the most powerful and active teachers union. The teachers of today are a lot different from the teachers of the past decade. Today most teachers are unmotivated educators who have quit doing their job precisely. Teachers unions have guaranteed a life time job security to teachers. It doesn’t matter if you are resulting in high test scores in your classroom or low ones. It has become close to impossible to fire an underserving teacher due to tenure. Tenure was first brought up in Universities protecting professors from being fired for non-educational reasons. This has carried on to public schools. Teachers are to teach a certain number of years...
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...Tara Rose Professor Lewis EN 101 November 18, 2008 McCain’s and Obama’s Views on No Child Left Behind Act “Change.” Change has been a word brought up often in this election. Obama promises to bring “change” to America. How are we going to change our education system? How do the candidates plan to change the education system? In 2001, President George Bush, reauthorized the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, with his new piece of legislation, The No Child Left Behind Act. This was the largest reform of federal education policy in any generation. However, many believe this Act had little or no impact on Americans. Nevertheless, both candidates, Barack Obama and John McCain, plan to keep the act intact but with their own revisions, and both parties stress the importance of every child receiving what they call a “world-class education. (Internation Reading Association: Reading Today: McCain vs. Obama)McCain’s key concept in changing the No Child Left Behind Act, is giving parents and their children the choice of any school through charter schools, vouchers, or tax credits for private schools, while Obama’s main focus is recruiting new teachers and paying them higher salaries; I believe Obama’s plan to reform the No Child Left Behind Act is a more productive plan, and that he has a better approach to reforming the No Child Left Behind Act. The No Child Left Behind Act, NCLB, was introduced on January 23, 2001, immediately after George Bush stepped into office. This act...
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...Creating Innovators: The underlying need of American Education System The First Innovation Education Fellow at the Technology & Entrepreneurship Center at Harvard, Tony Wagner states that “The culture of schooling as we all know it is radically at odds with the culture of learning that produces innovators.” Concepts are a general notion or an idea of something formed by mentally combining all its characteristics or particulars. There are numerous perspectives on any given concept and a certain interpretation of a concept can be profoundly influential in shaping one’s thinking and even in determining one’s future. The concept of education is the achievement of skills, knowledge and understanding where such achievement is not confined to one sphere of life and is not inert in life. A good education system is fundamental to a nation that wants to be economically and otherwise independent. Career based education indeed seems to be mandatory in present scenario. The first thing we all have on mind while selecting a specific course of education is thinking what is the ‘ employ ability’ aspect of it. In simpler words, we care to spend time on learning something that gives us back lucrative returns on the investment we made. As Pepellashi mentions “The design and structure of elementary, secondary, higher education revolve primarily around building skill sets related to work/career.” It is only very natural to think...
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...Writ 1301 Sophia Andera-Cato Education in America In the words of American philosopher Will Durant, “Education is the transmission of civilization.” To me, this quote represents exactly what education should be in every society. Education is key to the expansion and prosperity of civilization and it is what keeps us, as a human race, growing. All over the world students are learning to improve themselves to eventually improve their society. The problem here is that not everyone values the importance of education as much as they should. From examination of completion rates and analysis of standardized tests, it is clear that America is falling behind many countries, Japan in particular. This disparity between America and Japan is shown not only in academics, but also in competition for jobs. The better the education people achieve, the more advancements the country can have, and the more successful that nation will be as a whole. America needs to refocus its value on education to emphasize its importance to avoid falling behind on a global scale of educated citizens. One of the main reasons America is falling behind Japan is that the high school drop out rate in America is 1.2 million students a year, which is 6,000 students a day (The Broad Center). The fact that this many students are forfeiting their education everyday is disturbing. Students can just ease their way through and earn a high school degree; so dropping out shouldn’t even be an option. In Japan, the drop...
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...Argumentative Paper about Our Failing Education System By Randall Faircloth The Reasons why I Feel that Our American Education System is failing us is because of the over-dependence of Standardized Testing, Students not being taught the skills and knowledge they need to succeed in today’s world, and Teachers are only teaching the requirement of Rote Memorization, and not applying it, The Public School system doesn’t offer an even playing field for children of all Socio-economic status, and The Public School system is teaching a Neutral curriculum where Morals and Standards don’t exist, because no matter what All Children of All Races, and Religions need to be taught values, such as treat others the way you want to treated, and the good teachers...
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... the US has discriminated certain groups of people from higher education. Colleges and universities should consider race as a factor in admissions process. It benefits all students as well as minorities that receive affirmative action. It also develops stronger leaders that are needed for our ever-changing society. Merit based admission as a counter argument to affirmative action is flawed because it doesn’t compensate for the failures in our public education system that result in failing schools. Diversity in higher education is an advantage to all students. With new perspectives and ideas, the debates and discussions in the classrooms and on campus will be less biased and more interesting. A multicultural campus will encourage more positive interactions and discourage uneasy race relations, like the Compton Cookout. This stereotypical event that occurred off campus at UCSD to mock black history month was exactly what affirmative action could help avoid. Since the UC system banned admission by affirmative action, UCSD only had 2.2% black students in the freshman class, which was the lowest of any of the 10 campuses in the University of California School system. Nowadays, many students live very segregated lives until they start college, so they have false assumptions and stereotypes towards certain races. Ninety-two percent of the University of Michigan’s white students and 52 percent of its African American students grew up in racially separate communities. It is surprising...
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