Premium Essay

The Failure of Education Policy in the United States

In:

Submitted By shelbypol692
Words 2633
Pages 11
The Failure of Education Policy in the United States
The United States has always struggled to find a way to provide an education system that provides a solid educational foundation for America’s youth. The government’s use of education policies to help better America’s education system many say has failed along with politicians attempts to solve this problem. In this paper we will be searching for an answer to a question that plagues many concerned parents and many politicians as well: Has the education policy failed in the United States? In order to answer this question we must look back on the historical background of the issue, we must review the past and present policies in place and we must identify the proposed solutions. It is our intention, with this research, to understand why or why not our education policies have failed America’s youth.
There is a major problem in America and it is not one that is hard to spot if you are a concerned parent looking at your child’s test scores, a student enrolled in America’s public schools, a politician seeking to pass a new policy or even a concerned citizen, because when it comes to building a strong, intellectual country Americans’ know we need an education system that adequately prepares our youth. With so many statistics showing the decline of test scores it is not hard to identify the educational problem in America. However, there are many different beliefs as to why the education policy is failing in the United States; however, there are also some people who believe it is actually helping the U.S. Some people believe that “public education reforms fail because they are compromised or sabotaged by the education lobbies – teacher associations, administrators, and the legislators” (Hood, “The Failure of American Public Education”). Many conservatives “believe it is because of cultural and social trends, which

Similar Documents

Premium Essay

Romney vs. Obama

...become president of the United States, he or she must gain votes from the general public. President Barack Obama and Governor Mitt Romney must go through months of campaigning to get the votes necessary to win each state. Some Americans believe that the public makes the decision for presidency long before the campaigns start, and others believe that the campaigns are necessary to gain votes for a President. A campaign in itself is not necessary to influence the public's decision. The focus is whether the campaign has the influential power to change the opinions of American citizens. During the campaign period, national conventions, and presidential debates, President Barack Obama and Governor Mitt Romney discussed why both are qualified and best fit to become President of the United States. Many topics such as education, foreign policy issues, health care, and economy and trade are elaborated during the campaigning period, the conventions, and the debates. According to multiple media sources such as CNN and Fox News, the 2012 presidential election is in a dead heat. Governor Romney revealed qualities that would make him a good President. Governor Romney’s economic policy is what a fragile America needs and his ability to recognize the danger of the growing debt. Governor Romney possesses great knowledge of the current budget mess and yet has an optimistic view of America’s future. That is the change I want for a better America. A strong education system is essential for...

Words: 1677 - Pages: 7

Premium Essay

Bilingualism

...Bilingualism – Education aspect Twisted Tongues: The Failure of Bilingual Education This article talks about the failure of bilingual education in the United States. Part of the article gives personal experiences from people who have dealt with bilingual education, in which they have bad experiences. Most of the them say that they feel like their children are discriminated against because of their last name or ethnicity. For example, in one experience the parent says that their child was shy during his kindergarten examine and did not talk and the administrator put him as bilingual even though he wouldn’t speak, then assumed the child did not understand. The article goes on to talk about different problems within the education system, how parents feel about it, what is being done to help the situations and the emphasis being taken on bilingual education (Porter, 1998). Bilingualism in Education This article talks about the advantages of bilingual education in the United States. The author feels that if a student learns another language throughout their schooling that they have a better chance of possible even picking up on a third language. Additionally, the author feels that it would benefit them to learn other languages so that it is easier to adapt to different cultures, especially if they were to travel around the world. It would open up many opportunities for them and teach them more grammar as well as heritage of their culture (Wordpress). Bilingualism – Politics...

Words: 585 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Public Education Policy Analysis

...The topic for this week’s forum discussion hits very close to home for me as I am very invested in the education that my 5 and 6 year old daughters are receiving. There is no doubt that public education has changed extensively since I went through elementary school quite some time ago. Without a doubt if I were to take over Presidency I would address federal education policies. The overall level of public education that the future of this nation is getting is a disgrace. There have been multiple policies that have promised to do nothing but improve public education and standardize the level of education the youth is receiving. None of these policies have produced any success. Instead we as a country are continuing to set the bar low and accepting mediocrity when it comes to education. This needs to be changed before the lack of high standards for education continues to put us more and more behind. The adaptation of common core was supposed to help standardized and improve our...

Words: 478 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Kelton

...Affirmative Action kelton Smith MGT/434 June 20, 2014 Affirmative Action Affirmative action remains a program or policy that takes measures actively to ensure, concerns for general education, equal opportunities, parliament or government seats, and employment (United States Department of Labor, 2002). The initial policies proved intended for helping blacks began fairly, but evolved into more for every American (Bennett-Alexander & Hartman, 2012, p. 272). The author will elaborate on why organizations remain subjects to affirmative action. The author will also explain what the plans require of employers, and list in detail what happens if the goals of the affirmative action plan remain unaccomplished. The Affirmative Action Plan The requisites of laws, regulations, rules, and court cases that mandate affirmative action and nondiscrimination, which agencies must plenarily meet in particular situations present as compliance. An EEO-1 annual report is required from private organizations that house 100 or more workers and with federal contract regimes of $50,000 and 50 workers or more for federal contractors (Bennett-Alexander & Hartman, 2012, p. 242). The process helps to provide a head count of the organizations workforce in categories of job, gender, race, and ethnicity. In addition, the process will also help eliminate discriminating and treatment toward groups or persons based on sex, race, or protected classes illegally. Disparate impact and disparate treatment...

Words: 1005 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Issues with Common Core State Standards

...ISSUES WITH COMMON CORE STATE STANDARDS Christina Pugh ENG 122: English Composition II Prof Allison Sansbury June 22, 2015 Issues with Common Cores State Standards While Common Core State Standards (CCSS) improve test taking skills, the United States should remove them from their schools because parents are starting to blame teachers for failures, making classes larger due to failure increases, and they are starting to make children dislike school. Even though CCSS has been adopted by 46 states and the District of Columbia, many believe that it will have little to no effect on student achievement while increasing the deficit for the states. An average school day now consists of prepping for state tests instead of learning about history, reading novels, or participating in different extracurricular actives. CCSS is taking the fun out of learning and making school become a job for our children. Common Core State Standards were implemented to help students to be college and/or career ready regardless of what state they live in. As stated in the article Understanding and Implementing the Common Core Vocabulary Standards in Kindergarten “the College and Career Readiness (CCR) anchor standards, the ‘backbone’ of the CCSS, describe the literacy skills all students need when they graduate. The grade-specific standards describe the literacy skills that all students need when they finish each grade and that correspond to the CCR anchor standards (p.264).” Students should face...

Words: 1146 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Nclb

... C.M. 107-03 Peggy Graham Education is the one resource everyone has that is theirs alone. It is also the one asset everyone has that can never be taken away from them. Does anybody believe that the United States government and politicians should be those holding the keys to our future generations’ quality of education? The future of any country of any nation depends directly upon the degree of cultural and educational development of younger generations. Besides, any education system needs constant control and upgrading to correspond to world standards and bring better results. This leads to discussing the Act of 2001, which received the name “No Child Left Behind” signed by President Bush at the beginning of the year 2002. NCLB is said to be “a reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, the central federal law in pre-collegiate education” (Mathis, 2003, pg. 679). The special aid program for disadvantaged students was the first to expand the ESEA. NCLB was formed in an answer to the reaction of public concern of education, with stricter guidelines for testing, and a stronger importance for highly qualified teachers’. Because of the public reaction about education the key aims of the “No Child Left Behind” Act is to improve as much as possible the situation in education and provide sufficient support for the disadvantaged students. The NCLB does not allow a single public school...

Words: 1161 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Sex Ed

...Comprehensive Sex Education Which is the Right Choice? Allysa Lekas English 401 Professor Kramer December 11, 2012 Abstinence-Only vs. Comprehensive Sex Education The appropriate type of sex education that should be taught in United States public schools continues to be a major topic of debate, which is motivated by high teen pregnancy and birth rates in the United States compared to other countries. This debate is centered on whether abstinence-only or comprehensive sex education should be taught in public schools. Some argue that sex education, that covers safe sexual practices, such as condom use, sends a mixed message to students, and actually promotes sexual activity. The United States government used to promote abstinence-only initiatives through the Adolescents Family Life Act. It cost 176 million dollars annually to fund abstinence-only programs. The central message of these programs was to delay sexual activity until marriage, and cannot include information about contraception and condoms (Stranger-Hall & Hall, 2011). It has been proven that abstinence-only education does not have an effect on the birth rates in the United States, but comprehensive sex education has. Teaching students to not only about abstinence, but about contraceptive use and information about sexually transmitted diseases, has decreased the birth rates in the United States as well as the contraction rate of sexually transmitted diseases. Comprehensive sex education in school has been...

Words: 3018 - Pages: 13

Premium Essay

Eth 125

...nations; they are from Mexico and islands South of Florida. The inhabitants of Mexico, Haiti, Puerto Rico, and The Dominican Republic have entered the United States both legally and illegally in search of a better life. The largest group of Hispanic immigrants is the Mexicans. The Mexicans represented 66.9% of the Hispanic population of the United States in 2002 (Schaefer, 2006, p. 236). Census figures confirm that 69% of illegal aliens inhabiting America in 2009 entered from Mexico. If fact, nearly one out of ten Mexicans currently resides in the United States (Terrazas, 2010). The linguistic choices of Mexican immigrants are 23% English dominant, 26% English and Spanis- speaking, and 51% Spanish (Schaefer, 2006, p. 241) The language barriers lead to inadequate schooling and less chance for economic advancement. Over half of Mexican immigrants entering America have not graduated high school or obtained proper documentation for employment; this leads to employment of most in unskilled fields. With less than 6% of immigrants earning a college degree, few immigrants qualify for professional positions (Buffington, 2011). Most Mexican immigrant males find employment as factory or construction workers (Terrazas, 2010). The Roman Catholic religion largely defines Mexican culture and holidays; they continue these traditions in the United States (Englecook & Marín, 2011). The Mexican Americans show a strong reliance on family with extended families living together or near each other....

Words: 1390 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

John F Kennedy Essay Thesis

...John F. Kennedy came into office as the 35th president of the United States. The citizens of the United States were counting on him to make a difference to the country through his many proposals of reform that were supposed to change the nation for the better. John F Kennedy still to this day is the youngest president to ever sit in the oval office and he truly left his mark on the nation, even though his presidency was cut short by his painful and hard to grasp assassination. Kennedy was a picture perfect man to run the majestic nation with his beautiful, supportive wife and young, intelligent children. The president had a positive audience and network during his term as most of the citizens of the United States supported him and he had a...

Words: 672 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Role of Sociology in Criminal Justice

...high school graduate has to make. It is essential for an individual standing at the cross roads after high school to be visionary in making a decision to join a college. Attending college is worth it because the knowledge obtained cannot be taken away from you. College education contributes significantly to the person development. College learning is both inside and outside classroom. The college experiences are a reminder that adulthood comes with more responsibility. In addition, it instills in a person the virtue that it is essential to work hard for one to succeed. There exist studies that support the need for a student to attend college. In a survey investigating the importance of college education today as compared to high school education, it was found that almost 90% of the respondents admitted that college education is important. The presentation of this paper agrees with these findings. With the changing societal needs, college education has become important like high school education. Therefore, the perception toward college education makes it important. There are other ways in which attending a college is important. First, college helps one expand the knowledge base. Through college education, a student is able to acquire much knowledge in many subjects. In addition, a student receives more advanced knowledge in specific areas of study. Abstract and critical thinking is also developed for better thought and speech expression and writing. These skills are both...

Words: 1770 - Pages: 8

Premium Essay

Vietnam

...Vietnam The Vietnam War or conflict as it was known was complex in its origins and followed France’s failure to suppress nationalist forces in Indochina, better known as Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia, as it struggled to restore its colonial dominion after WWII. Led by Ho Chi Minh, a Communist-dominated revolutionary movement, the Viet Minh, waged a political and military struggle for Vietnamese independence that frustrated the efforts of the French and resulted ultimately in their leaving from the territory (Bowman, J. S.). Vietnam The U.S. Army’s first encounters with Ho Chi Minh were brief and generally sympathetic. During World War II, Ho Chi Minh’s anti-Japanese resistance fighters helped to rescue shoot down American pilots and supplied information on Japanese forces in Indochina. United States Army officers stood at Ho Chi Minh’s side in August of 1945 as he celebrated in the brief contentment of proclaiming Vietnam’s independence. Five years later, however, in a worldwide sense overwrought with ideological and military confrontation between Communist and non-Communist powers. Army advisers of the newly formed United States Military Assistance Advisory Group (MAAG), and Indochina, were assisting France against the Viet Minh. With combat rampant in mainland China and Korea experiencing a recent collapse to the Communists, the war in Indochina now became visible to Americans as one...

Words: 1262 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

The Oil Market In The 1970's: A Case Study

...The United State Government involvement in the U.S. economy seldom produces a positive economic outcome. The Government’s decisions as to where they direct their spending can cause varied results not only within the economic realm, but towards other areas of American life as well. President Lyndon Johnson’s War on Poverty movement is an example of how government spending can have a chain-reaction effect on the way Americans live their daily lives. Government involvement in the oil economy in the mid to late 1900’s greatly altered the invisible hand of the oil market, and as a result, has had incredible consequences to future natural gas rates. Recent funding toward environmentalist movements and the tariff on Chinese Solar-Panels have led...

Words: 1893 - Pages: 8

Premium Essay

Affirmative Action: Helping or Hindering?

...2016 Does Affirmative Action Benefit or Penalize You? “You must fail in order to succeed.” This is something that is repeatedly said to students as they prepare to begin their college careers. We encourage failure to remind everyone that no one is perfect and not everything in life will work out exactly the way it is planned. Unfortunately, this may not be having the effect on students that it’s supposed to. In fact, what if the idea of failing is setting up students to just be mediocre rather than be as appealing to a future employer as possible? It is now overwhelmingly common for a student to graduate with their Bachelor’s degree, only to not be able to find a job in their field of study. Affirmative Action is a well known policy in the world, especially as these high school students begin their college application and admissions process. It assures them that regardless of religion, gender, or race, they are all being held at the same standard. But if we tell these students that even when they fail, they can succeed, we’re setting them up for subpar work, only for them to be handed a job over someone who truly deserves it. Affirmative Action policies have a negative impact in the academic world and workplace because while everyone does in fact deserve equal rights, the policy creates an environment that caters to discrimination when it is supposed to eliminate it. During the 1960’s The Civil Rights Movement created the Equal Employment Opportunity Plans (EEOP). From this came...

Words: 2135 - Pages: 9

Premium Essay

Health Law, Regulation, and Policy

...Health Law, Regulations, and Policy Paper Michelle Hobbs HCS/545 June 13, 2016 Qiana Amos Health Law, Regulation, and Policy Paper Today’s health care industry is more than just providing medical services to individuals in need; it encompasses various laws, regulations, and policies that direct how care should be provided and what the ramifications of non-compliance will have on the health care provider and the organizations where services are rendered. There are various kinds of laws, regulations, and policies that affect the health care industry. Some may believe that laws, regulations, and policies all have the same requirements, benefits, and implications, but there are differences between the three and the impact they have on health care. As the ability of the health care industry continues to expand, the need for additional laws, regulations, and policies will be necessary to ensure the quality and equitable delivery of medical services continues to improve alongside the medical services. Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 One law that governs the manner in which health care services are rendered is Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This law states “no person in the United States shall, on the ground of race, color, or national origin, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance (United States Department of Labor, n.d.). For health...

Words: 2400 - Pages: 10

Premium Essay

Jimmy Carter Research Paper

...James Earl Carter, Jr., also known as Jimmy Carter or the first president to be born in the hospital, was the 39th President of the United States of America. He is regarded by many as one of the worst presidents since World War II. The reasons behind his negative public image as a president can be found on the forefront of the legislative, judicial, public, and global stage. If one would open an encyclopedia or scroll through the contents of Wikipedia, a major conflict that took place within the 20th century on American soil happens to be “conveniently” left out. The battleground was Capitol Hill, in which one lone man took on hundreds. Granted, no actual bullets were fired, nor was there any bloodshed, but it did ultimately cost Jimmy Carter...

Words: 1018 - Pages: 5