Education is one of the most important aspects of the day-to-day lives of most people living in America. Even if you are not personally going to school, you may somehow be affected by schools. Whether it be your children, other family members, or friends going to school, or taxes, you're likely to be in some way influenced by schools on a daily basis. Though many people of the current generation of teenagers might prefer self-education (which is widely open to them now because of all the educational sources on the internet), most families still rely on public education, which, as many people have complained, has been steadily decreasing over the decades.
Not long ago there was a time when America's students had the best education in math. Unfortunately, for some reason, while other nation's standards increased, ours seemed to remain the same, keeping us in a rut. Could it perhaps be the amount of funding for each student? I think not, for each student in America, on average, will have been funded with over eight-thousand dollars throughout his or her education. And yet there are countries with less funding for their students who rank higher than us.
What is the reason that brought our education from the very best in the world, down to only the thirteenth? Is there some key aspect that has been changed over the years, which has drastically altered how well our children will be educated? Through extensive research I have developed my own theories for what might be to blame for this rut we seem to be stuck in.
State Testing
In my state we have the CSAPs. Like all other testing, these tests determine the amount of funding put into a school. If the average for a school is on the low side, their funds will be lessened. And if they are consistently low throughout the years--as my city has seen only last year--that school could very well be closed. I see this as a problem, because if a school loses its funding (or gets closed down) it can mean relocating of students (which is of course very bad for how well they keep up in school), and a reluctance of teachers to apply there. And the latter actually relates to my next point… Underpaid Teachers
Teaching is without doubt one of the most difficult occupations in the nation today. Teachers have to deal with all the drama of school, while at the same time trying to drill bits of information into their students' apathetic minds every day. Yet despite all of the work they put into their careers, they are paid far too little for what the job asks for. This makes teachers less caring about their jobs, and then we have less people willing to take up the career, in the first place. Some people might come to me, saying with the utmost self-righteousness, that if a teacher is truly devoted to his or her career, he or she would work regardless of the pay. Be reasonable: if someone is not being treated as well as they should, you shouldn't expect them to live up to their full potential.
So in conclusion, it is clear to see that education has fallen throughout the years, and is in need of intervention. The troubles we face would not be so difficult to remedy; but an impediment is that the problems with education do not garner as much attention as they should. There has been little to no reference to education throughout the presidential campaigning, and it leaves us to question whether or not something will ever be done about this problem.
But we do not have to wait on our leaders to fix this for us. Get involved in your school system, make a petition! Do whatever you feel is right. Any effort put towards this cause will be of great help, other than obvious exceptions. We are not without power; use what we have.
