Jaycee Week #6: The American Education System
Jaycee Week #6: The American Education System
America is known as the land of opportunity and is considered the cutting edge of our world. However, when it comes to our education system, many Americans believe we are going in the wrong direction. An article, “About Half of Americans Say Public K-12 Education is Going in the Wrong Direction”, by Rachel Minkin covers the average American's view on the American education system and the facts that back it up. But are the people of America right?
The believed “major” reason behind the decrease of the education system came down to three main points. 69% of all participants believed that the major reason for this decrease is because schools are not spending enough time on “core subjects” like math, English, and Science. 54% of all participants believed that the major reason was that teachers were bringing their “political and social views into the classroom.” 52% believed it was because schools do not have the “funding and resources they need.”
However, I don't think these are the main reasons for the decline in the American education system. I think the real reason for the decline is the unlivable teachers' pay. Teachers are one of the most underpaid positions when compared to other occupations that require the same level of education. This has led to a shortage of qualified teachers and substitutes throughout the country. This teacher shortage causes schools to have high student-teacher ratios, which continue to rise year by year. These high student-teacher ratios lowers the amount of time the teacher has to spend time one on one with students. This may not seem like a big deal but it is stopping the students that need more help from getting the help they need to thrive in the classroom.
Overall, the American people are right, the American education system is on a decline but not for the reason most people believe. All the believed “major reasons” all stem from one thing, the underpayment of teachers. Schools are not spending enough time on “core subjects” could be because of the large class size. Larger class sizes cause a larger range of student ability which in turn causes more time to be spent on each subject. Teachers bringing their “political and social views into the classroom” could be because of the shortage of qualified teachers which leads to anyone who is willing to teach being able to. To end this run in the “opposite direction” we must pay our teachers a more fair wage, to bring back the desire of becoming a teacher and end the teaching shortage once and for all.
Look for an article on American education and agree or disagree with it.
Jaycee, I really enjoyed reading about this topic. I think it is so important that we talk about education in this country and identify all the problems that exist within it so that our generation can be the one to cause the change. I really liked how you identified what most people believe to be the biggest problems with education, supporting your findings with quotes and statistics. It really helped put into perspective what you were saying and it was also simply interesting to learn about. The way you transitioned into your own beliefs was also extremely insightful because, as the reader, we are able to understand what you may have been thinking as you read the article you discussed. The assertion that it is the salary of teachers that has brought the decline in American education is an extremely valid point that I would not have been able to come to myself. The idea that the American education system is declining and the idea that teacher’s salaries are much less than necessary have both existed separately in my mind and I have never thought to connect them. I often think about how I would love to be a teacher but the pay is an immediate off-setting factor. This blog presented your ideas very clearly and I really appreciate you bringing this topic up for all of us to think about.
ReplyDeleteI’ll be honest, I was really hoping someone would cover this topic, and you’ve done a wonderful job! Just to start, the frequent usage of statistics and quotes felt really natural, and it honestly feels like it bolsters the second to last paragraph that does not have those references (since it is sandwiched between two paragraphs that do have that). I remember Mr. Howard told our class last year that the reason teaching has historically been a low-paying job is because it was considered a woman’s profession. Obviously there have been shifts and it gets very complicated, but it is a factor. I am also reminded about the buzz from FUDTA last year as well, which did want to address larger class sizes (although I cannot remember the other goals at the moment). Overall, a very insightful blog and very timely!
ReplyDeleteI really appreciate how you found an article that backs up your point and gives a lot of data! The article you attached gave me a lot of background information about the topic. I haven’t really researched the American education system so this was a really enlightening read! The choice to acknowledge how other people’s feelings on what was causing the decline of quality education in the U.S. were also valid reminded me a bit of the way counterpoints are presented in argumentative essays and I felt like it was a detail that really contributed to your argument!
ReplyDeleteYour call to action in the last paragraph was also really moving, and your use of more concrete words like ‘must’ in order to convery that this is a need helps support your point well. The last sentence is also really strong and I thought it was phrased excellently!