Problems in U.S. Education
Too many people think that schools are hopeless and that nothing can be done. Or they live in that dream world that says, “not here; not my school.” This is exactly the same mentality that we old-timers saw at the early stages of what later became a nationwide drug epidemic.
What all those parents who are so complacent about the alleged excellence of their local schools need to remember is that it was our best and brightest students that ranked 24th in global competition. No matter how good you may think your local school is, it still doesn’t stack-up against the rest of the world.If you’ve been studying education issues for any length of time, then you know about the relationship between our nation’s growing dropout rate and the massive increase in crime. With up to 75% of students dropping out in some of our large, urban areas, that converts to 3 out of four students with NO diploma and NO skills. Even worse, if that is possible, far too many students who DO graduate, cannot read or compute math adequately.
Unfortunately, many people don’t see how dropouts in large cities have anything to do with their own lives. They feel protected against the problems with schools in other areas and don’t believe that failing schools can have any impact on their own well being or safety. Thus, we see lethargy or denial when it comes to motivating people to insist on education reform.
Sadly, in an attempt to try and FORCE improvements in our failing schools, the country adopted No Child Left Behind, a program of testing, testing, testing, supposedly to increase accountability. But it simply led to rigged results in too many states, and no basis for adequate comparison. Now it seems that even attempts to make NCLB work more effectively, keep getting postponed by Congress.
Complicating issues in our schools in 2008, kids are more exposed to drugs and drug use than ever before, both at school and at home. It’s extremely difficult to learn when one’s brain is scrambled on narcotics, prescription drugs, cold medicines, glue or whatever is the latest ‘high getter’. And, as statistics show, parent’s expectations of their own children demonstrate BOTH awareness and denial of any drug use simultaneously.
On top of everything else, there is an appalling lack of leadership role models for our students today in the USA. Don Kingsland points out the problem in Set Our Teachers FREE! A Plan to Save Public Education. He says:
“In our society, it seems that no one makes a decision without taking a poll first, to see which decision is the most popular. And, of course, if the polls change, so do the alleged convictions. Shame! Shame!”
Leadership is a skill that must be taught to our youth - along with critical thinking training and the ability to make life-enhancing decisions. For some reason, our school curriculum’s do not address these issues, or they are only implemented as of secondary, rather than primary importance.
Some people say that American kids are dumber, but I say “Phooey!” As a Grandparent and great-grandparent, I personally know that our children today are just as capable of excelling as any students in the past. Youngsters today grow up knowing more about new technologies that oldsters can even fathom. Children today know how to text message, play games and carry on internet or cell phone conversations simultaneously. Then we wonder why they are bored in class.
When are we going to wake up to the need for reform in our schools?
Yes, there are some good programs being instituted on a small scale in a few schools across the country, but until now, there has been no plan that would improve every school across the nation.
While politicos and academic committees come up with massively expensive programs that will take years, and tears, to implement - there is a simple, workable plan just waiting to be put into effect.
The Kingsland Plan, which is presented in a simple little book entitled Set Our Teachers FREE! A Plan to Save Public Education by Don Kingsland, has solutions that can turn our schools around within 2-3 years and would be far more economical than the unrealistic and more expensive plans that have been suggested or implemented to date. This all-inclusive plan offers solutions not only to curriculum problems, but also the social ills that are impacting school quality in such a powerful way. What is especially important to know about The Kingsland Plan is that the techniques have already been proven to work in actual practice.
Policymakers and academicians KNOW we have a problem, but nothing is going to change until the public gets involved and DEMANDS changes.
Where can you learn about this plan? Get your copy of Set Our Teachers FREE! A Plan to Save Public Education and learn how you can force change in our schools for the better.
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