English 101 - Compulsory Education: Education Reform

Kevin Roshanaie

Prof: Mack

English 101

February 19, 2011

Compulsory Education: Education Reform.

The Compulsory Education System of the United States today is in need of a major upgrade. Here are some ways to improve the compulsory education system we must improve standardized test scores and then we must higher qualified teachers, there must also be more funding for schools. These are just some of the ways to fix the compulsory education system of the United States.

Statistics show that other nations are providing the best education to their children and citizens. The United States is barely able to keep kids in high school and produce hard working American's. "While our international counter parts are increasingly getting more education, their young people are getting a better education as well" (NCEE 4). Our Counter parts like India and China are offering their kids and citizens the top of the line education, in return for them helping out their country. American students have lost interest in getting their education; instead they care for playing their video games or dating. Education Reform is much needed in our country to get students interested in getting their education and providing top notch education for our citizens and children. In The Huffington post Article which we had to read for unit 4 it explains what steps our government needs to take in order to improve our education system and the quality of our education. These were the same steps that I discussed in my paper.

The first step to Education reform is hiring highly educated teachers who have received all of their proper teaching credentials. According to the article titled Tough Choices or Tough Times" by the National Committee on Education and the Economy it states: "We are left with the reality that we are now recruiting more of our teachers from the bottom third of the high school students going to college than is wise. To succeed we must recruit many more from the top third." (NCEE 12). It is important that there be a restructuring of the hiring process and compensation for all teachers so that we can better keep and maintain highly qualified individuals teaching our students. Teachers are the most important factor in deciding the future of our children and the education that they receive. Compensation is a very important part of reforming the compulsory education system; the Teachers of the United States are paid a very low wage to teach. Teachers must be paid an appropriate wage based off of their qualifications. Also teachers like students should be given standardized tests so that they can keep up to date with current curriculum guidelines.

On March 13 of 2010, President Barrack Obama addressed the issue regarding teachers with legislation called "The Reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act - A Blueprint for reform (US Dept. Of Ed). President Obama emphasizes the important role that teachers play in education. "From the moment a student enters a school, the most important factor in their success is not the color of their skin or the income of their parents - it is the teacher standing at the front of the classroom" (ESEA 4).

The second step to reforming the compulsory education system is to prevent high school dropout rates; teachers need to be the ones who provide he or she with all the skills and knowledge they need to get through their education and high school. There also needs to be more 1 on 1 student and teacher interactions so that students are able to get help with their school work. Another way of preventing high school dropout rates is to encourage he or she to attend tutoring and for parents to work with their children. To go along with this step of reforming education the United States must also provide funding for after school tutoring programs to help our children and high school students get through their education. According to The National Center for Education Statistics the U.S high School Dropout rate in 2008 was 8.0 percent (NCES). This is very high from other nation's high school dropout rates.

The Third Step to Reforming Education according to the article Tough Choice or Tough Time is to" invest 19 billion in High quality Early Childhood Education" (NCEE 17). This is according to the Skills commission on the American Workforce. This must be made available to all 4 years olds and to all low income children whose parents cannot afford Early Childhood Education. President Obama is urging states to develop new programs for Early Childhood Education to improve he or she opportunities and outcomes. The Reason Early Childhood Education is so important is because this prepares he or she to know what they will be learning in Kindergarten. Also early childhood education makes younger child become more familiar with their peers and how to learn in a classroom environment. Also the attendance of preschool is an important factor; this shows the student that he or she must be at school all the time to receive an education.

Our country must be prepared to deliver a 21st Century education that will provide he or she with the success that they need in the American workforce. How our country can do this is by improving the curriculum that is taught in schools, The Curriculum in schools must be organized to prepare he or she for college and for a lifelong career. Our Country must also focus on improving he or she's test scores in Math and English and Science, in order to accomplished higher test scores our government needs to invest more money into tutoring and after school learning programs. Parents also need to be involved in their children's education. There needs to be more emphasis toward 1 on 1 Interactions between students and their teachers. Another important aspect that the government must invest in is highly qualified Teacher's Aide's, they are important