Stories circulating on the web would have you think that public education in the United States today is not working or that kids don't care. Neither are true.
When teachers and students here in the U.S. are subjected to standardized tests, our results don't compare well to some other countries, like Japan. I could tell you that there are multiple reasons for this, not the least of which would be that all students in Japan get exactly the same education, regardless of disability and their students with disabilities are not counted in test results, but let's not go there.
Some people would have you believe that our problems come from teacher's unions. If teachers worked harder, our kids would be smarter. Anyone who has spent a full day in one teacher's classroom would know that is simply not true. Teachers arrive early, stay late and take work home with them. Teacher's unions were formed to protect teachers from unscrupulous communities that took advantage of people caring for their children. If unions didn't help teachers negotiate contracts with school districts that hire lawyers for negotiations, teachers would never get raises. It's that simple.
Others would have you believe that the problem lies in student apathy. That kids today just don't care. Students that I work with will tell you that they do care. It's important to them that they have opportunities to be contributing members of society.
So where is the apathy coming from? Apathy stems from people who have lost sight of how important it is to have educated citizens. People today may not realize that democracy depends on having an educated citizenry. Long ago when public education was first envisioned in this country, our founding fathers understood that uneducated people are perfectly willing to leave decisions in the hands of people who appear to be smarter. Educated people know when their rights are infringed upon, when politicians are hoodwinking them out of money. An educated public is our democracy’s best defense.
Developing standards based education has led us to a place where it is not cheap to educate students and it is difficult to justify the cost when standards are inconsistently applied. Or a waiver for a standard/ administrative rule can be had simply by asking. School districts regularly cut corners on technology, teaching contracts, building maintenance and repair or hire people who are not qualified to deal with students because they came at the lowest cost to the district.
Why? Because today's tax burden on communities is so high, that every minor increase in a school's budget is put under a microscope. This is not just happening in low income communities but everywhere. Standards based education and accountability are not going to go away. We need these to push ourselves into improving the education your child receives. But we have to stop cutting corners in education. Children need us to give them time, money and love if they are going to grow into citizens we can be proud of, we need to change the perception regarding education from an unjustifiable expense to an investment in our future.
Have you heard of the Broken Window Theory? People who lived in spaces that were not cared for felt marginalized and social norms tended to break down. The theory was tested in New York, Albuquerque, Lowell MA and the Netherlands. When broken windows and litter were not taken care of, more vandalism and crime followed. In neighborhoods where windows were repaired and litter was removed crime did not increase.
Children learn what they see and hear. Parents argue about a tax bill and say things like, "The school tax is out of control, I'm not voting for that." What the child hears is, "Education is too expensive." A child performs in a play or concert and their parents don't come. What the child hears is, "I don't have time for you." When school district officials blame teachers for poor performance in test scores, what the child hears is, "Teachers are bad." When technology doesn't work in their schools or halls are not kept clean, the child sees this and thinks, "No one cares." Their behavior reflects what they see and hear. If you are wondering why students misbehave, do poorly in school or exhibit apathy in your school district, perhaps it's time to examine the real source of apathy.
-AMA
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