Essay on Private Schools Will Not Fix the American...

Private Schools Will Not Fix the American Education System The American public education system was founded on the radical notion that all members of society should have equal access to education. Also crucial was the notion that a basic common education was essential for a true democracy. This revolutionary system is now in indisputable trouble. Many worry about America’s ability to compete with foreign countries while others address the growing dichotomy between the quality of education in different economic areas. Recent rural shootings have only exasperated the problem, and caused many parents to entirely abandon the public system for a private alternative. A flurry of solutions has been suggested, ranging from school†¦show more content†¦While a good idea in theory, I fear it could lead to a school curriculum that is focused solely on improving test scores to attract new students. Again, although the government should be available for assistance, the standard for measurement of students should come from the affected children and their parents. The division between the test scores of American and Asian high school students has recently become a matter of many debates in many circles. Often the conclusion is that the American system is not fulfilling its role of making competent citizens, and that America will soon be unable to compete in the global economic market. Before I discuss the differences between Western and Eastern attitudes towards education that feed this test score split, I will review an important factor that is often overlooked in these statistics. The school systems of Japan and Korea do not attempt to educate the entire population of the country. Instead, only the most successful grammar school students are chosen to go on to higher education. In contrast, America makes education beyond grammar school not only available but required. Therefore, while the test scores represent all of American children, they only represent a select number of Asian students. These test scores do not reflect that American students are not as intelligent or as able to compete as Asian students are. Instead, they reflect a difference in attitudes thatShow MoreRelatedChoice And Accountability Claims By Diane Ravitch1259 Words   |  6 PagesSantos 1 TO: Franklin McDuffy, California State Senator FROM: Onassis Santos, Education Policy Researcher at Senator McDuffy’s Office DATE: October 27, 2014 SUBJECT: Choice and Accountability claims by Diane Ravitch The purpose of this memo is to review and analyze the claims made by Diane Ravitch in her book, The Life and Death of the Great American School System, and to justly state if the authors claims are well-researched and based on facts or if her arguments and claims are biased and opinionatedRead MoreThe Future Of The American Public School System1344 Words   |  6 PagesAmerica s Schools are to meet the needs of the twenty first century, they must be reinvented. It is not enough to try to fix the schools; they must be reconstructed in both fundamental and radical ways. The school system must be restructured. 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