Example Of A Current Issue In Education Essay

Current Issue in Education

Introduction
Education is one important aspect that the government should put emphasis on. Good quality education should be provided to the citizens of a country in order to produce people who will be an asset to rather than a liability. Producing citizens who are efficient, competent, and productive makes a country progressive as well. In this regard, the best place to mold the citizens of a country is in schools. Schools prepare its graduates so that they may become globally competitive in the real world.

Initial Educational Reforms

No Child Left Behind Act
Additional Budget for Education
Another reform implemented by President Bush was the increase of the budget for trainings, programs, and research developments for schools. The American Competitiveness Initiatives use $ 5.9 million and more than $136 million dollars for trainings, researches for strengthening school reforms, and the workforce (Zhao, 2015). President Bush even added more funds for the education sector, amounting to $380 million. This was intended to be used for math instruction from the earliest grade levels to high school.

Reforms in the Current Administration

The reforms made by the previous administration were continued to the present. They saw the positive results from the reforms, especially in the allotment of a bigger budget for the education sector. The Department of Education has presented projects under the Obama administration for their $71 billion budget for education (US Department of Education, n.d.). The proposal for the budget includes: (1) high school redesign and career readiness, which aim to put students in a one-year postsecondary course to help them find their path to college and to their career; (2) strengthening of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) Education since economists project that there will be an increase in career opportunities related to Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math; (3) teachers and leaders being given an additional budget for their trainings, programs, and school facilities to make the delivery of quality education effective; (4) school safety being considered in order to decrease the instances of gun violence in schools and to create a nurturing climate for students; and (5) making college affordable.

Implications of Reforms in the Current Education Sector

The programs laid by the Obama administration will surely make a difference in the education sector of the country. First among his proposed plans is the reshaping of the programs in high school in order to prepare high school students for their chosen career. According to the US Department of Education (n.d.), high school students lack exposure to the experiences they need, which should be linked in their chosen paths for their jobs and careers – especially in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math. The school should ensure that students are engaged and are motivated as productive graduates, making them an asset to the country. Programs such as a year of training for high school students before going to college is a good way to align graduates for the needs in the industry. Many students nowadays take their college education for granted. Their mind set is just to pass, barely understanding the lesson and graduating with underdeveloped skills for the jobs they are aiming to have. According to a study by McBeath, Reyes and Ehrlander (2008), increasing the budget for education reforms is necessary to increase achievement and to help low performing schools maintain the monitoring of their students’ academic competence. Thus, if a school has an adequate budget, then they will be able to purchase additional books for their students, pay for trainings and programs for their teachers, and provide better facilities for the students, which will help them become engaged and motivated to go to school. This will also result in better graduates who are ready to face challenges in the workforce.
According to the US Department of Education (n.d.)., America is one of the leading countries that produces innovators, scientists, and engineers who have contributed much in today’s world; however, the number of students who want to take up courses in line with careers in the Sciences is declining. President Obama said that teachers should be given more training so that they will become adept in teaching the students (US Department of Education, n.d.). The budget for the strengthening of the STEM is $110 million for grants and scholarships for courses aligned to STEM; $40 million for preparing STEM teachers who will be deployed in schools, which aim to produce graduates who will be proficient in STEM; and $20 million for programs, which will identify and reward the best teachers in STEM. According to the study by Akiba, LaTrende and Scribner (as cited in David, 2011), it was found that students can’t understand math because their teachers can’t understand the subject matter either. It has a domino effect that the future educator who did not get better education in their college can’t provide good education to their future students. This is one of the reasons that training and development programs for teachers should be provided. Equipped and knowledgeable teachers are needed to produce competent students.
Since education is the best tool that an individual can have in order to obtain a bright future, it is important that it is made accessible to all. In this regard, a budget of $86 billion will be given to grants and scholarships for young adults who want to pursue a college education (US Department of Education, n.d.). This will also help in increasing the number of graduates in America and maintaining it stability for producing productive citizens.

Conclusion

Educational reforms are imperative in order to keep pace with the needs of the workforce all over the world. Starting to change the programs in school, which is one of the most important institutions in the country, will really help make a country progressive. By continuing to allot a bigger budget to education, the American education system will be able to produce top graduates who will become skilled, competent, and efficient members of the workforce.

References

David, A. (2011). Stem the tide: Reforming Science, Technology, Engineering, Math education.
Maryland: John Hopkins University Press.
McBeath, J., Reyes, M. & Ehrlander, M. (2008). Education reform in the American States.
USA: Information Age Publishing
US Department of Education. (n.d.). 2014 Education Budget: What’s the Bottom Line?
Retrieved from http://www.ed.gov/blog/2013/04/2014-education-budget-whats-the-
bottom-line/
Zhao, Y. (2015). Catching up or leading the way. Retrieved from
http://www.ascd.org/publications/books/109076/chapters/Recent-Education-Reform-in-the-United-States.aspx
References