'In the know' of what works within the US public school system, the US Department of Education relayed the following four essential ingredients in today's world of education:

Environmental And Societal Reasons Contributing to the Decline of Students’ Academic Performances

Tristan Andrews is a freelance author who writes about education for http://www.tutoring.college.edu.pe

‘In the know’ of what works within the US public school system, the US Department of Education relayed the following four essential ingredients in today’s world of education:

1. High standards
2. Accountability
3. Increased choices for parents
4. Sound, proven methods of instruction

In 2002, as a follow-up to the ‘No Child Left Behind Act’, legislation designed to improve the performance of U.S. primary and secondary schools, Ed.gov reported on the following ways in which the President proposed for strengthening the legislation:

- Enhance efforts to close the achievement gap through high standards, accountability, and more options for parents.

- Outfit states with flexibility whereby they can better measure individual student progress, target resources to students most in need, and improve assessments for students with disabilities and limited English proficiency. Specifically, the President proposed that each individual state be held accountable for ensuring that every child in the US is capable of performing at or above grade level by the year 2014.

- Prepare high school students for success by promoting rigorous and advanced coursework and providing new resources for schools serving low-income students.

- Provide greater resources for teachers, whereby through improved math and science instruction, the achievement gap can be further reduced; intensive aid can be proffered to struggling students; the Reading First program can be continued; and rewards for great progress in challenging environments can be awarded.

- Offer additional tools to help local educators turn around chronically underperforming schools and empower parents with arsenals of information and options.

B. Academic Statistics

To discern the quality of education being provided at the public school level, the following metrics are often used: demographics of teachers; teacher to student ratios; and academic achievementstest scores.

–Teacher Demographics

Generally speaking, there are more than 3 million teachers within US. Within this context, essentially what we are referring to are the number of years each of these individuals has been teaching and the educational degrees each holds. When looking at the qualifications of the teacher workforce, these then are the two traditional indicators most often considered.

With respect to a teacher’s number of service years, there appears to be a petering out of the creativity phase. Consistent research indicates that brand-new teachers make ‘important gains in teaching quality in the first year and smaller gains over the next few career years.’ While this may not hold true of all teachers, it appears to be the ‘norm’ whereby teachers start out with great enthusiasm and purpose and, due to a myriad of factors, over time, resort to more average measures.

In terms of US teachers’ longevity within the school system, 12% were found to have less than 3 years teaching experience; 33.9% between 3 and 9 years; 25.4% between 10 and 20.

With respect to education, teachers were found to possess the following academic backgrounds:

- 50.8. percent, the highest degree attained for the majority of teachers, was a bachelor’s degree
- 40.9 percent of teachers had attained a master’s degree as their highest degree
- 1.2 percent had attained a doctorate, professional, or education specialist degree.

Note: Fewer than 2 percent of all teachers had completed no higher than an associate’s degree.

And though often difficult to attain verifiable data, teacher demographics may also include: the percentage of teachers leading classes outside of their ‘core area.’ In 2003-2004, among all teachers at all grade levels, an average of 14 percent were teaching outside of their main assignment area.

–Teacher to Student Ratios

Due to funding and resource restrictions, the teacher to student ratio is often a controversial topic. When assessing the number of students per teacher, the teacher to student ratio is the metric that is used most often when attempting to determine the quality of the education provided by a particular school.
In 2003-04, the average student/teacher ratio was 15.9, or 16 students for every teacher. This was down from a decade ago (1993-94) when the teacher to student ratio was 17.4 or 17 students for every teacher.

Within 2003-04, the following states had teacher to student rations of more than 20 to 1: Arizona, California, Oregon, and Utah.

The general sentiment of those who disagree that a lower teacher to student ratio correlates with a higher level of education is, “Extra school resources play a negligible role in improving student achievement.”

And, in the aims of boosting students’ academic performances, proposals at both the state and federal levels have called for class-size reductions.
Further compounding the notion that smaller class sizes fare better for students is the group of economists who put forth compelling data connecting students from well-endowed schools with job market success andor high salaries.

The economists’ statement was, “Children who attend schools with a lower pupil-teacher ratio and a better educated teaching staff appear to earn higher wages as adults than children who attend poorer schools.”
Within a small class, teachers may have the luxury to tailor lesson plans to meet the needs of specific children. However, due to the ever-expanding classroom phenomenon, teachers are finding they have less, not more, control over the class. Frequently, within larger classroom settings, students act out in order to get the teacher’s attention. In a small class, students automatically receive more attention and, thus, are less apt to behave in a negative fashion.

–Teachers’ Pacing

For several reasons: required annual curriculum; attention span of students; and potential perceptions of favoritism, teachers run their classrooms at their own discretion by employing a manageable pace whereby a reasonable amount of time is devoted to each subject.

Within classes where there may be high teacher to student ratios or where special-needs andor behaviorally challenged children are intermixed with regular students, there may be an imbalance in the speed at which each of the students learn.

Yet, what are a teacher’s options? Ethically, should the majority of the students understand a particular subject; the teacher cannot slow down the class for the one or two students for whom the concept fails to register.

Frustrating to the teacher, as well as, the pupil, the problem stems from a lack of resources whereby additional teachers andor classrooms may be needed.
Slow learners andor emotionally challenged children tend to require more time and energy on the part of the educator. It is unlikely the teacher will be able to work, on a going basis, with any one child in particular without neglecting the needs of the other students.

Hired as part of school system, the educator’s responsibility is to all students rather than a select one or two. Hence, it is the educator’s responsibility to either call in the parentsguardians or determine other options from within the confines of the school system.

The most likely scenario is that the teacher will decide to bring in the parents to discuss supplemental learning options, e.g., tutoring or private educational facilities, for the child.
Via such tools, the child may have an easier time working at hisher own speed and, thus, learning at hisher own pace.

C. Academic AchievementsTest scores

–High School Graduates

Considered a barometer of the health of the American Society (not to mention the skill level of its future generations), the high school graduation rate presently hovers around the 65% mark. Note: Much debate centers upon the accuracy of the high school graduation statistics in the US.

This reported figure points to a slow down in high school graduation figures. Although it does not necessarily indicate a decline in the numbers of high school graduates who go on to college. In 2005, according to data from the National Center for Education Statistics, approximately 69 percent of high school graduates, nationally, went directly to college.

–College Entrance Exams

ACTS-nearly four-fifths of the 1.2 million U.S. high school graduates failed to pass the 2007 standard examinations administered by the American College Test (ACT) center.

- 27 percent received a passing score in biology
- 69 percent received a passing score in English
- A total 21 percent reached the benchmark in all four subject areas: inclusive of algebra and social science.

According to the US Education Secretary, Margaret Spellings, “Although the nationwide average total score on the ACT test rose the fastest in 20 years, the overall performance was unacceptable.”
Spelling further stated, “The ACT findings clearly point to the need for high schools to require a rigorous, four-year core curriculum and to offer advanced placement classes so that graduates are prepared to compete and succeed in both college and the workforce.”

Echoing similar sentiments, Richard Ferguson, chief executive at ACT opined, “The low pass rate suggests that many college students may struggle or need remediation along the way. We have a lot of work ahead of us to ensure that all students graduate from high school with the skills they need to succeed at the next level of education.”

SATS-according to the College Board (administrator of the SATs), of the 1.5 million who took the SATs in 2007, for the second consecutive year, overall scores dropped by the following levels:

- 1-point decline in critical reading scores
- 3-point decline in mathematics
- 3-point drop in the writing section

Surprisingly, College Board statisticians reported a decline in scores declined among students who had purposefully taken the core pre-college curriculum in high school, foreseen as being a precursor to success in future studies.

Teachers in private schools generally enjoy smaller class sizes and, thus, greater control over the curriculum and the setting of standards for performance and discipline. Since private schools can be selective in their admissions processes, their student population also tends to be more motivated in their educational pursuits.

D. Conclusions

While not a completely bleak picture, the US’ public school system appears to have made improvements in the following areas:

- Implementing additional accountability measures
- Provisions for new streams of funding
- Availability of resources
- Renewed emphasis upon educational importance, as well as, higher levels of education for teachers

Miraculously, with the aide of third party educators, despite the troublesome areas of overcrowded classrooms; unimaginative lesson plans; fewer one-on-one teaching sessions; and lack of available resources, students have managed to come away with valuable knowledge, as well as, vital life skills.

Looking For More Information?

Make sure to explore other articles in the Uncategorized category or contact us to suggest a website or a service to review.

Need to FIND something QUICK? SEARCH!