The Importance Of Education For Public Schools

Diane Ravitch is a historian of education at New York University. She makes a very compelling, but extremely one-sided argument that educational reforms such as “No Child Left Behind” are causing students to have lesser opportunities in schools. Her argument is directed towards school boards, parents, and lawmakers who have the ability to change school and state policies on education. She wants those people to believe that the current school system is not effective in giving students a quality education and preparing them for life. Diane Ravitch’s argument brings up a question for readers: Is it beneficial for students when schools cut funding to non-tested subjects? According to Ravitch, most of the schools in the country, except for the ones in the most affluent communities base their

In the article “Still separate, still unequal” Jonathan Kozol describes the reality of urban public schools and the segregation in education, which is still a major problem in our educational system. According to the author the main problem for minorities is money. White students can afford a good education before they enter kindergarten, while minority students are limited in what they study. For example, suburban schools, which primarily consist of white students, have better education than urban schools which primarily have African American and Hispanics. If Jonatan Kozol is right that the educational system is still separate and unequal, as I think he is, then we need to reassess the popular assumption that the educational system is the

Ravitch?s discussion on ?achievement gaps? points out that African American students academic scores have progressed remarkably since 1990 to 2011. She also states that the Hispanic and Asian have progressed as well. Achievement gaps will continue to be an issue, as long as there are different races, ethnic groups, the poor and the wealthy. The more disadvantaged one is, is going to lack in education and prosperity. To solve an issue like the achievement gap, we need to take action and begin at the root. These children are suffering because lack of proper education in the school system, which stems from the poverty in the segregated neighborhoods. Low income

Diane Ravitch advocates to “fix” schools and to coordinate with local to conclude the achievement gap between White American, African American and Hispanic American in The Fact About the Achievement Gap. First, to fix schools is a significant essential for decline achievement gap between different races. Although the reformer sustain that African American and Hispanic American should attend privately managed charter school or private or religion school instead of public school since reformers think that African American and Hispanic student do not have progress in the past decade, reformers ignore the increasing percentage of NAEP test, which test the students with the basic skills they need; however, instead of liberating from public schools,

This is her best supporting statement because it is the most accurate and easiest to verify, just ask any current student or teacher in a public educated school system, higher test scores equal higher ratings for the school. Furthermore, she not only offers a clear and persuasive outline of the various issues facing public educators today, she offers ideas for how to fix those issues. For example, she explains the importance of how parents need to get involved with where they are sending their children to school and need to be the ones to put their foot down with these test score curriculum school systems. Ravitch suggests, “An educated parent would not accept a school where many weeks of every school year were spent preparing for state tests. An educated parent would not tolerate a school that cut back or eliminated the arts to spend more time preparing for state tests” (Ravitch 108). However, this is the area where the reader may disagree with Ms. Ravitch, as the suggested solution, may be her weakest argument because, it seems that a more dynamic solution would not only include the parent, to change the ways the schools are, but more importantly, it would include the student. This only makes sense, as the students are the most vested in this argument and are the ones most impacted by what is going on in the classrooms, if they want change,

She also mentions that it’s not just the school’s fault for the gap, but that we must look at the home situation. In her article, Diane Ravitch correctly asserts that the gap will be difficult to close if all groups are improving, also it will be the student’s social situation, but she fails to mention that students must have the proper work ethic if they are willing to take the opportunity. In the article, Ravitch declares that we will struggle to close the gap if all groups are improving.

Schools can’t solve the problem alone,” and” without local initiative, reformers cannot succeed.” The neighborhood is where the children grow up, so some of the small level programs depend on local promote. Third, do not ignore the stupendous gap of income. The achievement gap begins when children are young because some of them have had better medical care and have memorized more vocabulary than others because of highly educational parents. According to what Sean Reardon found, the income achievement gap is growing, and it is two times larger than black-white achievement. Therefore, to mend the schools, to act in concert with local, and not to neglect the large income achievement gap are the points that Diane Ravitch

Public schools seem to be focusing only on subjects that are being tested for state funding really beneficial to the student? This is true, for I asked a few teachers; although some of this can be true facts the author, Diane Ravitch, does not cite from credited sources anywhere in the reading. Ravitch wants parents and policymakers to shift public education away from testing to a full liberal arts curriculum.This program tied school funding to standardized test scores in math and reading and, as a result schools put their resources into testing and test prep for those courses. Ravitch argues that our education reform programs like, “No Child left Behind Act,” led to cuts in important parts of the curriculum and in order to focus on those we see cutbacks in funding in other areas. I believe public schools are not giving kids the best

Another reality that Diane Ravitch sheds light on is the misconstrued theories about the achievement gap. Reformers often say that African American and Hispanic students have not made progress for decades (Ravitch, p.55). However, after looking at the data from NAEP, it is evident that this assertion by the reformers just simply is not true. Rather, these students have shown dramatic increases in math. Many do not recognize this though because white achievement has also improved which keeps the gap at large. (Ravitch, p.56) Throughout different grades, African Americans and Hispanics have shown remarkable progress in mathematics. There has been improvement in reading as well, just not as dramatic as the progress shown in math. Ravitch states, “Today’s reformers often imply that schools alone can close the achievement gaps among different groups. The like to point to exemplary charter schools with high test scores to prove their point” (Ravitch, p.59). While the belief that a charter school could bridge the achievement gap and overcome the disadvantages of poverty, it simply is not a realistically feasible concept. Thomas B. Timar of the University of California states, “Yet the gap is the symptom of larger social, economic and political problems that go far beyond the reach of the school… While schools are part of the solution, they alone cannot solve the problem of educational disparities” (Ravitch, p.60). Timar calls society to take action by

In Thomas Jefferson’s legislative bill for the state of Virginia in 1776, he outlined a need for the establishment of “…a school for teaching reading, writing, and arithmetic…and every person is entitled to send their children three years gratis, and much longer as they please, paying for it,” (Smith). Jefferson stressed the need for a public-school system, in which every student had a right to a basic education. Although having gone through modifications, the basic public school system is still in place to this day. To fully take advantage of one’s public education, one must take an active and responsible role in their education. This means that one must be accountable, diligent, and productive in their work as well as contribute to the classroom

Advanced technology and forms of communication have changed the way we look at our nation. The current political climate and the cultural movement that is happening in our nation is going to go down in history as a revolution. A revolution where news headlines are instantaneously on our phone screens, and thanks to our advanced technology, a whole world of information is a few clicks away. However, despite these advancements in technology, the cultural change in America is often slowed down because there is a general lack of education. In America, education is the one, if not the biggest barriers that economically and institutionally suppress an overwhelming amount of the nation’s adults. Majority of adults in America do not have basic reading and writing skills yet education is still not a priority in America. There is a crucial need for education in America, now more than ever. In my opinion, the only reason for the current political climate in America is the lack of education that brings basic awareness. The solution to what we are witnessing as a nation is an education that makes individuals aware of the reality of our circumstances and allows them to see a perspective from multiple points of views. In this paper, I will present my argument on why education should be made a priority in America.

The public school system in America is flawed and only seems to favor those of a higher socio-economic class. American students in poor and high minority schools receive fewer resources, fewer AP classes, and less qualified teachers unlike their white and higher-class counterparts. Which in return has lead to lower high school graduation rates, low-test scores, and less students going to college. Some public policy has been made to fight the inequality for black and Latino students in public schools by starting desegregation plans but little has it helped. High stake state exams have held students back from moving on or receiving their diploma. According to the article in paragraph 2 its estimated 58 percent or more of ninth grade minority students will not graduate high school in

Growing up in the Chicagoland area you quickly realize the importance of education. From watching so many of your peers drop out of school, getting pregnant or even fall victim to senseless homicide. As a student of Chicago Public School (CPS) I noticed how little value is placed into the education system and also how teachers seemingly forget how a student's background affect how well they are able to learn in such difficult situations. I can remember having different classes each period in high school and all of my teachers instructing their class with their own style of teaching and although this is respected in the profession, they were still required to shape their pupils so that we can excel on standardized exams. They were unable to

I can understand why children want to come here, why parents want to send their kids here, but replacing public schools around the world with private schools is simply unrealistic. Have you ever thought about how much money you are spending each year, for multiple years to send your child to Acton? Have you thought about how much you could be saving if you just sent your child to public school? That could mean more vacations over spring break, summer break and winter break. Have you ever thought about how some families can't afford private school? What would they do if the world replaced all public schools with private schools? Their children would probably end up not attending school. Not only do you have to think about yourself when you decide if you are for or against public school funding, but you have to think about the community around you.

The greatly discussed dilemma of having a child be taught in a public school setting versus a homeschool setting has been evaluated by parents since the idea was first introduced in the 1970’s. Public schooling had been the standard method of teaching since it is a requirement for states to provide public, free education for children in grades K-12. However, the backlash against the system began when two educational theorists and supporters of school reform, John Holt and Raymond Moore, started to question both the techniques and the products of public schools. Some parents went on to support the ideas of them and began to teach their children in the environment of their own homes for several different reasons. Some included moral or religious reasons, a desire for high educational achievement, dissatisfaction with public schools’ instructional program, or concerns about drugs and peer pressure in a public school environment. Child development specialists believe that homeschooled children are isolated from the outside world, therefore making them socially handicapped. If being exposed to this type of education on an elementary school level, the child can suffer from the lack of fundamental development of effective social skills needed for a lifetime ahead of them.