America's schools are continuously falling behind other nation's schools. Unfortunately, I feel that it comes from our students not caring. Let's face it. We live in a very competitive country. But sometimes I feel that we put more emphasis on things other than education, which should not be such a priority. We need to get our students better prepared for the workforce world. Education is one of the most important things that our children have the opportunity to gain. This is one thing that can not be taken away from them. It is also a competitive area among different countries. Can STEM put America where it needs to be in comparison with the other countries? I say YES, it can, with work and dedication on the part of the teachers, STUDENTS, as well as the PARENTS.
I feel that we, as the United States have a long way to go before there is a commitment to science education reform. I'm not saying that we haven't gotten our toes wet yet, however, I do believe that there is a long way to go before we reach the forefront of global competition. Our students have been told for far too long that science is not important and that it does not count. This is going to take a lot of undoing before it even begins to get a little better. Some schools have started to try to put science back as an important part of our student's education. This may be coming from a higher authority. As a step in the right direction, my school has started taking science really serious. This is however due to the fact that science is becoming the second indicator for our Annual Yearly Progress. Science is really getting a lot of attention lately...but has it come too late?
With the millions of dollars being spent on the wars, one would think that education would be slightly as important. I do not understand why education keeps getting cut in the budget cuts when education is what is needed for one to succeed. The things that our schools could do with all of the million, billions of dollars that is being spent on wars. Just does not seem fair to our children...country...nation.
Kelly,
ReplyDeleteI absolutely agree with you that education is the key to staying globally competitive. I am also glad that you brought up the point that it needs to be more than just the teacher and policy makers that make this push, students and parents MUST be involved. Americans seem to have become a bit relaxed when it comes to education. We need to understand that if we stay where we are today, our future in comparison to the rest of the world looks a little bleak. There needs to be a renewed stress on the importance of education and the place it allows us to hold globally.
Kelly,
ReplyDeleteYou make a very good point that I totally agree with! Education is the first step in improving the situation. I do think that there has been a huge lack of focus on the importance of science education and that the country is slowly realizing that this may have been a mistake. I understand that reading and math are important skills, but science is all around us in the natural and the man-made world. It deserves just as much attention to produce quality citizens.
You also bring up a good point about the support of parents. I think that the first step is to educate the parents on what STEM is and how they can encourage their child to take a vested interest in that area. America definitely has the resources to make this happen, it just depends on where the focus of the government currently is. We need to get the attention of the nation on our current situation and the dire need for STEM awareness for the general public as well as future scientists and engineers.